Do NOT Make This Mistake When Posting To A FB Group

In my free webinar I spoke about "stalking" Facebook groups.  By stalking groups you can often "advertise" your services without breaking the group rules that say "no spam".  

For example, when a pregnant woman posts this question:
"Can anyone recommend a doula and midwife who have experience with home births?"

MOST group admins* will be ok with you posting about your services. 

Now, the big mistake I see is how the service provider (that's you) responds.

Here is how NOT to reply to a post:
- I'm a doula!
- I have experience.
- www.yourdoulawebsite.com
- www.facebook.com/yourdoulawebsite

None of these replies say much about you nor are they friendly, kind, easy or professional.  Facebook groups are communities.  You want your reply to be supportive and easy to understand.  No one has time to go back and forth with you if you just reply saying "I'm a doula.".  We are all very very busy, so if you can take some of the "work" off the pregnant mom that will go a long way.

Now here is WHAT a good reply looks like:
- Congratulate the mom! Show her you recognize how excited she must be and that she's not just another pregnant woman to you.
- Let her know you can help her.  Personally, when I send a support question to a company and the support team replies with "I can help you" it immediately makes me feel so good! Even before I read through the email I feel good.
- Verify what  you do and that you are taking new clients (assuming you are).  
- Make it very very easy for her to contact you, include your phone number, email, and website! This may seem like overload BUT everyone has their favorite way to communicate (personally, I'm an email kinda gal). The other reason you want to post all of this is because OTHER MOMS are reading your reply! They may not be ready to announce they are pregnant, or maybe they plan to get pregnant soon. You'll be shocked at how many moms (on the side) will PM you asking you questions about your services.
- ALWAYS, when posting your website on Facebook, include the WWW.  This way the link will be live and people can just click it.  See how we are always thinking about potential clients and how we can make things EASY for them!
- Finally,  make it super easy (there is that EASY word again) for the original poster and Private Message (PM) them (via Facebook).  If a mom mostly uses her phone, instead of a computer, it will be so much easier for her to PM you back rather than copy your email, open her email, paste it, and send you a message.

If all of this seems like a lot of work to you, do not worry. There is nothing wrong with keeping your reply as a template (save it on your computer) and using it again and again (making small adjustments as needed).  

If you want to learn even more about how to use Facebook groups to find clients check out my online class, Marketing with Laura.  Right now doors are open, and you can sign up for the class.  Just know that soon I'll stop registrations and you will not be able to sign up for months.

* Always check the group rules before posting.