With over 500 million people using Facebook to connect to their friends and families, it’s understandable that many small business owners overlook the free marketing power which comes with Facebook. That’s unfortunate because, when it comes to connecting to your customers, Facebook is one of the fastest tools on the planet.

Create a Business Page on Facebook

Creating a profile for your business is almost exactly the same as creating a personal page. Simply click the Create a Page for a celebrity, band or business link on the bottom of Facebook.com and walk through a series of questions to define your business type (i.e. is it a band, a restaurant, a celebrity or hundreds of other options). Once you’re done you can add photos, videos, hours of operation etc., as well as links and invitations to link to your business as fans.

The process takes a few minutes and is free for companies. It allows your business to promote itself on Facebook and make connections, to inform people of upcoming events, sales and changes to the company.

If you’re not familiar with what kind of content should be on your Facebook page, take a look at other similar businesses around the world and see how they use Facebook to engage their audience. Often companies include special promotions, quizzes, games, events, seminar or events, marketing materials, blog posts and employment announcements, just to name a few.

Remember, people who sign up for your Facebook page are looking to be more interactive with your company or brand, so engage them with questions and comments. Encourage them to post to your business wall, join contents and comment on photos.