3 Solutions to "Nobody Likes My Page Updates on Facebook"

We live in a digitally-shifting landscape. When it comes to social media, algorithms change on the regular. Each tweak has the potential to affect your entire social media strategy. Think every one of your Facebook page followers sees every post you publish? Think again. Locowise’s latest study showed “average post reach in February [2016] was at 10.86% of the total page audience.” That means if you have 500 page likes, only 54 people are even seeing your posts.

So how do you stand out when only a few followers are even exposed to your content?

Well, thanks to Facebook’s new newsfeed algorithm, organically it’s next to impossible. On average only “4.9% of the people reached” are commenting, liking, and sharing your posts Let’s break that down based on the page with 500 likes: it’s an average of 2-3 people per post.

Now, of course, some influencers are getting a lot more traction organically than that, as the more of your posts a person likes, the more they’ll see your content. But for the average small business owner, organic reach on Facebook is looking pretty bleak. But don’t despair. I have some solutions for you.

Here’s how you can increase engagement and subsequently subscribers, leads, and sales.

Unless you’re a widely-acclaimed public figure with national news coverage and a devoted following, you’ve got to be sharing content that’s more than just a picture of your morning smoothie. Your content has to benefit the reader, you’ need to cough up a little advertising budget, and please quit trying to cheat the system. Here are three solutions when you find yourself complaining, “nobody likes my page updates on Facebook.”

Step One: Produce amazing content that is both relevant and timely for your followers.

Use the chum and bait technique by posting a funny, but niche-related picture for one post followed by a link to a blog post on your website for the next. This technique will gather engagement and set your next post up to drive traffic to your website. Video is also a strategy you need to introduce into your content calendar. Start using Facebook Live, because people spend 3x longer watching live videos. Social Bakers also found video has a 135% greater organic reach, compared to photo posts. Add captions too, because 85% Of Facebook videos are viewed without sound.

Step Two: Ensure that all of your likes are authentic.

Stop doing like for like threads and start running the occasional targeted ad to gather likes from people who actually want to engage with your page content. Otherwise, your untargeted users are likely to “hide” your post content in their newsfeed (because it’s not relevant to them), which could negatively impact how many of your posts other followers see.

Step Three: Stop wasting time and money on running a Facebook page organically.

In 2016, without boosting the occasional post or running advertising campaigns, your page is going to be a ghost town. Over 40% of pages are already using ads, so brands that aren’t doing advertising are going to be left behind by 2017.

“But I can’t afford to run an advertising campaign” you say. Nonsense. Moz.com reports that what costs $32 to reach 1,000 people with a newspaper ad is just 25 cents with Facebook ads. So for one dollar, you can reach 4,000 Facebook users. Not to mention that the audience you’ll reach by targeting demographics as well as precise and broad categories will be much more specifically tailored than those who might see that newspaper ad. You can also track your return on investment by interest, clicks, and conversions. Don’t tell me you won’t spend $30 per month to increase your brand awareness.

So how do you get started with Facebook advertising? It all depends on your marketing objective. I’ll cover three:

1. More Likes on my Page = Bigger Influence

• Create a targeted audience based on your customer avatar or add a lookalike audience from your existing blog subscribers or website visitors.
• Set a budget and schedule. I recommend doing a lifetime budget and setting a maximum. For example, $30 scheduled to run for one month. This way you don’t end up spending more than you plan. Ads with daily budgets can quickly spiral into expensive experiments if you aren’t careful about setting the correct end date.

• Choose a format: single image, single video, or slideshow. Remember, Facebook won’t allow more than 20% text on your image or in your video thumbnail. Facebook has an image check tool so you don’t have to waste time trying to judge the percentage yourself.
• Upload your image or video, add headline and description text for your ad, preview the desktop and mobile view, then place your order.

2. More Engagement on my Post = More Social Proof

• Same as above only you can use an existing post or create a new post in the ads manager.

3. More Conversions on my Website = More Leads and Sales

• Create your offer. You have the option between percent off, amount off, buy one/get one, or free stuff. Most lead magnets will fall under “free stuff.” You have a chance to create an offer title as well as details, then link it to your landing page url. You can put an expiration date and Facebook will automatically add “Expires in 8 hours, one week, etc.” This gives a sense of urgency, which is one strategy to convince someone to click.

• When you get to the creative section, Facebook allows you to upload your own image, browse your library, or even search through their free Shutterstock library.
• Now, the ad will only get you so far. Once visitors are on your landing page, it needs to be positioned to convert.  Your lead magnet also needs to be high-value content—an eBook, white paper, case study, etc. — that you offer for free in exchange for a user’s email address.
• Of course, you can also send them directly to your book or product page for a sales conversion.

So Take Action

I hope this article encourages you to improve the way you use Facebook to increase your influence, social proof, and eventually your conversions and sales.

What are you waiting for? First, share this article with your marketing and sales teams. Share it with your social media followers. Then, print it out and use it as a guide when changing your Facebook presence. Have additional insights or questions? Let me know me in the comments below. I’d love to hear what you think.

Ford Saeks has redefined the formula for business success.  His efforts have helped companies generate a total of over a billion dollars in sales worldwide.  From start-ups to Fortune 500’s, Saeks is widely recognized as a Business Growth Innovator.  With over 20 years’ experience (ranging from retail to wholesale), he has founded over ten companies, authored four books, been awarded three U.S. patents, and received numerous industry awards.  As President and CEO of Prime Concepts Group, Inc., an integrated marketing services firm, Ford specializes in helping businesses attract loyal and repeat customers, monetize social media, and ignite innovation. Discover more about Ford Saeks at https://www.profitrichresults.com