Most businesses have figured out by now that if they want followers to like their posts, (despite Facebook’s claims), they are going to have to pay for them to appear in customers’ news feeds.
But what if you’re trying to attract fresh Likes on your page, rather than your posts? If you find yourself wondering, “Why is Facebook no longer working for me?“, stop and check your business page against the following criteria before placing all the blame on Facebook and Twitter, for lack of Likes on your business page.
Lack of promotion
Business cards with custom URLs, website Like Boxes, email signature hyperlinks, newsletter icons, in-store signage and social sharing plugins; have you tried all these methods for promoting your business Facebook page? If not, you’re missing out on valuable unpaid opportunities to drive traffic to your page and increase your following.
Over-promotion
If people find your Facebook page and all they see are product images with big red SALE overlays, chances are they’re going to bounce before their cursor hovers anywhere near the Like button. When posting to your page, consider the 80/20 rule: 80% of content should be non-sales related posts that aim to provide valuable, educational, entertaining and community building information that positions you as an industry leader and provides customers with light relief from the thousands of ads they see each day. The remaining 20% of posts are allowed to be directly self-serving promotional messages.
Spasmodic posting
Posting a Christmas message is all well and jolly, but what about the other 364 days a year? The less you post, the less chance there is of your existing followers liking, commenting on or sharing your posts with their followers, which in turn drives traffic to your page. Aim to post at least three times per week, but no more than once per day. This allows you to share one soft product-related post, and at least two other wedding-related but non-sales-specific posts per week. If you have staff, scheduling social media content in the Activity Log can be a great use of down time during business hours, which gives you a backlog of content to review that will auto-post at the times you choose.
Value lacking
You might think wedding memes are hilarious and fur babies are adorable, but that might not be enough to engage your clients and keep them returning to your page for inspiration, industry news, how to tutorials and expert advice. *NOTE: you legally cannot use User Created ecards for marketing or audience building without written permission, so consider this before sharing their memes on your business page. That said, find other ways to diversify your content using the most engaging types of Facebook posts: photos and videos, quotes, product offers and questions. Page Insights will help you determine which of your posts are most popular and have a higher chance of being shared to help spread awareness of your content and page.
Check-ins
If you have a physical shop front be sure to enable your page for check-ins. When people check-in it shows up in their timeline and subsequently their friends’ news feeds, drawing attention to your page. Use in-store signage encouraging people to check-in, and consider offering an incentive such as a discount for check-ins made in-store with same-day purchases.
Joint ventures
Why be a loner when you have a network of complimentary businesses whose followers are likely interested in your products and services as well? If you know of other non-competitive wedding brands, team up and offer to create a post that tags their Facebook business so your followers can click through and check out their page. They will do the same for you, and voila – you’ve got yourself some new fans who are already in wedding mode and receptive to posts on this topic. Try to find an interesting angle or offer a time-restricted promotion for the other business’ fans: “Mention Weddings’R’Us when placing your next order to receive 20% off in the month of June” – and don’t forget, if you’ve got a new product or new dress or just an awesome photograph or cake you’ve created for a client, tell us and we’ll often share it on our Facebook page, which has more than 87,000 fans!
Pay for likes
As Facebook becomes an increasingly paid advertising medium, businesses can respond by experimenting with Facebook’s paid ads and boosted posts. Ads contain a call to action to “Like Page” and appear in the news feed or on the right hand column of the news feed.
Have you discovered a method for attracting more Facebook Likes not mentioned above? Share your success stories and Facebook frustrations in the comments and let our community help you find new ways to increase your fan base.
