Every 60 seconds on Facebook: 510,000 comments are posted, 293,000 statuses are updated, and 136,000 photos are uploaded, according to The Social Skinny. Facebook is the number one social media site in the world and boasts 1.8 billion monthly active users. These users spend one of every six minutes online and one in every five minutes on the app in their mobile phones. You are probably one of the 60 million businesses that have a Facebook page who post an average of 1.5 times per day, but you may not realize that you are reaching a very small percentage of your audience.
With all those posts and pictures floating around in cyberspace, Facebook’s complex algorithm is designed to give users more of the content they want and less of what they don’t want. This formula controls what each user sees any time he or she is online. In 2012, Facebook used the algorithm to restrict the organic reach of content from brand pages to 16%. By 2014, the organic reach decreased even more to around 6%. Currently, the reach of these posts is at 2% and expected to eventually become 0%.
Have you adjusted your online marketing plan to account for these changes? At Riley & You, we have followed these trends closely and bring all of that knowledge to the table when we help you create an effective online marketing strategy. Here are some tips we have for keeping your Facebook page active and using it as a tool to bring in business.
- Quality content is key. You know that there is a lot of clickbait and junk on Facebook. Don’t use cheap tricks to get more clicks. This will ultimately backfire on you and turn away business rather than attract it. Creating quality, authentic content is far more effective and is ultimately rewarded by the algorithm.
- Your organic reach depends on shares. In order to reach more people with your organic posts, the people who like your page must share the post on their pages. This goes back to creating content that people want to share.
- Know the core values of the news feed. Facebook’s algorithm is based on these core values, so it’s important to understand the basics. Family and friends come first in the feed, so that means they trump content created on business pages. Facebook also believes that users go to their newsfeeds looking for information and entertainment, so it will boost those kinds of posts. Above all else, they are looking for authentic communication that connects people and ideas.
- Complete your page profile. If you are using Facebook for your business, you must have a page that has all the relevant information customers need. It also needs to be consistent with your brand so that users will recognize you wherever they find you. Riley & You can help you set up and manage your Facebook page.
- Focus on paid advertising. Because your organic content has a limited and shrinking reach, you must consider adding paid Facebook advertising to your online marketing budget. For our Riley & You clients, we follow your results closely and make immediate adjustments to keep your business front of mind. Now more than ever, we believe it’s an essential part of any marketing strategy.
The bottom line is that your social media efforts are only impactful when seen by your target audience. Because of the recent changes to the algorithm, organic posts are seen by a very small percentage of your followers. Using paid advertising, Riley & You will make sure your content reaches a larger percentage of your ideal audience, no matter your budget. We can also help you set up and manage your Facebook page as well as create organic content that is worth sharing. Contact us today and let’s talk about how to increase your reach on Facebook!
