By Cassy van Eeden

There are many perks involved in successfully growing your Facebook community. Firstly, it introduces your brand to new people who may not have heard about it before. It also provides you with a fantastic focus group that is perfect for testing out new ideas and gaining insight. But how do you grow your Facebook likes?

Be authentic

One way to ensure growth is to be authentic. Authentic in your posts, what you share and how you respond to comments and messages.

Managing director of Social Media 101, Leandri Janse van Vuuren, advises: “Don’t try to imitate what other brands are doing.” She notes, “Every brand that succeeds on social media does so because they manage to achieve authenticity and a consistent voice.”

Product manager of social media and sales at Leads Machine, Brett Vlok, agrees, explaining that it is all very well to attract lots of likes, but whether those ‘likers’ will stick around or not is what matters. “As a brand, look at actions taken – shares, comments and so on – and build a community through authenticity and conversation. This lasts longer.”

Stop selling

It is important to understand that having a Facebook page is not so much for selling as it is for growing your audience.

Head of digital and insight at Waggener Edstrom Communications, Gareth Davies, says, “Don’t talk about yourself.” He has observed that: “So many brands spend a lot of time posting content about themselves and their product, which feels a little pointless.”

Dylan Kohlstädt, CEO of Shift ONE, recommends that brands should “avoid over-posting your business offerings”. She recommends that brands should, instead, keep their followers at the forefront of their minds. “Facebook isn’t about you, it’s about your followers.”

Vlok advises that brands should “try to keep direct selling ads under two [posts] and engagement ads to under two a day”.

Find your voice and stick to it

As Janse van Vuuren points out, “Your brand’s voice is its identity online.” As a result, she adds, “It is important that you align your voice with your brand’s values and mission statement.”

Not only does your online voice need to be in line with your brand, it also needs to be “aligned with the company’s overall marketing strategy”.

Vlok agrees that building a strong Facebook community is easy if your page is run based on the core service offering of your brand.

Be selective about your content

The content that you post on Facebook is what has the biggest impact on community growth. For this reason, it is imperative that whoever is responsible for the content of a Facebook page is cautious.

Kohlstädt recommends only uploading content every second day to get the best response. “Make sure the content is light-hearted and interesting, as well as entertaining,” she advises. She continues: “People who are in a social media mind-set won’t want to be inundated with boring, hard-sell messaging.”

Davies explains, “If your content puts your audience needs first, there will be a greater propensity for them to engage as it’s built around what they see as value.”

Hashtag, comment and measure

Use hashtags. They attract new audience members outside of your community, says Kohlstädt. Davies advises using measuring tools such as Sysomos or Socialbakers to gain valuable insight into your audience. In addition, Vlok recommends replying to negative messages rather than deleting them.

Do manage a Facebook community? What works for your brand? Let us know in the comments below.