Companies that understand the power of Facebook for their businesses will stand out. The only thing they need to keep in mind, according to Jay Bear is, “The goal isn’t to be good at Facebook. The goal is to be good at business because of Facebook”.

To best use Facebook in your business, you have to decide on 3 things:

1. Set your goal

Ask yourself, “Why is my business on Facebook?” Asking yourself why you are on Facebook would give you an idea on what to expect on from your activities on it. Your expectation could be to build a prospect list, send traffic to your blog, sell more products and services, increase registrations for events, increase contacts and media attention, get instant access to Joint Venture partners, establish yourself as an authority, or to improve your level of customer service an interaction, but you should define your expectation from the begining.

2. Determine your strategy

Now that you have defined your expectation or your “why”, the next step is to determine the “how”. How are you going to attain your goals and meet expectations? In other words, what’s your strategy?

Each strategy comes with its own set of rules. On what terms and conditions are you using Facebook?

Ensure you have a clear documented strategy from the start. Document your brand management, content strategy, editorial calendar and how to manage your customer expectations.

Decide on Key Roles and which Operational model you will use. Appoint a Social Strategist. Some one who is responsible for the overall definition and execution of your social strategy. Choose the best Community Manager who takes care of your customer facing interactions, reporting and content updates.

I’d like to emphasize the importance of a good Community Manager. It takes the right person with the right attitude to be successful on Facebook. The most important trait to make the human connection is Empathy. So, if you appoint a community manager, look for someone who primarily wants to work with Empathy.

Look for an individual or agency with industry expertise for a creative execution of your brand page.

3. Reserve sufficient budget

Success takes time. If you have no budget or time to build a Successful Facebook presence or campaign, my advice would be, don’t do it!

The size of your budget would of course depends on your strategy. To best determine your budget, think about things like the size of your target group, their demographics and characteristics like age, gender, education, region, the type of engagement, the type of advertising, the size of your campaign team, the time the campaign is running, etc.

Finally, Facebook is a great platform for interaction with your customers. Your customers can share their experiences and opinions about you on the news feed of your brand page. If you are able to listen proactively, you will increase your Customer Loyalty and your business will stand out.

Kurrently is a great resource to listen to people talking about your business on Facebook and Twitter.

If you follow the right Strategy, have clear Goals and spend sufficient Budget for the day to day operations, the conditions for your success with a Facebook presence are set, but it begins with your decision to stand out.