You may believe that when your business posts on Facebook you are getting plenty of bang for your buck. You may think that lots of people who’ve previously liked your page will get to see the pearls of wisdom you’ve shared with them. The truth is they won’t necessarily. Most of the popular posts people see on the network are sponsored or paid-for posts, and sadly the rise of these posts has effectively killed off the organic reach of regular business pages.
Did you know that less than 3 per cent of people who’ve liked your business page will ever get to see the post you’ve shared? Given that fact, it’s understandable if you then start to think, well there’s no point in bothering sharing content anymore. However, rather than giving up the ghost, what businesses should be doing is using Facebook in a smarter way to boost their online presence. How can you boost your business’ Facebook presence in 2017? Well, here are 3 tips for starters:
Make greater use of Facebook Live
We all know that video is the new king of the advertising block. People just can’t seem to get enough. However, time and tastes change. The type of videos viewers are clamouring for are no longer the polished and flawless ones. Fancy corporate-looking videos have apparently had their day. What viewers now want is authenticity and the real deal. They want to see businesses as they are – warts and all. It doesn’t matter if the videos are a little rough around the edges: as far as they’re concerned the rough means authentic.
That’s where Facebook Live coms into the equation. Live streaming is a God-sent gift, particularly for smaller businesses. You don’t have to have a big budget to launch a new product any longer. You just have to have a camera and theoretically the world is your oyster. If you think your business has nothing worthy of live streaming, then think again. You can live stream about anything: products-in-development, product launches, behind-the-scenes videos or even office parties. If it can be filmed; it can be shared. If you want to add value, however, engage your audience further by involving them in the process. Ask questions and seek out the viewers’ opinions when live streaming, and respond to what viewers say.
Share content that could go viral
Why is this so important? Well, simply because Facebook ranks your posts in terms of engagement. The more engagement your post generates; the more Facebook will show it. If you can come up with content, be that written or visual, that goes viral. You can forget about the 3 per cent engagement levels mentioned earlier: you’ll get a lot of attention and therefore your business page engagement levels will rise dramatically.
How can you predict what content will go viral? Well, that’s the $64,000 question. The truth is, you can’t. Some things go viral: some things don’t. But if you manage to produce an interesting article or have a funny picture or creative video to share, and it pushes your buttons, then the likelihood is it will push other people’s buttons too. So give it a go and share it.
Build a Facebook Group
One of the easiest things to do on Facebook is to build a group. When we say group we mean a community of like-minded people who share a common interest and also support your business’ products or services. Being part of a group is a natural part of the human psyche, as we all like to connect with and surround ourselves with people who share a common interest.
If you do decide to start a Facebook group, then it’s preferable if you don’t name it after your business. It’s far better to base it around and focus it on the problems your business solves. You might run a gym and specialise in running weight loss programmes: use this speciality, not the business name, as the basis for your Facebook group. By running a popular Facebook group around your business you’ll not only be getting direct access to potential customers; you’ll also be developing a support group based around the services you offer.
