Its not too surprising to hear that Facebook, while known as one of the most popular social media sites for marketers to use, is still one of the most mysterious and difficult to use to market your business.
How do I know this?
When I am teaching, speaking or consulting – Facebook is always, and I mean always, the subject of the most questions:
How do I get more leads?
Why don’t I get more engagement?
Why doesn’t anyone like my content?
Who creates the cover image for you?
What is Facebook Advertising?
And the questions go on!
So, with that in mind, I thought it would be helpful for me to share my 10 tips to getting more leads, referrals and visibility on Facebook. Let’s go!
*Make Sure to Set Up Your Page Properly: In order to do this you must choose the right category and the right subcategories for your page. This helps your audience find you through searches. Also a must in this tip is filling out all of your page information and making sure your page settings are maximized to get you the exposure you need!
*Optimizing Your Visuals: Here are some useful numbers you should be using to create hi-resolution and beautiful Facebook Images: COVER IMAGE: 851 x 315 pixels, PROFILE IMAGE: 180 x 180 pixels, SHARED IMAGES: 1200 x 630 pixels
*Call to Action Button: This lives in the bottom right hand corner of your Facebook Page cover image. Simply click and set it up using the options available. This is a great way to get more click-throughs to your website or get more people to claim your promotional offer.
*The Power of Video: With Facebook video on the rise (at a rate of 758% year on year…yes that is the rate, no typo), you need to be using video to increase engagement. Remember to upload your video directly to Facebook rather than using a link: this will increase your visibility by leaps and bounds.
*Facebook Advertising: With ad clicks on the increase at the rate of 70% year over year and ad click-through rates increasing 160% – it is time to consider adding Facebook advertising to your strategy! There are more than 2 million active advertisers on Facebook, proof that this is not a passing fad.
*Optimizing Your Tabs: Your tabs can support your page to no end. Make sure to choose and format your tags, choose the best order for them, and use sites like Woo-box to customize them to fit your brand and to promote click throughs to your website.
*Optimize Your Posts: Writing posts is just half the battle. Optimizing them to be found in searches by your audience is even better. Some extra tips: shorter posts receive 60% higher engagement, use keywords, create quizzes and contests, and don’t forget your visuals!
*Post at the Right Time: Did you know that 75% of a post’s total engagement will happen within its first 5 hours?! Track the time when your audience is using Facebook the most and post then! Highest traffic occurs mid-week between 1 and 3 pm. On Thursdays and Fridays (especially during the Friday afternoon slump), engagement is 18% higher.
*Integrate it Into Your Website: If you do not have a button on your website that links to your Facebook Page – you need to get that on your site NOW! This connectivity will get you more likes and engagement using the website traffic that you are getting already. An untapped resource. Top Tip: don’t bury it at the end of your page. Put it right at the top so that it is easy to see.
*Consistency: I know you may be getting tired of me saying this, but consistency is the key and a common mistake that marketers make. Create a content strategy and schedule and stick to it!
These are tips that will work for you right now, but remember that Facebook is a constantly evolving medium that you need to stay on top of. There will be constant changes to your page layout, how your content is ranked and delivered, and how you are able to manage the page. Stay on top of trends and updates, but also implement them. The key to Facebook success is being able to ride the wave of change and innovate along the way.
