Businesses of all sizes are seeing a sharp decline in Facebook engagement thanks to the social media behemoth’s 2018 change in algorithm, giving preference to showing friends and family posts to its user over business page posts. Outside of increasing your brand’s Facebook advertising budget, there are ways to keep the conversations going on your page.
1. Ask Questions: It should come as no surprise that people like to give their opinion, especially on social media. Asking for people’s feedback is a sure-fire way to not only create engagement on your page but also offers an opportunity for you to gain insight on how your brand, product, or service is viewed by customers. Asking for engagement is so popular that even Facebook’s sister company, Instagram, is creating more and more options to make it easier for users to ask questions and polls. Asking questions doesn’t have to be product or service-related either. Have fun with your posts and get creative by showcasing team members and behind-the-scenes photos that customers might not regularly see when they’re in the store. For example, do you offer an employee Hawaiian Shirt Day? Take a photo of a couple of the participants and ask your followers what shirt they like better. It’s all in good fun!
2. Feature Your Customers: Just as much as people like to give their opinion, they like to see themselves, or their friends, on social media. If you own or manage a restaurant and have regulars who come in every week, ask if you can take a photo of them to highlight on your social media pages. Have a retail store that sells baby clothes? Ask to take a quick photo of the mom-to-be and give her a congratulatory shout-out on Facebook and Instagram. Work on cars? A before and after photograph will get the gearheads talking on your pages! There are limitless options when it comes to showcasing your customers, however, always ask for permission before posting, especially if the photo involves children under the age of 18.
3. Use Video: Using live video on Facebook and Instagram is a great way of getting engagement. Talking in real time with your customers makes your brand and business more personable and gives viewers the chance to inquire more about what you have to offer in an easy and fun way. The best part of live video is that most viewers enjoy the imperfection and realism of it. There is no need for studio lighting and perfect backgrounds. Even if live video isn’t something you are ready to try, creating pre-recorded videos, even with your smart phone, and uploading them directly to Facebook, is an easy way to reach more customers. A recent study shows that social posts with video generate a whopping 1,200% more shares than a text or photo-only post.
Overall, you know your audience best and what they are interested in engaging with on your page. Using Facebook’s Insights, located at the top of your brand page, will show you what the most and least popular posts were, allowing you to analyze what works and can be done again.
