by Angela Taffs | Apr 3, 2019 | Sales and Marketing
Why are your Facebook likes getting less and less
Have you noticed your reach on Facebook is getting less and less?
You are coming up with what you think are fabulously creative posts and yet still there the comments and likes are so intermittent as to be non-existent?
Well, here is the reason why.
Firstly, one of the simplest reasons may be the huge increase in the number of people using the platform. This means that you are now trying to gain attention from a far larger pot than you were a couple of years ago. More and pages are being created on a daily basis so you really need to make sure that you know who your ideal client is and post things that are going to captivate your audience.
But the other reason that has cropped up relatively recently is that Facebook surveyed hundreds of thousands of people and the overwhelming response was that they didn’t want to see so much promotional content. They wanted to see interesting posts.
Facebook is rewarding quality, not quantity
Therefore, Facebook decided to reward those that created quality content that their audience really wanted to hear about rather than the constant promotions and gimmicks that are so frequently posted.
Facebook is less and less likely to show overly promotional posts that use calls to action and push for sales, to enter competitions etc.
Facebook will seek out those posts that gain interactions such as likes, shares and comments which show they are quality, relevant posts and they will help these posts to reach a wider audience.
Overall, the Facebook algorithm is rewarding those pages who post less and focus on quality rather than those which post numerous times each day that is not of much interest to the audience.
Too many people trying to widen their reach when it drops by posting more often (up to 10 times per day), but this is simply going to work against you.
To increase your reach, you need to make sure you write your posts for what your target audience wants to hear and read. Stop trying to sell so much and concentrate more on giving value and starting to build trust and relationships.
You can still promote your business of course but use your language carefully.
Rather than saying ‘click the link to buy’ try something along the lines of ‘there is something amazing awaiting you on the other side – go check it out’. Do you see the difference?
A few other tips include:
Schedule posts from Facebook rather than a third party software
Some people believe that third party apps, such as scheduling posts from HootSuite, Buffer or similar, will affect reach.
I have tried to get conclusive answers to this but there is so much conflicting information out there. If your reach is significantly dropping and you use third party apps, it may be worth trialing using Facebook’s own scheduler for a while and seeing if it makes any difference. (Do let me know the results in the comments box).
Upload videos directly to Facebook, not via YouTube links
There is numerous research that Facebook favour videos that are uploaded directly to its site rather than via links from YouTube. According to a study by Loren Baker of Search Engine Journal, they discovered that on average, native videos reach 2.04 times more people, receive 2.38 times more likes, 2.67 times more shares, and 7.43 times more comments.
Quite simply, Facebook does not like anything that drives traffic away from its site to an external source. Therefore, any post taking the audience away will simply get less reach.
Don’t overuse links to your website.
Leading on from the point above, Facebook wants to keep people on its site, not to take people away to other platforms. I have seen a few people using a new trick to try and get over this were rather than putting the external link in their main post, they create the post and tell people to look in the comments below for where to go for further information. They then simply put the link as a comment below.
Aim to gain interaction.
Facebook will increase reach to those posts that get likes, comments and even the amount of time someone spends viewing the post.
So how you can encourage this?
People like to feel good, laugh, know the latest gossip and news and be shocked! Think how you can use this in your posts. Use motivational posts, let them in on something funny that has happened in your day, give them the latest hot off the press news. These can be the type of posts that will gain likes, comments, and shares. Ask simple but fun questions!
Now for a disclaimer. At the time of writing, I believe my research and findings to be correct. But good old Facebook can change its rules and algorithms at any moment so test what works for you best and keep an eye what others are doing that are getting the interaction you so desperately want.
Happy posting.
P.S. Want a little help getting a post like? Pop the link in the comments below and I will pop over and take a look and if it’s a good one, may just leave you a like and a comment
P.P.S. Do you get stuck when trying to come up with fresh content to post on social media? Does your mind draw a blank and you get confused as to what to post next? Subscribe now to get immediate access to my simple planner and easily create a whole month’s worth of posts to attract more attention to your business.
.
by Angela Taffs | Feb 20, 2018 | Sales and Marketing
Following my post How To Grow Your Facebook Numbers On Your Business Page, once you have fans and followers you need to focus on Facebook engagement. Put simply, to keep your Facebook page or group alive you need to work on getting your fans and followers to interact.
Here are a few of my super easy and favourite tips to help increase Facebook engagement and interaction on your business page or group. Feel free to add any ideas of your own in the comments box at the bottom of the post.
1. Ask a question
Who, what, why, where or when
2. Fill in the blank
My favourite word is ______
3. Conduct a poll
Find out what people like the most
4. Ask followers to share a picture on a theme
Office pet, favourite mug etc
5. Post a do you remember
Find a picture of something from the past and ask who remembers it
6. Caption competition
Choose an amusing image and ask people to post a caption
7. Make a statement
Ask people if they agree or not with a yes or no – people who swear a lot are more intelligent
8. Multiple choice
Post a fact with 4 answers. Ask people to choose the right one
9. Choose your favourite
Post 4 pictures and ask people to choose their favourite
10. Introduce yourself
People love to share their stories. Ask followers to introduce themselves to the other fans in your group
Have you tried any of these tips to increase Facebook engagement on your page or in your group? Which works best for you? Do you have any tips of your own? I would love to hear all about them. Post in the comments box below. I reply to every one. And if you share the link to your Facebook page, I may just hop over and say hello.
P.P.S. Do you get stuck when trying to come up with fresh content to post on social media? Does your mind draw a blank and you get confused as to what to post next? Subscribe now to get immediate access to my simple planner and easily create a whole month’s worth of posts to attract more attention to your business.
by Angela Taffs | Sep 10, 2017 | Sales and Marketing
Do you get frustrated when trying to grow the number of fans and followers on your Facebook business page? Do you keep putting out posts but just hear the sound of the tumbleweed floating by?
Here are my top tips to grow your Facebook numbers on your business page.
Send an invite to contacts
Email all contacts and send out a newsletter letting them know about your page and asking them to join. Don’t forget to put the link to your page to make it easy for them to find it. I’ve seen so many emails saying ‘come like my page’ and no info on what the page is called or a link to it. Yes, really!!
Ask friends to share
Put a post out on your own personal page inviting people to like your business page and to share it with anyone who may be interested in it.
Link to your page from your personal profile
On your personal profile make sure you have a link to your business page. When posting in other groups etc, people may be interested to see what you do. If they go to your personal profile and you have your business page set as your workplace, it makes it easy for them to find your page and like it.
Put a link on your website
On your website, make sure you have a prominent link to your Facebook page and ask your readers to come follow you for updates.
Put links on all marketing material
Put a link to your Facebook page on all your marketing material such as business cards, email footers, blog posts etc. Make it easy for people to find you.
Create interesting, interactive posts
Create posts to gain interaction. Use unique images, create videos (especially live ones), ask questions, get people to choose their favourite ‘something’ from a choice you give them. Look at other posts from businesses similar to yours and see what types are getting the most interaction.
Don’t sell, sell, sell
Don’t just promote your business. The majority of your posts at the moment relate back to something you are offering as a service. Facebook will reduce the reach of promotional posts as I wrote in a recent article. Have a read for how to increase your reach.
Run a competition
Create a competition. Now a word of warning here. This is a great way of getting likes but some of these are not going to be your ideal client as there are so many people out there who will enter any competition going. It’s still a way to get a buzz going about your business. You can either run a competition for something very specific to your business such as a free c.v. review or one of the best that I ran was to buy a lottery ticket. I then said that anyone who liked the page and posted their favourite number in the comments below would get a share of the winnings if the ticket won.
Like and share other content
Like and share other posts that are complementary to your business. You can like these posts as your business page rather than by your personal profile. This helps raise awareness and in many cases, the owner of the page who posts you have liked will come and like your own page. As they are a complementary business this helps you get in front of their audience that may have your ideal client in.
Tag complementary businesses
Also, when sharing an article from another page, or talking about something linked to another business page, tag that page in your post. When you tag another page, the fans of that page will get to see your post which will gain interest in your own page.
Check your cover photo
Finally, make sure you cover photo is clear what your page is about. Try to look at your page objectively as an outsider, what would they think it was about? Ask a few people what they think. If your cover photo relays the correct message and makes it clear this is what you do, you are more likely to attract the people you want to work with. If it gives the wrong message, people will scan it and move on elsewhere.
Do you have any tips of your own? Share in the comments below and feel free to include a link to your Facebook page so readers can take a look.
P.S. Would you like help planning your social media to help increase your reach to gain more clients and make more money? Join my member’s club for a step-by-step guide. You’ll love it and start to get the results you want. Find out more here.
by Angela Taffs | Jul 9, 2017 | Sales and Marketing
Are you breaking Facebook rules
Over recent weeks, I have had a number of new ladies join my Facebook group only for them to have their posts deleted and a message being sent explaining why and what to do in future if they want to stay in the group.
I have also had a few ladies contact me as they have found themselves banned from other groups that they were in.
I’m sure the majority of us use other social media groups to build relationships and promote our businesses but before you fall foul and get yourself banned, try adhering to these simple rules.
When joining a new group, before doing anything else, READ THE GROUP RULES
It’s so simple but so many don’t bother to do it. The rules can usually be found in the group description or sometimes at the top of the page as a pinned post. If you don’t read the rules, you are pretty rude and don’t be surprised if you get kicked out.
And here are a few other things to consider:
Mistake 1 – Promoting Yourself in a Non-Promotional Group
It’s quite simple – you will get banned. There are a number of groups that don’t want their feeds saturated with ‘you can make a million in a week – come find out how’ or some other promotional spam. Even if it’s not spam, if it’s a non-promotional group, you can’t promote in it. Simples!! Which part is not understood? It really annoys me that people join my group and can’t be bothered to read the description and group rules. if they are that lazy, I simply ban them.
Mistake 2 Jumping on Someone Else’s Post to Promote Yourself
This is what happens. Someone asks a question or starts a conversation. They strike up a conversation with their ideal client and are building a relationship with them by giving them valuable help and advice. You see this and decide to jump on board. You leap in to tell the ideal client what you can do to help them and tell them to get in contact.
Let me tell you, THIS IS PLAIN BLOODY RUDE AND UNACCEPTABLE
Don’t be so lazy. Go start some conversations of your own.
Mistake 3 Sending Friend Requests and Private Messaging Other Members
This has to be one of the biggest irritants of all time. It’s false. It’s spammy. It makes you look unprofessional and desperate.
Before approaching anyone privately, you need to build a relationship with them. Not just jump on them as soon as you see a glimmer of an ideal client.
If you are genuinely offering free help to them or giving them some valuable advice in private, then ok. But if your sole intention is to sell to them, don’t be surprised if they report you to admin and you get yourself banned instantly from the group.
Mistake 4 – Joining a Group and Making your First Post a Promotion
Why would you do this? Again, it makes you look unprofessional and desperate. You wouldn’t go to a dinner party where you didn’t know anyone, walk into the room and start shouting at everyone what you do. You would (if you have any manners) walk in, introduce yourself, ask others what they do and get to know people a little first.
You need to start building relationships and trust before bleating about what you do. I would suggest at least a couple of weeks of interacting with others and getting the feel of the group before any type of promotion.
Mistake 5 – Arguing with Admin
Yes, sending private messages to admin that you have a special case for promoting your latest craze and telling them how to run their group is likely to get you banned also. I have had a few of these in the past where people have contacted me to say how everyone wants promotions to be allowed freely so I ought to change the rules. Nope!! My group. My rules. If they don’t like it they can go somewhere else.
In future, use some common sense and some manners when joining groups for the first time. Yes, we all mistakes but learn from them and be respectful to others. Alternatively, set up your own group and do whatever you want!
by Angela Taffs | May 31, 2016 | Sales and Marketing
Two genius examples of how to get your business in front of a worldwide audience
This past week I saw two pieces of marketing genius. They were completely different from each other but both had sprinklings of magic within them.
One was not done to promote a business and was done completely off the cuff without any payment and gained phenomenal media attention worldwide.. The other was indeed a little more premeditated, was a business promotion and cost money. But the way it was done again gained worldwide attention and gained tremendous visibility for the business in question.
The simple joys of life
The first was by the wonderful Candace Payne.
No, she doesn’t run her own business but she has wiped the floor as far as visibility is concerned and become an online sensation. And how? All by being herself and having some fun.
Candace is the lady who simply went out, bought a Chewbacca face mask, put it on in her car and screamed with laughter whilst recording it all on Facebook live. During her gales of laughter she spoke about her antics being one of the simple joys of life.
She didn’t sit back and plan how to get views and likes on Facebook. She didn’t watch endless webinars on how to create a perfect video or how to master Facebook live. She just got out there and did her own thing.
And the result has been simply breath-taking! She has so far had 1.5 million views of her Facebook live video, breaking all records. She has appeared on the James Corden show. She got to visit Lucas Film Studio where Star Wars was made. She got invited to the headquarters of Facebook. She is getting to meet movie stars and everyone wants to have her in their life.
Off the back of all this publicity, Candace has created a line of clothing being branded to enjoy the simple joys in life and her business is booming after just a few days.
I think we can all take a lesson from her to stop over thinking things, stop planning to the nth degree, stop trying to be someone you are not and to be true to yourself and let your true personality shine through. Oh, and stop taking life so seriously and have some bloody fun!!!
Way to go Candace
Free? Did you say free???
The second example is somewhat different but still just as brilliant in itself.
A local businessman, Rob Braddick, who owns a number of businesses in the area went and purchased one of the council car parks near to one of his restaurants, The Pier House in Westward Ho! He then pictured himself in front of the parking meter, covering it up and declaring the park could be used for free. Yes, FREE!!!
His social media post declared:
‘HOT OFF THE PRESS……
As of 4pm today my company ‘Braddicks Leisure Ltd’ has acquired a long lease on SEAFIELD CAR PARK at the end of Merley Road.
With immediate effect I’m making it FREE,yes FREE for the community and the public to use.
Please do park up and stroll over to The Pier House for a coffee or a cold pint.(not free!)
Enjoy.’
He paid thousands for the privilege of owning the car park so was he not mad to want to charge people to use it?
Obviously not. The publicity he gained off the back of this gesture was quite frankly incredible. His story got picked up on and was published in national newspapers, radio stations and shared thousands of times on social media.
Local people are visiting his venue to have their picture taken with him with a typical comment on social media stating
‘Just shaken hands with the most famous car park long-leaseholder in the world (surely Sir) Robert Braddick!’
‘Ooooh, super excited to be able to sneak this little podcast in today -possibly the most talked about carpark in the UK! Behind the scenes with Rob Braddick – the most generous business man in Devon.’
He has been hailed as a ‘hero’, ‘star’ and ‘legend’ and has whipped up a media frenzy.
If he had spent thousands of pounds on paid advertising, there is no way his money would have gained him the attention that doing something wholly unexpected and out of the ordinary did. He went against the grain and instead of looking to make immediate gains by charging for his services, he gave something of value away for free. This got people talking and in the world of psychology, where the power of reciprocity is well documented, people now want to come visit his premises to buy food and drink to pay him back for his generosity.
So the lesson to be learnt here is not to always keep trying to sell. Think about doing something unexpected, giving something of value away for free and create an environment in which people want to buy from you.
Way to go Robert!
What genius way can you think of to raise visibility for your business? Leave a comment below
