By now, you are social media savvy—effectively engaging members of your target audience and establishing your pet store as “the local go-to for all things pet” via Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn (all managed using Hootsuite).  Hopefully, you have already seen the fruits of your regular posts and tweets in the form of followers, likers and friends (aka: customers) interacting with you as you become a trusted resource for their pet needs.

So, are you ready to step it up a notch?  There are lots of things you can do to make your Facebook page more robust.  This social-media network, in particular, offers a variety of applications, advanced options and customizations that will allow you to take your outreach to a whole other level.  

SitStay.com, one of the first pet supply stores on the Internet and now one of the largest dog-focused supply stores in the nation, started using Facebook in August 2009 and has grown its fan base to over 20,000 users in the past year.

“We’ve done it through developing a fun Facebook experience, running ads on Facebook for our fan page and most recently a sweepstakes,” explains Kent Krueger, vice president of SitStay, Inc. “Our Rescue a Rescue Sweepstakes allows one lucky winner to choose the rescue of their choice to receive $1,000 in dog supplies. Additionally, the winner will receive $500 for their own use.  We’ve seen our base grow by 2,000-3,000 a week during the sweepstakes promotion.”

Do you want to similarly boost your online presence?

Here are a few ideas that will you tap into Facebook’s 500 million-plus users:


Fan Coupons, Discounts & Specials
Facebook offers an effective way to make your customers feel like they are “in the know” by giving them special fan discounts and coupons.  Rewarding customers who “like” you on Facebook not only entices them to come to the physical store, but also builds customer loyalty.  As low-tech as it sounds, a printable coupon or discount code—say for 10 percent off their next purchase or a free bag of doggie treats—can yield an impressive return.  

The easiest way to customize your Facebook page with text or images is by adding the FBML Application.  This application allows you to add a unique tab or even multiple tabs, alongside your basic Wall, Info, Photos and Discussions tabs. These fully customizable tabs can include any type of content you dream up— from Coupons, Products, Newsletter or Email Signup to Contests, Sweepstakes or an Online Store.  You can embed graphics, live news feeds and video, links to non-competing websites and blogs, and much more. You can even set a customized tab as the default landing page for “non-fans” during the set up process.

To add the FBML Application, any Facebook Administrator can click on “Edit Page” and scroll to the very bottom, where you will find the “Static FBML” link under the “More Applications” heading. You will name your new Tab by typing your desire text into the “Box Title” field and then adding text or images in the FBML field by simply entering basic code snippets.  Code can be copied or pasted from an HTML code generator, or simply written by hand. While this may not sound very simple, trust me, it’s easier than you think!

What about Twitter? Because everything happens in real time on Twitter, you must post frequently to remain visible on your follower’s news feeds —otherwise your tweets can get buried fairly quickly.  This immediacy lends itself nicely to broadcasting today-only specials and discounts.


Contests & Sweepstakes
Because status updates, as compelling as they may be, aren’t always enough to motivate fans to interact, many businesses are finding that contests are the perfect solution. They play well to a Facebook audience because they are fun, get fans involved and interacting with your page, and have the potential to go viral.

However, generally speaking, you cannot technically “run” a contest on Facebook. It has to be run outside of the Facebook platform, using an application such as WildfireApp or offsite–either on your blog or website.  You can, however, use Facebook to aggressively promote your contest (just make sure you thoroughly understand the Facebook promotion guidelines).

When you select a winner, be sure to tweet the results to your Twitter followers for extra publicity.  Additional ways to encourage more customers to “like” your page include posting information about the winner in your store or even having postcard-sized cards that walk-in customers can pick up with a direct link to enroll in the contest by visiting your Facebook page and clicking “like.”


Events
Promoting pet-related events and activities, both at your store and elsewhere, is a great way to reach out to people who may not be on your mailing list or have cause to visit your website.  If you haven't yet created events through your page, you will first have to add the "Events" tab. To do so, you can click the "+" sign at the top of the Page Publisher and choose "Events" from the drop-down menu. You should then see a new tab called "Events" from which you can create and edit page events. Once you have added this tab, creating new events is a simple process that  allows you to outline who’s invited, as well as the what, when, where and why’s of the event, and even allows guests to reply if they will be able to attend.

Remember that the more you offer, the better the chances people will “like” your page.  You will want to add content that encourages “sharing” and “liking.”


About the author:
Kristen Levine’s passion for pets started at a young age and quickly led to a fifteen-year career as the Public Relations Director of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Tampa Bay, where she played a critical role in promoting pet adoption and pet lifestyle education. Her knowledge of the pet industry and lifestyle concerns led Kristen to found Fetching Communications in 2003—the world’s first marketing agency exclusively dedicated to the pet marketplace. Today, Kristen is a popular columnist for NBC Universals Petside.com, The Tampa Tribune and FIDO Friendly magazine.  She’s also Bissell Homecare’s official pet spokesperson and appears regularly on Daytime, a nationally syndicated morning show. Kristen and her husband Paul live in Florida with their dog, three goats and a pair of miniature donkeys. For more information, visit www.KristenLevine.com.