While most people's home feed on Facebook does not move nearly as fast as their newsfeed on Twitter (because we are not allowed to have as many friends on Facebook as we can on Twitter), it is definitely moving.
This means that a fan who logs into Facebook at 5pm will NOT see the message that you posted at 9am. You have missed the opportunity to connect with that fan.
Moreover, there is a difference between dominating Facebook's news feed and becoming the "annoying post queen" on Facebook. To dominate instead of annoy, you will can use these simple, yet savvy, tips.
Follow this game plan and watch both your Facebook dominance and know, like and trust factor soar.
1. Post Consistently and Throughout the Day
We all have busy lives, so consistency can be hard to maintain beyond a few days or weeks. However, it is the difference between success and failure in your quest towards Facebook dominance and engagement. Therefore, to help you stay consistent long past the time when your will power burns out, call upon the help of programs such as hootsuite.com or bufferapp.com.
A management program can help you post throughout the day when you are away, with clients, or working on other things. This relieves you of becoming the "Annoying Post Queen" who posts 3 different messages in the morning and then comes back to post 2 more messages at night. Fans don't like to be overwhelmed. Keep your messages consistent and schedule to help post regularly.
2. Utilize your Admin Panel
Now that you have built in the habit of posting consistently, it is time to analyze your results. To do this, check out the "insights" chart on your admin panel. If you click on it, the chart expands and tells you exactly which posts received the most engagement.
Knowing which posts generate higher engagement is important because you can then consciously create more content of a similar nature.
Likewise, when you analyze your posts, analyze them for more than just content. Examine the look and feel of each post.
For example, a study done by Buddy Media proved that posts with less than 81 characters had 27% higher engagement rates. That's huge! What could you do to create shorter posts?
3. Vary it Up!
If Pinterest's popularity is any indication, people like pictures! When you post messages, vary it up by including pictures, videos and multiple-choice questions.
In a study done by Monmentus Media of the top 20,000 Facebook fan pages, engagement levels increased by 21% when a message included a photo. Likewise, engagement was up by over 10% when a message included a video.
Consistently switching between text, picture and video posts will keep your audience engaged and happy.
On the other hand, when a fan opens their home feed and sees 10 new pictures posted by you, they become annoyed. Be sure to keep everything in balance!
4. Add A Call To Action
We often leave out a call to action simply because we are writing a facebook post. However, calls to action work! And, calls to action don't have to send fans away from Facebook. In fact, if you ask fans to leave Facebook to take action too often, they will become annoyed.
Rather, at the end of your post, add a simple call to action such as: "Like this post if…." Or, "Leave a comment when/if…"
In the same study where Monmentus media discovered the importance of pictures and videos, they also found that when a status update contains the word "like", engagement increases by 38%!!! Similarly, when a status update contains the word "comment" engagement jumps 14%.
Where can you be adding these calls to action in your posts?
5. @mention Fans
When you @mention a fan it shows up on their home feed, and in their notification window. This increases your engagement and puts you back at the top of their home feed.
When you utilize this technique it is important that you be personal and sincere. No one likes to be spammed, and if you've @mentioned 10 people about your latest blog post, they are going to think it's spam.
Instead, when a fan comments on your page, @mention them in your reply. Or, when something reminds you of a particular fan @mention them in the post. Likewise, if you are sharing something they've posted on their page, @mention them and offer thanks.
@mention's can go a long way in turning leads into customers.
What about you? What do you do to dominate Facebook's home feed, instead of annoy? Which tip are you going to use this week?
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So glad I found ya today on Twitter Kim- you're brilliant!! Thank you for all this wonderful information you're sharing, very valuable 🙂
Glad we connected, Deborah!
Glad they were helpful, Elizabeth!
I am starting to use the call to actions and you are so right! My engagement is higher on those posts! Thanks Kim!
I think I am going to use all of them; I am doing some already…but I want to be consistent in all of the aboce; thank KIm!!
Thanks, Lorii!
Great points Kim. Wow, 5 to be more aware! Thanks.
Great points. I really need to start using the CTA and work on follow up and engagement. Thanks Kim.
Would love to hear how it goes!!
Really love this post! Definitely one to print out for future reference..Thanks! 🙂
Glad it was helpful!
I will definitely increase post frequency and add more pictures! Thanks, Kim!
You are most welcome, Laura!
Another informative and timely post Kim. Thank you!
Thank you, Debbie!
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