When you have a business, what is the most valuable part of that business? I’m not talking about the customers because we already know that it is, or should be, all about the customer. But think about it, and yes, in order for you to have a business, you have to have a product, but in order for you to have that product.. someone has to think of it, right?
So, the most Valuable part of your business is…. YOU!
You created your business to provide for yourself by providing a product or service to customers, and then ultimately making those customers the most important thing, but it all started with… YOU. So, essentially the end user and end product/service are the most important but you and your business are the most valuable and necessary in order to provide your value to a customer.
Where am I going with this?
I was looking for a friend’s website and because I didn’t know the domain name/url of her website I had to find her business page, but I didn’t know the name of her business page because I didn’t know the name of her business… but guess what.. I knew HER NAME. Social media provides a great opportunity for us to share with our friends and connections a place to post our business when we talk “About us”.
Complete your “About Us” Section
So, first point… please please please complete the About Us section of your social media profiles. Now, be sure to include keyword rich content about your company but also your contact information which includes your website, email, phone and/or address (if brick and mortar) as well as your business name. Keep in mind that Facebook provides a really cool way to LINK that business right on your social media profile.
Take advantage of the Linking Opportunities
You want to make it so easy for your potential customer, friends and followers to find your business so please include your website, contact information and LINK your business profile to your personal Facebook page – after all – Friends Don’t Let Friends Claim the Facebook Suitcase! What is that all about? Well, I wrote a blog a few months back with a quick little video showing you how to link the two.
How come I got this wild hair?
So, I must confess, the hidden reason is that too often I find people putting Business Owner, Self 
Employed, Owner of, Independent Distributor or many others. When Facebook asks about your Work History, it asks the Company (this is the important part), the position (business owner, entrepreneur, store manager… etc) as well as description, city and time period. All of these things are great, but the most important thing here is your Company name (your business) and linking it to your Business Page.
If you put “Business Owner at Self Employed (Business)” you will be one of 173 thousand people with that title… or what about “Self-Employed”, you are one of just over 1 million folks with that title. Tell me, what do those two “titles” tell you about my business? Does it tell you how to find my business? Nope, it just takes you away from my personal profile to a page with a ton of other folks on it – NO VALUE!
MLM Title
Okay, this might strike a chord with some but think it through. If you are a distributor through a 
multi-level marketing company – does it provide any value telling the consumer you are an “independent distributor” as part of your work history or would you rather DE-CLUTTER the work history and send them to your business page straight away? (now I feel like I’m from the UK! 😉 ) Sure, you are a distributor and that can be clearly marked ON your business page, but the key is to get them there first, right?
Further, where is the benefit to YOU when you add the company name versus your own company or business page in your work history? I mean, I guess if you don’t have your own page, then sure, share that you are a distributor at Advocare, JuicePlus, Legal Shield or whatever. Keep in mind, they may leave your personal page and go there to find out more information. In this case, you
have lost the opportunity, or may have, to share with them your story and how they can get started, with YOU.
In this case, you might make your website stand out more to get them to go there instead. But seriously, think it through before adding a whole bunch of titles to your business name and think, how is this important and will it help my consumer find ME any easier?
Remember, you want to build YOUR business, not someone else's. Share on XI didn’t want to use any of my friends as guinea pigs so I did a few searches and came up with some examples, posted on this post. How would YOU improve these? Obviously they could use some help branding their business. I didn’t include their personal information, out of respect… but you get the idea.
If you have any questions about branding your business better through social media, or maybe even your website with some tips, please inquire about a social media checkup, schedule a marketing consultation or contact me with any questions. Looking forward to hearing your feedback!
~Kristen
So glad you are reminding businesses about this. I see it almost daily. Someone likes my page, doesn;t leave a personal comment. I want to connect to them. Go to their name & I see in about they have a business but I can’t link, they don’t list the page either. No wonder they still only have 123 fans. Frustrating for me & dumb for them.
On a personal note- my profile was set up with my first name misspelled. If I didn’t link- no one would ever find me. I have begged FB to allow me to fix the spelling but no is the word.
Yes, I know… drives me nuts.. why would you want to be more known as a generic term, right? And you nailed it.. no wonder they only have 123 fans! FB is infuriating at times.. sorry girl!
Good post, Kristen. I think many people haven’t thought this through. It is important how you place yourself for the best way to actually get business. Not even the “cute” ones do any good. “MomLucyPreneur” doesn’t help your ideal clients go to the page you actually want them to see.
That’s the thing Beth, they really haven’t thought it through, they think… I want to look more important… with more titles and while it may SEEM impressive, they aren’t getting across the point.. .and the point is to help their followers FIND THEM!
Enjoyed this post, Kristen. My brand is me. So everything I do has my name to identify me personally and my “business”. A few years ago if you googled my name, I did not come up. Now, I pretty much dominate the first few pages, because of my website, writing for the Huffington Post and all my other online escapades. My challenge has been saying succinctly who I am and what I am doing, as we used a word “gag” as a tool to start conversations in the world. So I am a “multifacetist” (made up word) plus many other things that all contribute to who I am as a writer, conversational sparkplug and storyteller. Enjoyed the post and will go back and recheck how I might tweak to get even more impact! Thanks Kristen…
Thanks Beverley… and for many entrepreneurs… we ARE our business… so it needs to be easily identified. As a writer, that is so very true… great job!
You’re so right about branding ourselves. After the first year, I changed my logo and company name to include ME. Instead of being EatTrainWin, I am now Christie Miller’s EatTrainWin. I wish I had read this blog when I started my business. I’m looking forward to learning even more from you.
Thanks Christie, and it wasn’t just about branding ourselves, but making it easier for folks to follow us.. or find our business. Glad you got it down!
So important to make sure people know who you are and what you do. I Googled myself, and my picture came up! Yay, they know who I am!
YAY.. so glad you were able to find yourself… in Google! LOL
Hi Kristen–this post resonated with me because I often struggle with mixing my personal with my professional. However, a couple months ago I realized that was hampering my progress as a business owner by not promoting me as my brand. So I began a big rebrand effort in March and things are improving. 🙂 What do you recommend for people who are business owners but still working a full-time job while they transition? What do you suggest for their Facebook personal profiles?
Excellent Meghan, and I think I recall that in our group… how do I brand myself as by business or as myself.. if not, it comes up often enough.
As far as recommendations for those working the FT 8-5 and trying to build their business – no different… you still need to create a brand that will continue, as ultimimately the goal is do work your passion as a FT and not a PT/hobby/past time, right? So, yea, their personal profiles will have them and what they do.. I would personally put the company I am trying to build. You don’t need to help build that 8-5 company, right… they are building it… unless it helps with your credibility.. then sure, include that you work there.. but this is my PT gig…. build them both.. bottom line, make it easier for your followers to … follow you! 😉 Great question!
Thanks, Karen, these are very good points. And I agree that it is important to talk about yourself and not some general titles or other.
It’s Kristen, but yes.. the titles are just trivial… help the consumers follow the brand!
Good advice! Sometimes we get so blind filling in ‘boxes’ on webforms that we don’t stop and think how that affects our business. I need to remember to pay attention! Thank you!
You got that right Kristy… we want to fill everything in… w/o thinking!
This definitely makes me pat myself on the back 😉
As a Beachbody coach, I too often see other coaches tagging their workplace as working AT Beachbody or Team Beachbody or even Team Beachbody Coach 411 (which is actually the page for coaches to follow for breaking network news…lol)… and it’s like HELLO link them to YOUR BIZ!
The business owner folks in the example above could certainly stand to tag their workplace as the actual name of the company they own – and make a page for that company if they haven’t yet!
Good girl.. pat yourself on the back… but take a look at your titles and be sure you don’t have ones in there that would confuse your followers. 🙂
Thanks Kristen. I’m glad I created my sites with MY name because that will follow me – even if I happen to change the focus of my business. I appreciate your input on my Coaching site and will readjust the layout to be easier to navigate for visitors. You are an awesome SoMe resource!
YES! and you even have TWO! You are quite welcome… I’d love to see more content/pages on your site. Folks don’t want to have to work to find things.. they will stick around longer if it is easier! Glad to be your SoMe resource! 🙂
I read your post twice, Kristen.
Your post drew me in gently but got stronger and stronger as you went along.
I’ve spent way more time on LinkedIn and only now am I paying attention to my FB profile. Gonna spend time listenting ot you. Love your $25 audits, toos. May I ask if these are a good draw?
Wow.. twice.. awesome! Glad to hear I kept pulling you in. If LinkedIn is your money maker, by all means kill it there. We can’t be everywhere, so do what you can where you can. I should probably focus a little more on LI. I actually just recently started doing more published posts over there… so I’m getting there. 😉
I’m glad you see value in what I am offering. As far as the audits, not really… I added it when I did an Expo for Women and it was set up exclusively for that. Folks don’t think anything is wrong with what they are doing sometimes, so don’t know they aren’t doing what they should, so maybe that’s why?
I actually had to read this post twice and then ask myself ” Did I do that?”..I think I;m good and I passed your test !
LOL… I’m glad you read through it and wanted to be sure you were on point…thanks Stacey!
You know damn well that most people are not going to go through the same gyrations you did to find a business. You’ve got to make it easy on them, and focus not on what you do or your title (in your description of your business) but how you can relieve someone’s pain. Excellent work, as always.
*leans forward* Please do go on! I just love your sassy attitude Jackie! Don’t ever change! 😀
She IS the best!
Yep.. but how are they expecting anyone to find them, right? Thanks Jackie!
Great post! Having the link as well as your business name definitely makes your page easier to get to and more likely will bring traffic. No one wants to search hours to find you. You have to make it easy.
You got that right Mike… got to make it easy for your consumers to find you… or they will easily find someone else’s business!
Great post Kristen – I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve gone to find someone’s FB page and had to give up the search because there’s no easy way to find it … sad, sad day! 😀 Makes my inner social geek wanna cry, it does! 😀
Thanks Katrina… it makes me want to cry too! I’m with you!
I really don’t understand why anyone bothers being on social media if they aren’t going to put forth some degree of effort. I will not like any “suitcases” or “eggheads” period end of story. You want my attention…give me something that is of interest and value!
Girl… I would agree 100%, and I don’t get it either.. drives me nuts!
The “YOU” factor starts your business running. Your real personality and efforts to undertake making your product or service valuable to the business are twin requirements to achieve the desired outcomes.
Thanks Lorii!
Great post. Agree you need to make it easy for customers to find you. Thanks!
Thanks Vicky!
OMG, yes! It drives me nuts when I go to someone’s personal profile and cannot find their business page! Great explanation of how – and why – to do this!
Wow, catching up on an old one huh Mindy? Thanks for stopping by… and yes… when I want to find someone’s biz… WHY isn’t it on their personal page??