Take Your Brick & Mortar Business Online

Hello! Welcome to the third part of our tutorial on how to take your brick and mortar business online! 

Now that your e-store all set up and ready to sell, it’s time to let the world know about it and drive visitors to your website.

Social media are the perfect channel to do so.  They are popular, so they are a great way to connect with thousands of potential customers, while you can also use them even if you are on a strict budget. 

Facebook and Instagram are undoubtedly the most popular social media platforms, so today we will show you how to create ads for your e-store to both. 

Let’s start by learning how you can create a Facebook ad. 

Visit Facebook.com 

Fill in with your name, email, or number, and a strong password. 

Similarly, add your birthday and gender. When you’re ready click Sign Up.

A verification code will be sent to the email address you just used. Head to your inbox to copy this.

Back to Facebook, fill in the code here and click continue.

Click Ok on the message that appears.

This is your new Facebook account! 

Facebook asks you to upload your cover photo and profile picture.

Click Add Picture and use a clear photo so that people that know you will recognize you when they search your name on Facebook. 

Choose one from your computer files, adjust it and click Save.

Now it’s time to let your friends and customers know you’re on Facebook. 

Start searching for people you know on the search bar and adding them as your friends. 

Now that you created your profile, it’s time to create a Facebook page for your e-store. Sharing content and promoting your business through your personal profile is not a good practice.

Log in to your Facebook account and let’s start. 

On the right-hand side of the blue toolbar, click the Create button. 

Select Page from the drop-down menu that appears.

There are two categories you can choose from, Business or Brand, or Community or Public Figure. 

Business or Brand is the most popular choice among for-profit businesses.

Fill in the information. The name, which must be the same as your actual business name, the business category that best represents your brand and address of your actual store. Click Continue.  

Once you do that, billing information fields will appear for you to fill. 

When you’re done click Continue.

Next, you need to upload a photo as your business page profile picture. 

It’s highly advisable to use your logo as a profile picture, as it adds a professional look on your business page and helps users get familiar with interacting with you as a corporate entity. 

Click Update on the photo icon and choose one from your computer, adjust it and click Save.

Then click Upload a Cover Photo and follow the same process.

A Page’s Facebook cover photo needs to be branded and represent your business, so it should be high-quality and perfectly optimized for display.  For eCommerce, the Facebook cover photo is a great place to display your products, like we do here.  

We recommend using the dimensions 820px by 360px and to keep all text and graphics in the middle safe zone.

Wait a few minutes until your page is created!

Next, Facebook gives you the option to add a Click to Action button. 

This will drive people directly to your website. 

Click the Add button and Select the Shop with You option.

Choose the Shop Now option and click Next.

You will see two options there. 

Select the Website Link option and add the URL of your website in the box. Click Save. 

Then click Finish.

You can test your button to see if it works. Click on it and then choose the Test button. This should take you to your website.

Go back to your Facebook page again.

Now it’s time to make this page popular!

You have already added some friends to your personal account so let’s invite them to like your page too.

Click on the dots, and choose Invite Friends. 

The reason you don’t see any right now is because I just created this account with you!

Then click Select All on the right side. 

You can also write a little message here at the top of your page, to let them know this is your new e-shop page. 

Then, click Send Invites.

Remember that you need to repeat this from time to time, as your list of friends on your personal profile grows.

One more thing you should do is to Include some additional business details. 

In the left-hand menu, find and select About.

This is where you will input information that tells readers about your business, from ways to contact you to your products or menu. 

Enter all important information, such as your website, hours, and contact information.

And that’s it! Your Facebook page is ready to be filled with your content! 

You can now start creating engaging posts and uploading photos of your products to catch your visitors’ attention and drive them to your e-store!