Facebook is always making changes, sometimes to its newsfeed algorithm in an effort to prioritize ‘meaningful’ person-to-person interactions. For a marketer, these Facebook newsfeed changes impact reach and show less organic posts from pages and brands. At Vivid Image, we are always looking ahead, evolving, and re-evaluating how we can do the best marketing for our clients, and stay on top of changes and trends in online marketing.
We like to share with you what strategies we are taking with our clients and our own Facebook marketing so that you can also learn and build on these best practices. Many of these suggestions are along the same lines as recommendations from Facebook Marketing experts such as John Loomer, Mari Smith, and Mike Stelzner from Social Media Examiner, to name just a few.
How to Make Facebook Newsfeed Changes Work for You
1. Post Less Frequent, but More Quality Posts
A few years ago, many Facebook pages were going with the “post as often as you can” approach. But if posts are frequent, and not getting engagement, this will hurt your Facebook Page and the relevance of the posts overall. Aim for putting more time into quality, well-thought-out posts that will create conversation, rather than just posting a quick drive-by link. This means getting more creative with your copy and media and making sure it is authentic, fabulous, and makes people want to comment or reply to other’s comments. In other words, publish posts that will help create meaningful conversation, like Mark Zuckerberg is aiming for with the Facebook Newsfeed changes.
2. Consider adding a Facebook Group to your Page
Facebook Groups have been around longer than Facebook pages for brands. If you are a member in some groups, you have probably noticed that notifications default to ON and that the members are really the center of the group, creating conversation back and forth. Groups can be linked to Facebook Pages. If you are an Admin of the Group and link it to your Page, you can comment in the group as your Page.
3. Say Yes to Live Video!
Facebook has indicated that Facebook Live leads to 6x the interaction compared to other posts, and the Live video will get priority over other posts in the newsfeed. Facebook Live video can also be accessed on your Facebook page later via replay. The interaction between viewers and the broadcaster creates an engagement that is different than other posts on Facebook. Find some interesting ways to integrate Facebook Live into your Facebook marketing and see what happens.
4. Create Conversations Between Fans (without asking for it)
Facebook has told us that Pages that have conversations between people in the comments will get more reach. But, on the other hand, part of the Facebook newsfeed changes include that posts who blatantly ask for comments or shares will be considered “engagement bait” and will be shown less in the newsfeed. How can you get your community to chat back and forth, rather than read the article/post, and keep scrolling? First, create quality posts that make people want to comment. You can also try asking for interaction via a video, image, or Facebook message. You could also take a “backward” approach – Make a Facebook post live, then embed it in a blog post, or link to the Facebook post from a blog or email blast. You can where you ask for a comment on the blog post or email.
5. Facebook Ads are a Necessity
Facebook advertising is an excellent way to drive people to your Facebook page or website. Whether you are doing a simple Facebook boost, or more complex retargeting of your website visitors with a conversion ad, there are a plethora of Facebook Advertising options that can help increase your brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, create post engagement, or achieve XYZ objective that you are trying to reach. If you have not invested in Facebook Advertising yet, make this the year to give it a try.
6. Diversify your Social Channels
One thing we always remind our clients is to “not put all their eggs in one basket”, and the same is true for Facebook. There are many promising new channels that you can consider for your social media marketing. For instance, TikTok, Instagram, Linkedin, SnapChat, YouTube, and Twitter to name a few. If you don’t want to stray too far from Facebook, Messenger, allows a 1:1 connection with your customers, and there are neat opportunities with chatbots so that a human doesn’t need to monitor it 24/7.
7. Never Set-It & Forget It
Make your Facebook page part of your daily routine and engage with your fans, check comments for questions, and answer private messages as quickly as possible.
These are some of the Facebook strategies that we are taking today, but we are always on the lookout for new ideas and tools. If you need help understanding the Facebook newsfeed, implementing any Facebook Advertising Campaigns or managing your community, we are here to help. With extensive experience in Facebook Community Management and Social Media Advertising, Vivid Image can help you maximize your Facebook marketing and make it as meaningful as possible.
