Inbound Marketing Blog

Facebook, like every other social media platform, is always evolving. Most recently (rolled out in summer 2017), they updated some key components in their news feed algorithm. If you’re one of the millions that noticed a recent change in your Facebook News Feed, you may have had the initial reaction I did, which was annoyance.

“I’ve seen all of these already… days ago, because they’re a WEEK old. Why am I seeing them again?”

Okay, I know that sounds petty when it’s written out, but isn’t that how social media has wired us now? We want to see the most recent news, not week-old news.

After doing more research, I realized that Facebook actually did something right.

For the first several years from the advent of social media, businesses could take advantage of a HUGE audience to peddle their wares and promote their offerings FOR FREE. Could it be too good to be true?!?!

In short: yes.

Recently, we have heard many concerns about Facebook's new response time indicator on business pages. This is a big deal when you pride yourself on being responsive. There is no reason for alarm. There is a simple solution that doesn't require you to be on Facebook 24/7.

Brands have entered the world of Facebook. You've probably hit "like" on a few of your favorites, or maybe on a friend's business. But why? Why do you like brands or not like them? Let's take a look at the statistics:

What are They Thinking?

According to Vertical Response, 87% of people do like a brand on Facebook. Out of these:

• 82% think it's a good place to get in touch with or interact with brands
• 35% feel like they're listened to by brand on Facebook
• 75% for more connected to a brand they like on Facebook
• 69% have liked a brand's page just because they saw a friend like it
• 50% think the brand's Facebook page can be more useful than their website

First impressions matter. When people come to your Facebook business page, the first thing they'll see is your cover photo. Since it'll create that crucial first impression in the minds of potential customers, your photo needs to look its best.

Just the Right Size

"How do you do that?" you may ask. First, make sure it has the proper dimensions. Facebook cover photos should be 851 wide by 315 tall. You should also leave open space where your profile image overlays your cover photo.

You may be doing better on followers, but is the only sound on your Facebook... Crickets? You're posting regularly, (we hope) but no one responds. We've found some pretty nifty tips for increasing Facebook engagement, which we've used ourselves, and thought we'd share:

Let's Play a Game

Yes, games work! They're fun, they show your personality, and people like to play. The key is not making them about you or your business, but about your audience. Be sure to check out Facebook's guidelines first, then go wild!

Here are some games you might try out!

Best Guess

Run a "Take Your Best Guess" competition! 

It is a digital world, and showing competence on social media is necessary for credibility. Facebook is one of the most commonly used social media platforms, and you need to be there to be relevant. Make sure that you categorize your business correctly and setup the page properly; no one will take you seriously if you are categorized under Banks and you actually sell puppies. So how do you set up your company Facebook page?

Where do you fit?

Most business owners will utilize the first two main categories, which are “Local Business or Place” and “Company, Organization or Institution.” The third choice of “Brand or Product” can also come into play when setting up a page, but this is for a much more specific types of pages, focused around a specific brand or individual product.

Narrow down the search

If you own a small business, then “Local Business or Place” will be the way to go. It lets you include information like your business hours, location and other custom information. You can narrow down your company page even further by using a category like the ones below:

As a business owner using Facebook to reach your target audience, you may have noticed that the organic reach of your posts has dropped significantly. This is due in part by Facebook focusing more on gaining advertising revenue from business owners. It also has to do with Facebook attempting to keep timelines clear of strictly business posts, ensuring that users are seeing more posts from friends. This presents a new challenge to businesses using Facebook and reaching the same amount of users before the crackdown on organic reach.

We recommend Facebook ads to our clients all the time. We believe that they do work if they are executed correctly. We recommend them to everyone who wants to grow awareness about anything they're doing. Facebook ads are an incredibly affordable opportunity. They have sophisticated targeting. The minimum spend is just $1 per day. They require very little commitment, and are unbelievably affordable. If you can't spare $30 a month, you shouldn't be in business.

You have established your business and what you want your brand to be. Now is time to decided which social media platforms make sense for you and your business. Here at Tribute Media we use Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google +, and YouTube. We have all of these accounts, but the ones that we use the most are definitely Facebook and Twitter. These platforms are where our customer base is. We are a web design and marketing agency so these platforms make sense for our business.