Clutter on Facebook?

I've been doing facebook and instagram marketing, and there seems to be more clutter on Facebook nowadays.

Requests to like a new page? Check. Friend requests? Check. Ads that you see again and again, with similar sounding copy? Check. 

It is time to exercise the saying that "less is more". It is not necessary to constantly shout out about your products and service. Have quality posts that are authentic and truly value add to your target audience.

Share about what you learn on a regular basis. Share your reflections or motivational stories that you have encountered. This is an important part of building rapport with your audience, helping them to relate to you as a person with real struggles and feelings.

Building trust is the first step to any relationship. This is even more important in sales. If there is no trust, there is no relationship.

My strategy in facebook is now being authentic. I focus on relating to my audience and identifying with the issues that they are concerned about. I am perfectly imperfect, and I don't feel ashamed in it.

Given the changes in Facebook algorithm, I've heard some of my SEO mates giving up on Facebook and moving to Instagram or Youtube advertising. I feel that there is still potential in Facebook Marketing. We just need to adjust our strategy to match the changes. The only constant thing is change.

8 tips to increase organic reach on Facebook

1. Focus on video—but especially live video

As far as we can tell, videos are still favored under the new algorithm, but live videos will be even more important. In his announcement, Zuckerberg wrote that “live videos often lead to discussion among viewers on Facebook—in fact, live videos on average get six times as many interactions as regular videos.”

This means if you haven’t already invested time and energy into posting live videos on Facebook, you 100 percent should do so now. This is one of Facebook’s few concrete examples of content that will perform well under the new algorithm, so we would all do well to pay attention to it.

National Geographic has been doing a great job of incorporating live video into their strategy. They post 70 live stories a month reaching over one million viewers, often bringing followers on “live safaris” in the jungle.

2. Avoid engagement bait

It might be tempting to try and hack the new algorithm by asking your audience to “COMMENT on this post if you like ice cream!!” or something similar. But don’t be that brand. It’s spammy and users don’t like it.

Plus, Facebook says, “Using ‘engagement-bait’ to goad people into commenting on posts is not a meaningful interaction, and we will continue to demote these posts in News Feed.”

See below for some even more specific examples of engagement bait. Facebook promised these types of posts would be “down-ranked” in its News Feed webinar.

3. Focus on community building through Facebook groups

Because Facebook Groups already operate on the basis of audience engagement, this marketing tactic will likely serve you well under the new algorithm. Under “What type of Page posts create meaningful interactions?” in Facebook’s official press release, Adam Mosseri specifically mentioned Facebook Groups. “In Groups, people often interact around public content. Local businesses connect with their communities by posting relevant updates and creating events.”

Businesses should look into new ways to engage customers with Groups, alongside their Page and advertising efforts.

The popular Canadian skincare company Deciem is a great example of a brand who is benefiting from Facebook Groups. In the group “DECIEM ENTHUSIASTS,” customers share product reviews, skincare regimens (which always involve Deciem products), advice, and company news (such as the much-talked-about firing of a Co-CEO).

4. Keep creating quality content that resonates with your audience

This is the single most important piece of advice in this list. Everything about “meaningful interactions” boils down to creating quality content that people actually want to see. And how do you know what people want to see? By researching your audience, running tests, and regularly checking your analytics.

Quality content should already spark emotion in your followers. But, imagery and captions are important factors in engagement as well. Check out this post that Hootsuite shared to their Facebook page:

This post did well on Facebook because:

• We knew the topic would be valuable to our audience of social media professionals.
• The caption accompanying the content provokes some emotions (relief, and inspiration to be great at your job).
• It comes across as trustworthy rather than sales-focused (We’re not asking you to sign up for Hootsuite. We’re providing value whether you use Hootsuite or not.).

Another way to prompt engagement and comments from followers is to ask questions. In the post below, we asked readers what books they would recommend.

Whatever your company size, publishing quality, research-backed content should be the backbone of your Facebook marketing strategy. After that, the rest will fall into place.

5. Invest in your ads budget

Organic reach has been declining across social media for years. That means you’re probably already a whiz at Facebook ads.

But now that Facebook is deprioritizing content from brands and publishers, these skills will be more important than ever. Businesses must know how to target the right audiences to ensure their advertising dollars go further.

6. Connect with Facebook influencers

In the official press release, Adam Mosseri wrote, “Many creators who post videos on Facebook prompt discussion among their followers, as do posts from celebrities.” You could interpret this literally, but I’m willing to guess that the majority of brands on Facebook don’t have access to celeb product promos.

Enter the influencer—“regular” people like you and me who happen to have large followings on social media and who have worked hard to gain the trust of their followers. Getting an influencer to post to their page on your brand’s behalf could very well lead to increased engagement and followers for you because, if the content is coming from someone people trust, it appears more authentic. Facebook has noted that it will show more posts from “publishers the community finds trustworthy.”

But make sure the content still follows all the guidelines in this list. Just because an influencer is posting it doesn’t mean it doesn’t have to be well-researched, valuable, or “meaningful.” It still has to spark conversation.

Plus, influencer marketing is a whole other ballgame. Make sure you’re prepared with a strategy before diving in.

7. Localize (shift priority to local news)

In the “Priorities for News in 2018” section of its News Feed webinar, Facebook noted that local news would be prioritized. This is great for publishers and businesses that already work the local angle. But, it’s harder for larger, global brands. Try changing things up by narrowing in on different geographical areas every so often. Promote an event in a specific city, or publish stories that affect a specific region. There are many ways to interpret and get creative with this ranking signal.

8. Encourage customers to follow your Page

One thing that’s not changing about the Facebook news feed is the ability for users to make sure they always see posts from their favorite Pages by choosing “See First” in their news feed preferences.

This means businesses shouldn’t be shy about asking customers to follow their page on Facebook. They could even remind loyal followers about the “See First” option.

These tips are useful for publishing content on all social media platforms—not just Facebook. As always, there’s no reason to fear algorithm changes if you are already dedicated to providing your customers with valuable, quality content. Facebook is working hard to make sure it is showing users content that they care about and that’s from trustworthy sources—so make sure you’re one of them.

Manage your Facebook presence alongside your other social media channels using Hootsuite. From a single dashboard you can schedule posts, share video, engage your audience, and measure the impact of your efforts. Try it free today.

#marketing #socialmediamarketing