Facebook is a hub for people to socialize, opinionize and consume information. With an average of 1.62 billion daily active users according to TechCrunch, Facebook is undoubtedly the best social media platform to market your product. In the vast ocean of social media applications, it still holds the record of the BIGGEST social platform with the highest reach.
Despite Facebook’s extensive use, marketers are concerned about the changing algorithm in the past year and a half. The News Feed algorithm Recode led to an upsurge in Facebook Ad costs, making its future dubious. Even if there are minimal chances that Facebook will abandon its advertisers, it is possible that further changes may influence the costs at some point. But there are alternative ways to use Facebook to market your brand.
Here’s giving you an insight into effective Facebook Marketing strategies that will never fail:
1. Build a professional business page:
You need a business page that mirrors your brand image and mission and not a personal profile.
Pre-requisites of page building:
1) Profile picture/ Brand Logo
2) An appropriate CTA
3) Well-defined Sidebar Tabs
4) Once you have these things in place, you can start setting up your page.
5) To start with, you will have to choose an appropriate category. Facebook gives you 6 options and each one of them has different features:
6) Local Business or Brand: If you are a location where people physically visit, this is the appropriate option for you.
7) Company, Organisation or Institute: If customers don’t visit you physically or your business is located at multiple places, this option will help you sort out page construction.
8) Brand or Product: This category is designed for products retailers or resellers
9) Artist, Band or Public Figure: This category is for individual or group promotion
10) Entertainment: If your business is a part of the entertainment industry, this category has special provisions that will help you.
11) Cause or Community: If you or your brand serves a cause or is an NGO, this option is made for you. But unlike other categories, this one does not have sub-categories.
For instance, the Local Business or Brand category has the provision of physical location listing which can be important if you’re looking to raise brand awareness.
2. Get yourself or your brand an exclusive URL:
Create a vanity URL for your brand so that you can boast about your exclusivity and professionalism. Customize the URL to an easy-to-read page link that you can share with your customers. This will make your URL more searchable on Facebook as well as on Google. This tactic is good for SEO as well. If you are an individual entity and your name is your brand, then use your name in the vanity URL.
3. Exploit with Visual Treats:
One way to grab attention is to be loud! Like almost all successful social media sites, Facebook too promotes usage of visual aids. Have a stock of photos to adorn your page and the followers’ walls. After choosing a good profile picture and cover photo that defines your brand, make sure you have an image for maximum posts that you upload. Picture posts tend to garner more engagement than text.
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4. Choose your CTA button:
Every Facebook business page has a CTA button depending on the kind of page it is. The CTA options provided by Facebook are:
● Book Now
● Contact Us
● Use App
● Play Game
● Shop Now
● Sign Up
● Watch Video
Choose the CTA terms carefully, as it is suggestive of the action you want your page visitor to carry out. You can use multiple CTAs on your page and link it to any number of landing pages, contact form or an opt-in page. If you have a subscription service, for instance, using a ‘Sign Up’ CTA is more suitable.
5. Apply the “70-20-10” Rules:
Once your page is ready, bring a social media strategy into play. Start by creating your content post strategy with the “70-20-10” rule. 70% of the posts must be original, simple and relatable content for your audience to indulge in. The rest 30% can be bifurcated into user-related content and self-promotional posts. Diversify and experiment with the content that goes up on your page. Make sure your posts subtly and smartly reflect your brand message and goals. Use visual or link-based content for active engagement. This may vary based on your brand so keep exploring different content mix with callouts, questions, polls, or opinions about the industry.
6. Share user-generated content:
You can share user-generated content to make your customers feel involved. It can be used as an incentive for brand loyalty and/or as a bonus for promoting your page. It is easier to repost on Facebook than on other social applications like Instagram.
Whether you ask customers to share their photos with your tag or repost pictures with your brand mention from their pages, it’s a great way to improve conversation and engagement. This will help your followers feel included and recognized.
7. Be big on Videos:
Facebook users spend maximum hours watching videos on the platform. Create original videos or share relevant videos on your page that will entice your customers to spend more time on your page. Facebook’s LIVE video feature is the most convenient feature introduced in recent years for brands/individuals who want to converse directly with their customers or uses. Facebook’s dynamic algorithm promotes posts that seem to garner people’s interest. Thus, making video content more visible on users’ walls.
8. Understand Facebook Page and Customer Facebook Page Insights:
An important part of the process is measuring the success of each content piece that goes up on your page. Facebook gives unto you the ultimate tool for this – Facebook Page Insights.
Here are the features you can avail:
● Page likes — Measures the total and new likes
● Post reach — Measures the total number of unique views
● Engagement — Measures the total number of people who engaged with a post
You can check for details about your page’s reach, including likes, comments, and shares with interesting graphical presentations.
Another unique tool available is the Facebook Audience Insights. It gives you information about your core users/visitors. It gives an in-depth analysis of the demographics of the core audience. This will help you serve what your target audience demands.
9. Test your timing:
Play around with the timing of your posts to know when it gets the best engagement. You will get the data required to understand this from Page Insights data. It shows you when your users are online, what types of posts get the best engagement and the optimal time-range to post. You can conduct trial and error experiments to find the best timings for your post.
10. Promote your page with Facebook Ads:
Promote your Facebook Page with Facebook Ads. Facebook advertising is cheaper than Google AdWords but still an effective Social Media Marketing method. When you target the right audience group/s, your ads will show up on precise time and place. Run a full-fledged Facebook ad campaign to promote facebook page.
Now the point is, who is your target audience? Narrow down your target audience for effective results. These groups could be based on location, hobbies, and interests, depending on your brand requirements. The key is to analyze your existing customer base and form ideal buyer personas. You can approach a Facebook advertising agency for professional Facebook ad campaigns.
11. Promote your page outside of Facebook:
Don’t leave it at this. If you need good engagement on the Facebook page, you will have to find ways to drive in traffic. Use paid ads to highlight your page to Facebook users browsing the platform. Post a link to your Facebook page on your website and other corresponding social media channels. Read our Quick Guide For Successful Social Media Strategy
Despite the frequent changes in Facebook’s algorithm and advertising, it is still a great Social Media Marketing tool for all kinds of brands and service providers who wish to go digital. The magical formula is to balance organic and paid content, figure out the best time and know your customers well.
Having multiple strategies in place for different situations will eventually improve the engagement rates. Optimize your Facebook business page by optimizing your photos, videos, and content.
