With over a billion users worldwide, Facebook has grown into one of the most popular socail networking websites out there. To the normal Facebook user, this means connecting with old friends, sharing pictures with family members who live far away and playing various games that have become popular on the website.

To the a business owner, Facebook is filled with possible clients or customers in your target market. All you have to do is find them and direct them to your website. I bet you’re thinking that sounds a lot easier than it actually is, right? Well, you’re partially right. It may not be as easy as it sounds, but there are a few strategies that business owners can use to find people in their target market.

Create a Facebook Fan Page

A Facebook Fan Page differs from your regular profile page because you aren’t actually requesting “friends.” Instead, you’re displaying your business information and other Facebook users are “liking” your fan page. Once they “like” your fan page, any updates you make show in their newsfeed, along with their friend’s status updates.

Attracting Visitors to Your Fan Page

Facebook gives you a few options to attract visitors. First, you have the option to “suggest” the page you’ve created to your friends. This sends your friend a notification telling them about your new page and encouraging them to “like” it.

You also have the option to “use Facebook as your page.” Selecting this option, switches you from your personal profile, to your fan page profile. From there you are able to “like” any pages that you want and comment on posts with you fan page name.

Start by choosing pages that your target market would frequent and “liking” them. For example, if you are selling home decor items, you would “like” fan pages for stores like, Walmart, Target, IKEA or local furniture stores.

Once you’ve “liked” fan pages people in your target market might frequent, you have the ability to comment on their statuses. Take a few minutes each day to comment on various statuses, engaging the other people commenting in conversation. Ask them questions and get them talking. Before you know it they’ll be checking out your fan page and your numbers will increase.

Using Your Fan Page to Your Advantage

The most important mistake people make when it comes to using their fan page is spamming the people who “like” your page. They only get on their page to post specials, or talk about their products or services. People get tired of reading advertisements and before long they’ll either “unlike” your page or block your posts.

You want your fan page to showcase your personality. You want to connect with people on a more personal level. Once you do that, the sales will start to trickle in. Instead of only posting about your business, post about yourself. Stick with positive and engaging posts. Again, ask questions, make statements that are slightly controversial and answer any comments that people leave. The key is to keep people talking. A good rule of thumb to follow is five or six regular posts and one business post per day. That way you’re still advertising your business, but you’re connecting and building relationships as well.

Lastly, you should never just type out a post from your fan page. Always add a photo or video along with your status. Photos and videos draw people's attention and get them to read what you typed. You'll find a lot more people interacting on your fan page if you make it visually appealing.