So your Facebook engagement is down, and you’re starting to worry. Maybe it’s time to start a Facebook group to regain your momentum. However, for this strategy to work, you’ll need to put significant effort into maintaining your Facebook group. Will the payoff be worth the cost?
The pros at Personalized Creative would give it to you straight: there’s no simple answer to this question. Are you wondering whether a Facebook group is the right answer to your engagement slump? Let’s take a look at a few questions you should consider before taking the plunge.
Can Your Current Strategy Be Optimized First?
Even if you do decide to start a Facebook group, it’s worth taking a look at your current strategy first. Find any mistakes you’re making and fix them, and your engagement may start to improve on its own. Otherwise, the boost you get from creating a Facebook group might be less than you hoped for. As you evaluate your current strategy, keep an eye out for these classic mistakes.
Shake Off Any Salesperson Vibes
When users visit Facebook, they’re looking for content that informs them, makes them feel good, and connects them with other people. If they want overt sales tactics, they can visit their local car dealership or furniture store. On Facebook, focus on offering valuable content that relates to your brand without directly selling it.
Netflix is a great example of a brand that leverages Facebook by offering valuable content. Over 95,000,000 people are following their Facebook page, and their posts generate an incredible number of likes and shares.
By posting clips, quotes, and trailers that get followers talking, Netflix is doing everything right. They’re informing their audience about content they may not have seen yet. They’re making their audiences feel good by spotlighting familiar scenes people already love. They’re also connecting their users by inviting commentary with posts that are just controversial enough. A statement like “this is one of the realest things anyone has ever said on Love is Blind” will invite comments–from people who agree and people who disagree.
How can you tap into Netflix’s strategy? Use your Facebook posts to build community, positive feelings, and curiosity around your product–not to make sales pitches.
Don’t Ignore Analytics
A successful Facebook marketing strategy requires a bit of data analytics. The good news is that Facebook’s Insights feature can make this process easier. You need to understand factors such as:
What time is your target audience online?
What’s the primary gender of people seeing your posts?
How old is your average audience member?
Where do most of your fans live?
What trending hashtags can you get in on?
Which of your past posts has your audience liked the most?
How does your current strategy line up with your competitors’?
Without crunching some numbers and tracking trends, you’ll never be able to fully optimize your Facebook marketing strategy.
Are You Prepared to Run a Facebook Group?
Over half of Facebook’s users belong to five or more groups. A Facebook group can be a fantastic way to revive your brand’s engagement. However, starting a Facebook group won’t solve your problems if you don’t have the bandwidth or resources to run it successfully. In fact, a struggling Facebook group could even harm your image.
What does it take to run a successful Facebook group? Consistent branding, a strategic group name, and high-quality content are all crucial. The following are a few aspects of running a Facebook group that requires a significant time commitment.
Interact With Your Members
If your members don’t feel like part of a community, they’ll leave your group before long. Welcoming new members, responding to questions and feedback, and asking for stories and opinions will help everyone stay connected.
Post High-Quality Content Frequently
If you’re not posting at least two to four times a week in your group, you’re not offering a consistent experience to your members. On the other hand, if you’re always posting repetitive, boring content, your members will mute or leave the group. You’ll need to offer high-quality content, several times a week, to keep the ball rolling.
Offer Exclusive Content
If your Facebook page offers the same content as your group, there’s no reason for members to join the group. Hosting Facebook Live sessions, Q&A or AMA sessions, contests, and challenges can give your members that exclusive experience they’re looking for.
Take Time to Moderate Effectively
With no admins or rules, it’s easy for any Facebook group to become a cesspool of negativity. If you don’t want your page overrun by flame wars, you’ll need to establish firm rules and enforce them consistently. Negative comments about your brand should be taken seriously. Don’t let them just pile up in a comment thread with no response from you.
Does Your Facebook Strategy Need a Boost?
Do you need some professional help to revitalize your Facebook marketing strategy? Do you want to start a Facebook group, but worry about the commitment involved? Personalized Creative can help you revamp your social media marketing strategy, implement a branded group, and much more. Contact us today to get started!