Use Your Personal Facebook Page to Gain Massive Appeal for Your Business

Years ago, I remember watching the Osbournes, a reality show about an aging rock star and his dysfunctional family.  I believe it was the first really successful reality based show and it got a lot of attention.  President George W. Bush even said it was his favorite TV show. 

The reason why shows of this nature got so popular was because people genuinely wanted to see what these stars actually lived like.  

Looking back at it, in a weird way it was like going to the zoo to see what animals do in their natural environment.  Not to denigrate the nice people in the Osbourne family in any way, but that’s what it kind of what it reminded me of.

So, people want to know more about the folks they follow or like, and if you’re doing business on the Internet, then people will want to know more about YOU.

Hence the reason why it’s a good idea to use your personal Facebook profile to relate to your herd, tribe, or crowd.

Getting Personal with Facebook

Just to let you know, Facebook tries to discourage using your personal business page.  In the Facebook Terms of Agreement, under Registration and Security section, line #4 states:

“You will not use your personal timeline primarily for your own commercial gain,* and will use a Facebook Page for such purposes.”

(*Underlined emphasis added.)

So according to Facebook you can’t OVERTLY use your personal account for business advertising and marketing.  However, that does not mean you cannot use it to communicate with people that want to follow you. 

Quite frequently, I have people that I do business with through my business Facebook page and they want to follow my personal page as well.  I don’t see any reason not to add them to my friend list.  But this is a personal issue that you’ll have to consider for yourself. 

NOTE:  If you have strong political convictions, you may want to keep them in check on social media sites.  I personally know a local photographer that just can’t keep his mouth shut on Facebook and the result is he has lost a TON of business.

 I keep my personal views to myself for several reasons.  For one thing, I realize that many people have different views than mine, and they will be offended by my views no matter how nice I am about it.  Another reason I don’t engage in these conversations is it is very time consuming.  I have no time to hammer out the problems of the world through Facebook, so therefore, I avoid political conversations like the plague. 

Finally, no matter how much proof I have on a certain point, no matter how great my debating skills are, I have never, ever in my lifetime moved an adult from their political conviction.  It’s like Simon and Garfunkel sang in their famous song, “The Boxer”:

“... still a man hears what he wants to hear,

And disregards the rest, hmmmm…”

So, I’m not even going to try to dissuade people from their political persuasions on Facebook.  That’s just the way it is.

Announce Cool Things about Your Business

If you have achieved a particular goal, you could use your personal profile to

crow about it.  Just make an announcement that you have achieved a particular thing related to your business.  For example, I’m planning on sharing a goal I have for having 200 blog posts on my blog.  I’m just going to mention that I have achieved a personal goal, and mention that friends and family can take a look at the work I’ve do by visiting my site. 

See?  It is very non-business threatening that way!

Just make sure that you a talking about it in your normal writing voice, as if you were writing a friend. 

Give Congrats to Friends!

Just like patting yourself on the back, you can also use your personal Facebook profile to congratulate people you've made friends with on there.  If you are networking with like-minded business people, you ca be sure that they will really appreciate your notice.  Also if they post an interesting piece of information, thank them.  A few words of thanks and encouragement will go a long way.

 Tell a Story

This works real well in the realm of advertising copy.  If you can tell a real good story about yourself or something you’re involved in, it’ll go a long way.  People relate to stories especially if the story is real and believable.  So, if you can use your personal profile to tell a story, especially an inspirational one, so much the better.

Post Pictures

If you have an event like an award ceremony or get together, take pictures, post them and then make sure you tell what they are about.  Also, make sure that you tag the pictures to let the people you are trying to honor see that you value them and their service.

To Your Success!

Mark “Elmo” Ellis

"When it Comes to High-Response Copy - I've Got Your Back!"

www.MarkEllisCopy.com

 (859) 797-9560

elmo033057@gmail.com

How To Use This Google App To Set and Achieve Your Goals Fast!

I'm a big believer in creating lists.  I have whiteboards all over my house with lists of things I need to accomplish.  This was really helpful when I was working on rehabbing my house that was completely gutted from top to bottom.  I would list at least 2 weeks of work I needed to do at a time.  

The reason for doing this is two-fold.  For one thing, when you have really big projects like that, you need a list so you can prioritize the really important parts and get them done sooner.  Actually, I like to tackle the biggest parts of a project first because they are usually the most important.



The other reason for working like this is when you knock out the biggest and hardest parts of a project, you'll have a huge psychological advantage.  Your brain will automatically tell you that you are on the down hill portion of your work and you will feel a certain momentum in getting your goal completed.  Another advantage of doing work like this is you'll feel a huge sense of accomplishment.  Because you have completed the work in a much faster and more ambitious manner, you'll kill that dreaded Procrastination Beast and get more work completed and more goals accomplished.

Google's FREE Application - Smart Goals

Google has a great free Application on the Google Chrome Store called Smart Goals.  This is a very simple application that I use to list my goals and accomplish them quickly and efficiently.  

The best part about Smart Goals is that here is a very small learning curve.  It is so easy to use that it takes almost no time at all to learn how to use it.  It took me literally 3 minutes to sign up and start using it.

So if you want to start listing your dreams and pursuing them, this is the perfect way to get started.

Please try it out and leave a comment below.

To your success!

Mark Ellis

www.MarkEllisCopy.com

"When it comes to high response copy, I've got your back!"

 (859) 797-9560

elmo033057@gmail.com

www.MarkEllisCopy.com

Portfolio Site: http://markelliscopyportfolio.blogspot.com/

How Accounting Firms Can Quickly and Easily Use Ad Copy To Increase Their Client Base - And Their Bottom Lines!

5 Easy Ways to Increase Revenue with Your Accounting Firm’s Website

By

Mark Elmo Ellis

The bottom line.  Everyone in the accounting industry talks to their clients about increasing it, yet few firms take simple steps boost their own.    It’s easy to spot this malady, just take a look at the average accounting organization’s website.  Tedious “Welcome” sections that nobody reads, the usual bookkeeping assurances that every site has, and the biggest sin of all:  few, if any, benefits of doing business with the firm.

                No wonder accountants get portrayed as formal bookworms in movies; their websites are so boring! Not only that, but there’s hardly any sales or marketing messages on the page at all.  When you do this, you are literally walking away from a chance to work with clients that could generate revenue long-term.  So, what I’d like to do, is take a few moments and show you how you can drop the monotony, attract more clients, and increase your bottom line.  I promise, this won’t be dull.

                The first thing you need to keep in mind, is that the Internet is a merciless, cold hearted marketing venue.  One second of boredom, and “click”, you’re gone.  Your home page must generate interest and curiosity from the get – go.  The best way to do that is to have a headline at the top of your page that does two things:  generate interest, while showing your prospects the most important benefits you can provide them.  Remember this simple rule: Interest + Benefits = Headline.

Here’s an example:

“Find Out How Our Firm Uses Little Known Techniques That’ll Save You Big Money ― Giving You More Cash To Increase Your Investment Portfolio!”

                While I realize this headline does not demonstrate the mission of every accounting practice in the industry, it gives you an idea of how you can create interest in what you have to offer. It has the two elements I mentioned above, Interest, (through curiosity, in this case) and a major benefit.  This one element is extremely important, so much so, that a good advertising copywriter will spend 80% of his time crafting it.  It must make the reader want to move further down the page to your marketing message, otherwise “click”.

                After you have generated enough interest in your site, the next thing to do is get the reader to move their eyes further down the site.  This can be accomplished by using two proven features: formatting and subheadings.  When a person reads a webpage, they usually scan down the page, looking for information that is easy to find and read quickly.  A subheading is a mini-headline that is short and drives home benefits in short, punchy statements.  If you use subheadings that are slightly bigger and bolder letters this is a natural target for their eyes.  Subheadings are usually placed before blocks of text that explain something, like this:

Clerical Errors – The Easiest way To Lose Money!

“Working with clients, we pay very close attention to business tax planning and preparation.  If not handled properly, valuable tax deductions can be lost by simple clerical errors.  Using successful and proven tax strategies, we can make sure you get money saving reductions on your taxes so that you can put that cash to work in your business or portfolio.”

The third advertising copy component that you can easily implement is the use of bullet statements.  Not just any bullet statements, but bullet statements with benefits.  What I mean by this is you create a bullet statement with a feature or a benefit like so:

Our firm will give you monthly financial counseling

Next, you add a more in depth benefit or group of benefits to the bullet:

 – We’ll guide you through expenditure planning, help you set goals, and warn you of any financial hazards along the way

The whole statement reads, and look like this: 

•             Our firm will give you monthly financial counseling — we’ll guide you through expenditure planning, help you set goals, and warn you of any financial hazards along the way!

•              Imagine what the impact a series of bullet statements like this will have on your prospect.  Of course you will need to brainstorm as many benefits your company has in order to write these, but the chore is well worth it.

         Another way to grab attention and gain the trust of a client or prospect is to let them become familiar with your and your staff.  A good professional picture of yourself and members of your team will allow potential patrons to take a good look at whom they are dealing with.   A way to make this even more effective is to tell a story about yourself or company. 

Here's some corrections I made on an accounting Web site recently.
Click on image to see larger view.

         The big mistake most accounting businesses make on their sales pages is they will have a paragraph or

two with information that’ll put people to sleep.  As the National Enquirer will tell you, “Enquiring Minds Want to Know!”  People love exciting and intriguing stories about other people.  If you can come up with a unique story about yourself or business, you will be remembered and differentiated in the market place.  So, a great picture of you or your staff, accompanied by a unique story is important to your home or sales page. 

       Finally, your home page should have a call to action on it.  Just like any other business, you have to ask for the sale.  If your company has a newsletter that goes out regularly, you can ask for the prospect’s contact information in exchange for a free issue.   You can also offer free promotional items if potential clients make an appointment with you.  At any rate, asking for the prospect to contact you for more information should be a tantalizing offer, especially if you have used all of these advertising copy elements and implemented them into your site. 

     If you want to get compelling copy to work for you while increasing your bottom line, I'm your man!
My contact information is listed below:

Mark Elmo Ellis

Phone Number : (859) 797-9560

Email: elmo033057@gmail.com

www.MarkEllisCopy.com
Mark Ellis Portfolio