Engaging with your Facebook audience

Almost all companies have a Facebook presence, it’s almost mandatory. But did you know that only about 2-5% of the people who “like” you page will even see your business posts?

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Kyle Van Deusen

Almost all companies have a Facebook presence, it’s almost mandatory. But did you know that only about 2-5% of the people who “like” you page will even see your business posts?

This is due to Facebook’s algorithms which limit the number of business posts that show up on a persons feed.

Why would they do that?

Facebook makes billions off of paid advertisements. In order to justify the cost of a paid ad, versus just posting on your page, they have to give priority to those paid advertisements. In order to keep the number of advertisements you see in your feed down, Facebook reduces the organic reach of your business posts. Without this, it’s likely your feed would be filled with nothing but company advertisement which would likely result in people enjoying Facebook less, and spending less time on their platform.

If posting to your business Facebook page isn’t getting you the results you want, and it’s likely not, there are other ways you can reach your audience through the platform, but you’re going to have to try some new tactics.

Building Your Personal Brand.

Facebook limits the number of business posts you see, because it wants you to see more posts from your friends and family. This means posts you make from your personal Facebook page have a much better reach than from your business page. This makes building your personal brand very important.

You don’t have to be a literally walking billboard… But it’s not the worst idea!

One great way to increase the odds of your message coming across to your audience is becoming a spokesperson for your company. Use your personal network to find and “friend” your target audience. From your personal page you can share helpful tips, blogs, and convey your passion for your work.

Not only are people more likely to see posts from your personal feed, but people are more likely to trust a friend than a company.

Focus on your businesses mission, and less on it’s products or services. Tell people why you are passionate about the work you do. Explain the benefits you are providing to customers. The goal is to not be a salesman, or a walking billboard, but to connect with people and show them that you are knowledgeable and committed to helping people.

That message resonates with people.

Building a Community That Will Sell for You.

One part of Facebook that hasn’t lost rank and is quickly becoming one of the more valued aspects of the network are Groups.

Facebook groups are a great way to get a targeted audience all in a room together having conversations. There are Facebook groups for just about any subject you can think of. What’s great about groups is you don’t have to do all the selling.

The most effective way to start a community like this is to understand your target audience. Who are the people who are your best customers? What do they talk about online? What is important to them?

If you can answer those questions, and your company helps them solve problems in this area, you can create a dedicated community around this message.

Here, you will be the administrator and facilitator of these conversations- making you the expert.

Groups are a great way to get your customers and prospects talking about your industry- and since the people you invite to the group are already fans of your company, they will do the selling for you.

This is also a great form of market research. Seeing the questions they ask, and hearing what they talk about are great ways to know exactly what your customer is thinking and will help you better plan your strategy for product development or avenues for new services you can offer.

Driving Your Audience Away from Facebook.

While Facebook is a great place to interact with your audience, it’s a terrible place to manage your message and your brand.

First off, Facebook is FULL of distractions.

Notifications, friend requests, memes, the list goes on. It’s so easy for a customer or prospect to get easily distracted on social media and that can make keeping them engaged difficult.

Second, don’t forget- your competitors are also on Facebook. This means there are hundreds and thousands of people just like you competing for the same customers on the same platform. While we all like to think of our customers as loyal a shiny new object can often be enticing.

Lastly, unless you are Mark Zuckerberg, you don’t own or control Facebook.

Facebook is constantly tinkering and adjusting the platform. You don’t have control of this environment, which can make things complicated when trying to deliver your message. If you are relying on someone else to steer your ship, you might not like where you’re headed.

The best remedy for this is to engage with your audience using social media and drive them to your website as quickly and as often as possible.

When you take a visitor away from the distractions of Facebook and onto your website you now control the message.

Does your website provide visitors notifications from friends? Does it show your competitors ads? Does it hide the content you’re trying to show?

Of course not- but those are all the thing Facebook is doing to your brand. It’s important you take your audience from Facebook and put them on YOUR platform. Make your company the star and the center of attention.

Wrapping Up

It’s not time we move away from Facebook, although that day will come eventually, for now we must better understand how to position ourselves on social media to better engage with our target audience. It’s time to build your personal brand and show your fans that you are the expert they need to listen to. Using Facebook Groups you can help build a community around your message and perform market research and help reinforce yourself as the expert in your industry.

And as often as possible- drive your audience AWAY from Facebook and into the environments you control.

About the Author

Kyle Van Deusen

Since 2003 I have helped businesses like yours increase their online presence through powerful websites that help you easily, effectively, and affordably grow your business.

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