Facebook for Business: 11 Ways to Get more Clicks, Likes and Shares

get ROI from Facebook for business

How long has it been since you last checked your Facebook account? It hasn’t been more than 24 hours, has it? Maybe not even 2 hours.

Facebook has gotten us (almost) all of us glued to it. There are now more than 2 billion users all over the world. Out of them, 1.32 billion check Facebook every day.

If you’re a marketer, you already know that this is a huge potential, something that cannot be left untapped. Your potential clients are all there. But you have to get to them and keep them engaged.

However, we all know that Facebook for business comes at a (higher) price now. In 2012 (yes, that long ago!), Facebook itself announced that business pages only reach 16% of their fans. It also instructed us to sponsor posts if we want to reach more people.

It’s been more than five years still then and one thing is certain: the organic reach has continued to decrease constantly. As a digital marketing agency, we have now integrated management of Facebook ads in the social media marketing and management packages we offer our clients. And we recommend them to use ads.

That goes especially for new companies or new Facebook business pages. Getting fans and followers without ads is next to impossible. There are more than 65 million pages on Facebook and they are all competing with each other one way or another.

As for older pages that already have a fan base, there is little you can do to boost your page’s engagement without Facebook ads. But this doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

Facebook for Business: 11 Things You Can Do to Boost Engagement

We’ve worked with small startups and large corporations, companies with huge budgets or almost no budgets. Whatever the case, we always strived for a bigger organic reach.

The truth is that even Facebook ads can fail. Yes, a bigger budget will get you more engagement. But when you’re on a tight one, you get really good at Facebook engagement tricks.

Here are some of our favorite ones:

  1. Post Regularly

It looks like people like Facebook so much that they login to it even from work. 29% of Americans do so on a daily basis!

In fact, Facebook engagement rises significantly between 1 and 3 pm during work days. What does this mean? That people look for an escape after the lunch slump hits.

And they want to be entertained or informed. In order for that to happen, they need fresh content. This doesn’t mean that you should post hourly (unless you’re a news outlet), but one post per day is necessary.

However, remember that the hours mentioned earlier are a broad statistic. Your buyer persona may be online and more willing to engage in other time frames. Test the hours that work best for your brand before making a posting schedule.

  1. Ask a Question

This comes with two types of benefits. Firstly, people like to be given a chance to express their opinion. Secondly, you can get valuable feedback from people who know your brand best.

We had some great results for one of our clients by simply asking which color people preferred for a phone case. This gave us great insight not only for future product development, but also for what we should promote more often.

This is what I like to call “meaningful Facebook engagement”. Liking or sharing a post requires the user to click a single button. Answering a question or commenting takes more effort. It’s a great way to see who your “best” followers are.

Better yet, when people comment on one of your posts, their friends will see that activity. And they might just be curious enough to like the page themselves.

  1. Share GOOD Photos

You know what they say: “a picture is worth a thousand words”. When it comes to Facebook for business, remember that people may not want to read a thousand words from your brand.

They may be patient enough to read a long rant or funny story one of their friends shared, but not a wall of text shared by a business page. The solution? Convey the same message using a photo.

Of course, you need top copywriters to help you create the perfect caption for that photo. But it’s all worth it for Facebook engagement, right? According to Kissmetrics, photos get 104% more comments, 53% more likes and 84% more clicks that text posts.

  1. Share Videos

Video isn’t just great for Facebook engagement. Video is currently the king of all content. Pages like UNILAD, LADbible and Viral Threads get millions of views every day and thousands of comments.

However, you need to make sure that your video is up to par. Remember that you are using Facebook for business, not just for entertaining people. If you can’t produce high-quality, engaging videos, stick to photos, links and text.

The video standards are already very high. Marketers all over the world are already using VR and 360 degrees videos. You don’t have to go there yet if you’re not certain of your video skills yet, but you need a high-quality production.

  1. Comment with a Photo

Got your first comment to a post? Respond to it with a photo! The statistics above should explain why this is a good idea.

If that is not enough, consider that photos in comments tend to stick out more than they do on the timeline. It’s your best shot at grabbing attention. If the photo is relevant/funny, you may just hit the goldmine of Facebook engagement.

  1. Organize a Contest or Giveaway

This one works great and it’s a must-do for new Facebook pages. Facebook contests and giveaways are the best way to get your posts shared.

In turn, shared posts get a higher organic reach and, besides Facebook engagement, you are also bound to get a lot of new page likes.

We managed to get a few hundred page likes and a reach of twice the number of fans for one of our clients. The giveaway lasted for a week and it was crucial in boosting brand awareness and gaining loyal followers.

  1. Ask People to Engage with Your Post

No, this doesn’t make you look like a beggar. At least not if you do it right!

“Hit Like if you agree and Sad if you don’t”. “Share to let your friends know.” “Tell us your opinion in the comment section below. All these are great ways to boost Facebook engagement AND make your followers feel relevant and part of the conversation.

  1. Ask Your Fans to Fill in the Blanks

This is a fun variation on simply asking a question.

“If I could be on a beach, now, I’d choose____”

“My favorite gadget is____”

This type of post can be entertaining, insightful or both. For instance, if you ask what your fans’ favorite gadget is, you get insight into their habits. If you ask for a great beach, it’s just a way to bring some fun on your page (unless you’re a travel agency, of course).

  1. Engage with Other Brands

Own a coffee shop? Engage with a bakery because nothing’s better with coffee than a fresh croissant. Have a Facebook page selling custom-made dresses? Engage with a shoe maker.

The examples could go on and on, but you get the gist. You can even continue your partnership with other brands offline.

However, you need to be very tactful here. Don’t spam other pages and avoid engaging with your competitors’ pages. You don’t want to look desperate.

And, whatever you do, don’t criticize other brands on Facebook. You want to catch the eye of their followers, not irate them.

  1. Be Funny

Life can get dull sometimes. But social networking doesn’t have to be. I’ve heard a lot of people say “we use Facebook for business, we need to be professional”.

Yes, you do!

So don’t post politically incorrect jokes or overly transparent sex jokes. But do post the “safe” kind. This doesn’t mean you are unprofessional – it just means you can unwind every once in a while.

From ice cream shops to car manufacturers, lawyers and stock brokers – everyone can get more Facebook engagement through humor. You just have to make sure the jokes you are adequate to your brand and relevant for your fans.

  1. Inspire People

You don’t have to be Tony Robbins to be inspirational. Nor a running shoes brand to inspire people to exercise more.

You just have to care for their well-being. And when you do, this shows in your Facebook engagement rates. Motivational or inspirational posts are the best way to get shares and likes. Also, the best way to bring a smile to your fans’ faces and to make sure they remember you as a source of uplifting posts.

 

When you use Facebook for business, you may be tempted to forget that social media is a two-way street. You don’t need to advertise your products excessively. You need to spark conversations. In other words, you need to get more Facebook engagement.

 

Want help managing your Facebook account? Get in touch with social media specialists that can help you improve your ROI:

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Adriana Tica is an expert marketer and copywriter, with 10 years in the field, most of which were spent marketing tech companies. She is the Owner and Founder of Idunn. In October 2019, she also launched Copywritech, a digital marketing agency that provides copywriting, SEO content writing, and strategy services to companies in the tech industry.