written by Rita Wade
I know it FEELS like it is IMPOSSIBLE to get ANY activity on social media and you feel like you need a crash cart to revive it? You feel like there is NO PULSE and not even CPR is going to revive what you USED to have… In the end you feel like it may all simply die and your left with years of wasted time and money on something you cannot see ANY organic or “FREE” publicity. And you are NOT WRONG… It’s either WORK at it or PAY for it and paying for it isn’t ALWAYS going to get what you want. Here are some tools to use in helping you create the REVIVAL you need!
Organic Reach is BEST achieved with the following strategy:
Here are a FEW Tips to Increase Your Facebook Organic Reach – This is Not EVERYTHING you need, but it is a start in the “Action” plan in developing the digital marketing strategy.
1. VIDEO – strive to publish more video content than any other type of content. I recommend that even creating GIF’s and Animated posts that are far better than still posts.
2. LIVESTREAM – aim to broadcast using Facebook Live 1x/week or more – Strategize on your content and topic and get started. Short and sweet and it is a GREAT way to grow!
3. HASHTAGS #️⃣ – include hashtags liberally at the foot of all Facebook posts! (Using sources like Hootsuite and Later will help you FIND the highest ranking and most relevant hashtags and begin BUILDING your own BANK of hashtags that add your business, your community, and any #ShopLocal hashtags.
4. GROUPS – link your Page to an active group to connect more deeply with your audience (Great time to START a Group that may be a VIP or SELLING Group)
5. TIMING – publish when most of your audience is online (check this under Insights > Posts) (I am ALWAYS analyzing my insights on premium times to post)
6. OTHER SOURCES – drive traffic to specific posts (the timestamp is the URL) from all other social channels + email your subscribers (Using Snap Retail to email subscribers is super helpful)
7. STORIES – Stories stay at the top. Take advantage of the opportunity to be seen instantly through stories. Even if the content disappears within 24 hours… Post the SAME content in BOTH places for a higher chance of visibility.
8. BOOST – Try boosting posts that have already proven to be strong performers, not just the posts you think will perform well. Amplify the reach of your best performing posts (okay this one is not organic, but even a *small* amount of budget can make all the difference to your organic reach!) Facebook is NOT “REALLY” FREE, and it certainly takes a great deal of analysis to develop the right ads at the right time. You do not have a “regular” budget or “spend” amount established. I feel that you could have had much better results with paid ads. Kiara mentioned that she was very unfamiliar with navigating and building Facebook ads. This is NOT the same as boosting and while boosting is a simple strategy… it often waists money if it is not targeted to the audience that is best suited for your store.
9. MORE EMOJIS…. Folks scroll through Facebook at warp speed… PICK emojis that are fun and interesting and make sure it is BALANCED with relevant and personal content!
10. ABOVE the FOLD… If you have ever been in marketing for a LONG time like I have, you know that the premium location in anything PRINT marketing is ABOVE the fold, page 1, 2, or 3 and usually on the right. The same holds true for a social post. Meaning that you need to LEAD with a strong paragraph that captures their attention VERY Quickly because a lot of folks never open the post up to read the “MORE!”
Understanding the ORGANIC reach of Facebook does take some learning and the algorithm has had some significant changes. I am currently writing an article about this and have done some extensive research. Here are a few things to keep in mind. In clarifying a few important things to know about how Facebook’s News Feed Ranking Algorithm works:
There are over 100k points or weights in the algorithm known as ‘ranking filters’ that assess every single piece of content you see at any given moment on your own unique desktop or mobile News Feed. (Your feed is always unique to you).
Ranking filters include several main ones like the relationship and frequency of interaction you have with the author (friend/page) of the post + how recent the post was published + the type of post … + even down to the speed of your internet connection + whether you prefer to engage by liking or commenting and a whole bunch more signals.
Facebook starts with several thousand possible posts that it *could* show you. Depending on how many friends you have, how many people/Pages you follow, and how many Groups you belong to, this top number could literally be 10-15k! (Some folks complain about not seeing all posts in their feed; but, unless you have a tiny number of friends and hardly follow any pages, you’d need to be on Facebook 24/7 to see and consume all posts!)
Then, the large list gets whittled down to around 1,500 posts > then 300 or so > then you might see/consume around 12-30!
Unless you are on Facebook constantly, this is the process.
NOW – Why on earth did I give you a Facebook lesson? You may be asking… BECAUSE, I am seeing folks just like you trying to understand why you are not seeing results on your social media and deciding it is somewhat of a waste of time and money. And if not done correctly and with great intentions… then you are correct… It is a waste of money. But KNOWLEDGE is POWER and my goal with all clients is to provide them with all the power they need to be successful.
QUICK TIPS and Suggestions that might improve digital presence
1. Set up your social strategy in advance using promotions, events, the national calendar, and local affiliates to help to DRIVE it with good CTA’s
2. Make sure to do more videos
3. STILL images should feel a little “Instagrammy” with hands, arms, necks, and ears
4. Add in a few “lifestyles” images with SOME props. Do not become “over proppy” either… because it is considered spammy and will be quickly dumped from the algorithm.
5. BE REAL and add in a weekly “Feature” like a Feature Friday video with “Rita’s Five Favorite Friday Fashions…” or something like this. BRAND it for YOUR STORE!
6. As mentioned above. You are going to need to SPEND a little money. Not everything can be organic.
7. I cannot STRESS this ENOUGH… Your ENTIRE social media strategy and marketing would begin to take shape with A) A Strategy and B) A Budget and C) EVERYONE’S Participation. This is the BIGGEST KEY! You and your team need to meet and SHARE your strategies together and then GET the TEAM on Board. Weekly/Monthly emails to help them KNOW what is going on will help them to REMEMBER to like and share the posts. AGAIN… this STARTS with a STRATEGY.
I have spent many years and lots of training, 4 college degrees and a slew of webinars to be equipped to analyze the outcomes and insights of social media and marketing. I am in NO WAY “THE” expert on the subject, but I do know a few things… I cannot TEACH in few sessions everything a store owner will need to know to be successful while they manage your digital presence. You can hire me for training your staff or you can hire me and my team to manage this for you. The key element is that it cannot be done alone. The mix is BEST when you or an in-house team member works with me to help you deliver the best strategy for your store.
