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.