Do you like my outdated photo of phone apps?
I’ve been saying this for a decade and the numbers still show it to be true: Facebook is still the most-used social media site and by a wide percentage. It offers the most ways to interact with others, and Meta’s tools have become so much better over time.
Just because you don’t like Facebook or don’t use it, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use it for your business, non-profit, or art. Here are a few ways you can leverage Facebook and make your Page more useful.
1. Set up a Favorites list. Not seeing Pages or people that you want to see? You can add 30 favorites on a list and look at that independently of the main feed. In a world where the algorithm dominates, it’s nice to have a feed of what I want to see, and I not only use it for following my fave people and things, but I can also follow my clients easily.
1a. There are also designated feeds for Friends, Groups, and Pages. They are also in chronological order, no algorithm.
2. @followers and @everyone are your friends- but use them wisely! Unpopular opinion: THIS IS AN EXCELLENT TOOL. Once a day you can use them on a Page or group and every follower/member is sent a notification. There has definitely been mixed reactions to it. I say, just because you can use it once a day doesn’t mean you should. You should save it for important info you want to get more eyes on. A sale, an event. A change in a schedule. I’m not going to lie, I’ve stopped following some who use it daily. You always need to be smart about what you post, and how.
3. Don’t auto-post from Instagram. Many of you know I’ll die on this hill, but I see the misuse of auto-posting from Instagram to Facebook every day. It’s another tool that although is available, doesn’t mean it should be used. First and foremost, you’re not going in and updating to tag the businesses that you tag on Instagram (they don’t carry over). Secondly, “link in bio” and the 30 hashtags looks terrible on Facebook. Lastly, reach and engagement is less than if you just took 30 seconds and made the same post on Facebook organically. You want to support the businesses on Facebook too, right? Plus if a Page sees that you’ve tagged them, they are more likely to share that post. Hey that means more eyes on you!
3a. Meta Business Suite has really become invaluable in setting up separate posts for Facebook and Instagram, and scheduling them.
4. Like, Comment, Share! Again, the biggest challenge for a business is being seen on Facebook. Posting more often doesn’t necessarily help, and could have the opposite affect. Liking a post is helpful, but commenting will definitely get more eyes on a post. Sharing, even better! If you truly want to support a small business or musician/artist, ALWAYS leave a comment on their posts. No need to write a novel, one sentence will do.
Small businesses are always fighting an uphill battle, and are continually being forced to pay for ads in order to be seen. Many just don’t have the budget to run ads constantly. Using these four things (and being intentional about it) will help work the algorithm in your favor so more people can see what you’re doing, and hopefully get some new followers too!