Starting an online personal training business is very exciting as well as scary. Once you buy your domain name and start a Facebook page it all becomes very real.
Getting your first 1000 likes is the most difficult. Especially when you have no idea where to start.
So this blog will give you some tried and tested tactics to get your first 1000 followers.
There are ways to make it happen quicker, this usually means spending money but you can get followers without spending a penny. It just takes more time, which is always the way!
An important point I want you to understand is, it's very easy to get random followers, you can even pay for them. The truth is unless they are interested in what you do and are willing to buy, you're wasting your time and money on them.
When you post on your Facebook page only a small percentage of your following see your posts, you don't want to waste your good content on people that have no intention of buying from you!
Optimise your Facebook page
Ensure all the details are filled in. Use it like your website to share with people what you do and how you can help them. Ensure all your contact details are obvious and that you're consistently posting.
Have your business as your employer
It is important to have your business page as your employer on Facebook. That way anyone that visits your personal profile will see you have a business and will probably have a nosey. If they're interested and like your content they'll probably like your page.
Invite Likers
Many people ask their friends and family to like their page. I actually advise against this, giving the same reason why you shouldn't buy followers. By all means go through your friends list and invite people that you know are interested in health and fitness and are likely to buy from you.
What I mean by inviting likers is, I suggest that you ask every person that likes your content to like your page. This way you know they're interested in what you have to say as they've already liked something you've posted. Once a day go though your page and invite likers to like page and reply to every comment.
N.B if someone likes your page or comments contact them directly to thank them and offer them assistance
Be Strategic
Having a sharing strategy is important, when you have a plan following it consistently will mean you get more followers. Once you hit 1000 followers you don't just stop! By this point you will know what is working best to get followers on your page and can adjust your strategy as necessary.
Facebook is constantly changing the rules so you need to keep up to date and be resilient. Facebook basically want business to 'pay to play' so as a business owner you have to get creative.
-Share your business page to your personal profile each month
-Post daily in relevant groups being helpful and offering advice
-Share 3rd party content that your followers will like, they'll probably do the same back
Funnel followers
Use your other streams to get people on your Facebook page. Ask people to like your page at the end of your blogs and emails.
Ask your clients to like your page and ask them to share it with their friends too. Taking pictures of your clients and tagging them will help as all their friends will see it.
Do regular Facebook videos and live broadcasts, always use a call to action at the end. Ask them to like your page if they don't already and ask them to share the video or broadcast they're watching too.
Add your Facebook link to your Twitter and Instagram profile so you can funnel people from other platforms to Facebook. Give them a compelling reason to follow you on Facebook, let them know what they would be missing out on of they don't follow you there.
Social proof
This is massive in the fit pro business. If you don't have social proof you need to get some as fast as you can. Using your website to embed with a Facebook like box will mean they'll probably like your page as they're interested in your services as they're on your website. The great thing about the Facebook like box is it shows who of your Facebook friends already like the page. People trust their friends judgements, you always see people asking the opinion of their friends on Facebook.
Run a competition
You will see these constantly on Facebook. You have to be 100% compliant with Facebook rules otherwise your account can be suspended or shut down without any notice.
The idea is to offer your following something irresistible and relevant, it must also have value to them. You then give them the opportunity to win by sharing and liking your post. You can then have deadline date or when it gets to a certain number of shares to pick a winner.
This works well with recipe books and transformation packages.
Don't be boring
This goes without saying but if your content is boring or all about you, then know one will be interested. Make your clients the heroes of your posts, post thought provoking content, be helpful and ask questions.
Interact, be relevant and care about your followers. If you aren't genuine people will see straight thought you.
Network
This is a great way to build your following. Being in groups where your ideal clients would be. Team up with influencers in your industry, don't ask for them to do something for you. You need to give to them in order to gain their trust so you may have access to their following. Just remember no one owes you anything, don't expect people to shout you out, give with no expectation.
Connect with people on and offline and build relationships. You're following will grow as your presence does.
Follow other businesses
You can build your presence online by commenting and talking with other business. It's a great way to be seen by a bigger following when you don't have one as well as build a relationship with another business.
When you like other businesses and are contributing to a better user experience Facebook will recognise this and give your business as a recommended page to follow.
So you have some great tactics to get you started, you could of course pay for Facebook ads to boost your followers, although there are no guarantees.
I recommend using LikeAlyzer to get some great hints and tips as to what you can do to improve your Facebook page.
