Create an Engaging Facebook Page
Building a Facebook presence starts with a well-designed and inviting Facebook page. When potential customers type your company's name into Facebook, this page will pop-up. Take the time to find an eye-popping cover photo that relates to your brand. Then, select a profile photo that matches. Many companies use their logo for their profile photo; just make sure the aspect ratio of the photo allows your logo to shine through.
The description of your company of Facebook will also be important. Include a few sentence that sum up your brand or service, and be sure to throw in a link to your website!
Share-Aways
Does your Facebook page have zero likes? Are you simply talking to yourself on Twitter? That's okay! We all start somewhere. The quickest way to increase the "likes" on your Facebook page, and followers on Twitter, is by giving away a product or service for free to one lucky Facebook / Twitter user who "likes" or "shares" your page. Think of it like a "share/like/follow raffle contest".
Link Your Site
Customers are looking for ways to interact with your company. If they really love your products or service, give them a link to your social media content so they can spread the love! MainlandAggregates.co.uk does an excellent job with their social media links; placing them at the bottom of every page on their site, near the "About Us" and "Customer Service" links.
Keep it Fresh
Posting new content weekly on your social media pages keeps your (potential) customers up to date with the latest news about your products and services. Keep this in mind when launching a new product or service. For example, you can break down an announcement into multiple posts; "something new is coming", "feature 1", "feature 2", "release date announcement", etc..
Share-Able Content
Is your content something that your friends would want to share with their friends and family? The most effective form of advertisement is word-of-mouth. In the world of social media, word-of-mouth is now more viral than ever. One happy customer might be willing to leave a review on your page. A really angry customer will share their experience with all their friends and family in the matter of a few keystrokes.
You can actually turn the tables through, and use this to your advantage. Give your message a clever tone and maybe even make a funny joke / observation about the competition. If Facebook users can relate to your message and get a chuckle, they might just hit that "like" and "share" button. If you knock it out of the park, you just made your first viral ad campaign without spending a penny!
Social Media is Critical to Your Long-Term Success
By engaging customers on sites like Facebook and Twitter, you can maximize your advertising dollar and get immediate feedback on what your customers think of your services or products. Take the time to reply to comments / posts; yes, this includes the negative ones. Over time, you'll increase your reach and build up a loyal base of supporters. Best of luck!