How to make money on…Facebook
admin • May 14, 2020
© iStock.com/tomeng
We all spend way too much time staring at that friend-filled website with the iconic blue banner, but what if time spent on Facebook could earn you money?
Here, we've put together a five-minute guide to help you benefit from the fee-free world of Facebook selling. The first one's for one-off sellers looking to shift some clutter and earn a bit of cash; the next one is for all you sellers, makers and creators who own a website and want an easy way to give your sales a boost. So read on to see how Facebook could be helping to line your pockets, without costing you anything.
Sell your stuff on Facebook
The basic idea: You list stuff for sale in a dedicated Facebook sale group, people reserve it online then come round, give you the cash, and take it away.
What is a Facebook sale group?
It's like any other Facebook group in that it brings people with the same interests together, but it's different because it lets members list items they want to sell, mark items as sold when they are gone, and look for items to buy themselves.
How to sell something on Facebook
It's easy: find the right Facebook sale group for you and your items. (If you haven’t already, you'll need to turn your 'sale group' features on, which takes seconds. Facebook guides you through it here.) To find a group, search by your postcode, town or city. Click 'join group' and wait to be approved by the administrator - usually around 24 hours.
Have photographs of the item you want to sell ready, and any other info you think buyers would like to know.
- Click on the 'sell something' button
- Provide all the necessary info about the item or items you're selling
- Click Done!
Made a mistake? Edit your post using these easy steps.
Sold something? Mark it as sold. Now for the victory dance!
Things to consider
Feeling a little lazy? Sell a job-lot of similar items in one listing. Just be prepared to answer questions from potential buyers!
Giving out a phone number? MoneySavingExpert.com suggests you pick up a new SIM to use for this purpose only. That way you side-step the risk of strange people having your day-to-day mobile number.
Be ready for questions! The best time to list is when you have a good few hours to jump online and answer any questions sent your way. Respond quickly and comprehensively, and people will be more likely to buy.
Things to remember before you start selling
Since this way of selling means people (aka strangers) will come round to your house to pick things up, it might not be a good idea to sell really expensive things. You might feel you're putting yourself at risk.
Also, if you live in the middle of nowhere you might not get as much interest. Travelling miles to collect something kind of negates the point of a bargain, right?
Promote your website on Facebook (for more lovely sales)
The basic idea: You make a fantastic Facebook Page that makes the right people want to visit your website. And by the right people, we mean people who are likely to buy your product.
What is a Facebook Page?
A Facebook Page is a page dedicated to advertising and promoting your business or product. It shows your website address but also offers more info about your business. This means people can visit your Page to get to know you (or your product) before they buy from you, meaning a good Page can be the difference between people shopping with you and going elsewhere.
If they 'Like' your Page, you can keep fans updated with info about your product or business which may encourage them to buy from you in future.
How to set up a Facebook Page
To set up a Page, just log in to Facebook, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click 'Create a Page'. Next, follow the instructions to build one that best fits your product or service.
How to make it great
A great Page will be one that's regularly updated with interesting, relevant content. This could be links to relevant news stories, comment on current events, images, videos, opinion posts… a good old mix!
Make sure everything you post on your Page is relevant to your product and to the people you're targeting, so it doesn't seem random.
You'll want to build a personality and voice for your brand - and stick to it. You'll build up followers by being authentic. This will also build trust (along with selling quality products, of course!), which is really important in today's often crowded online marketplace. Social media sales expert Kim Garst stresses the importance of not trying to sell to your fans all the time. Balance out every 'salesy' post with plenty more relevant, engaging posts that your fans will find interesting.
Be sure to respond to comments you get on your Page - it's all about getting that conversation flowing!
Keep it up!
A regularly-updated Page is a successful Page, so keep on posting!
Things to remember before you start
You'll probably want to keep your Page separate from your personal account, so if you haven't already, set up a dedicated Facebook profile for your business or product. Having said this, do talk about your Page on your personal account, and link to it. After all, your friends may want to become fans (and customers), too!
It might take a couple of minutes to create a Facebook Page, but maintaining it and making it useful will be much more time consuming. Be prepared to upload regular, quality posts that will keep your new fans interested. We're talking daily updates - so make sure you're committed to the cause!