So you write great Facebook content, take awesome videos, and share posts you think are top-quality, all for your posts to reach…12 people? Facebook, you make it hard for us to please you.
Paid advertising definitely wins the news feed space. However, the content you post to your feed is still important because it reaches your top fans, the people most likely to buy from you, and it is representative of your customer retention. So, we’ve come up with nine tips to help you increase organic Facebook reach.
- Focus on quality, not quantity
Try posting less often. It might sound crazy, but people ultimately favor content that is relevant to them, and so does the Facebook algorithm. For example, a feed that targets teenagers will consist of very different content than a feed that targets middle-aged people. Know what your target consumer can relate to and make sure that you incorporate that value on your page.
- Go beyond posting
Respond to comments and insights with other related pages to catch your target audience’s attention. In this age of technology, it is hard to find a personal touch. Make sure that people on the receiving end can sense that there is a real person behind the comments and build that relationship with them.
- Share engaging content
Your content should be thought-provoking or share-worthy. Ask an engaging question in your caption or video that encourages your audience to have conversations online. DO NOT create engagement bait because the Facebook algorithm will sense it and reduce your reach. Avoid posts like, “Pineapple should not be on pizza, type yes if you agree.” Instead, ask, “What tropical destination does our Hawaiian pizza take you to?” The more engagement, which means comments, likes/reactions, and shares your posts get, the more your reach will increase.
- Host contests
No matter what your audience demographics look like, one thing holds true for humans: we appreciate incentives. Increase organic Facebook reach by committing to a monthly contest. Not all contests will have the same grab and it does take time to drive participation, but they are still a great way of ensuring your engagement rates are consistently moving upwards. Asking people to share their thoughts in the comments is one thing, but giving them the possibility of winning a $25 gift card for their answer holds more power. Utilize what you have to offer as a way to encourage more shares of your posts.
- Share your owned assets
Facebook is always changing, but you have control over your blog and your website. Link to your best-performing digital assets to ensure traffic is always going where you need it to go.
- Know when to post
When is your audience most active on Facebook? There are general rules of thumb for the best times of day to post on Facebook. However, the insights that Facebook provides for your business page will show you when your specific audience is most active. Timing posts accurately will increase Facebook reach, making it easier for target consumers to find your page.
- Check your insights
As stated above, Facebook provides insights into the activity that has happened on your page. You can see which posts performed the best and resonated with your audience and adjust accordingly. As you gain knowledge about your audience from the insights, you don’t need to guess what your audience wants, you can predict it early on!
- Be helpful to your audience
Business pages aren’t followed because people want ads. They are followed because they feel they can gain something from the page, whether it’s a good laugh, cool tutorials, or solving everyday problems. Your business page should fulfill a need or want of some sort, so make sure it relates to your audience’s lives. What need does your page exist to fulfill?
- Plan ahead
Creating content and scheduling posts makes social media less of a hassle. Instead of throwing together a post, plan your content beforehand. Do it when you can feel creative and really evaluate the purpose of each post, instead of jumping on Facebook to put up the post of the day just for the sake of posting. This makes your content more consistent and will make it easier to post at the preferred time when your audience is most active. Facebook has scheduling tools to help you do this.
Paid advertising absolutely is effective and in many cases, necessary for business. However, Facebook is a big animal and our goal at Backcourt Marketing is to help business owners navigate all parts of it. If you need help increasing organic Facebook reach, or just using your social media profiles effectively, schedule some time with us for free and we will walk you through it.