Five Tips Friday: Improving your Facebook Page reach

One of the biggest challengers for bloggers today is keeping up with the ever-changing Facebook algorithm. Only recently, Facebook said it would control the reach of promotional content on users' timelines. This makes the work of the social media manager or blogger harder because they have to achieve their goals while sharing interesting content on their Pages.

In a way, bloggers have it slightly better, as their aim isn't to sell a product or service, but to share their writing. But even then, it's not an easy thing to reach a good number of people from your Facebook fan base. In most blogging support groups, the biggest lament is the dwindling reach of Facebook Pages.

While some bloggers have it figured out or luckily, seem to have 'clicked' perfectly with their audience, for most of us, it can be a hit or miss with each post. I have been spending a lot of time on my Facebook Page, often at the cost of being on other social media.

Why is Facebook so important to me as a blogger? I think it has something to do with level of interaction I receive on this platform. There are no character limits on Facebook, and it supports photos and links. Also, the link preview is a fantastic feature on Facebook that most other platforms don't offer yet. All this works in favour of being a blogger. It's not like I've nailed the Facebook thing, but I am seeing better reach since I started paying attention to a few things, some of which I'm sharing below. These tips will benefit bloggers with new and smaller Facebook Pages, like mine!

Here are my five tips for improving the reach of your Facebook Page:

1. Show your face

Your content may be great, but people would like to see updates from a face rather than a logo. As far as possible, have a photo on your profile pic, and use the same photo across social media. Make sure you have filled in every detail about yourself in the About section. Create a custom Cover Photo which shows exactly what you have to offer readers.

2. Have a personality

Decide what your voice is going to be on your Facebook Page. It should, of course, be an extension of your blog's voice, but a Facebook update seems more one-to-one, and so it should reflect your personality. Think about the things you will talk about, and how they are connected to your blog. Don't make drastic changes in your voice, such as by showing an overload of memes which have nothing to do with what you write about. These kind posts are what Facebook is trying to reduce the reach of.

3. Post consistently

This requires some work, but try not to 'disappear' from your Facebook Page. When your followers see you often, they will get to know you, and will probably interact more. Be consistent with the kind of content you publish (as mentioned in point 2) so they know what to expect from your Page. And be frequent in your updates. The number can be as high as a new post or share every two hours. In my opinion, you should post at least three or four times a day.

4. Interact, interact, interact

Don't post and run! The quicker you respond to comments, the higher the chance of that post being 'shown' by Facebook to more people. Asking questions is a great way to engage your audience, but do it sincerely instead of just throwing it out there, and be present if an interesting conversation develops in the comments.

5. Choose the best times

This is so important! You can't post whenever you like, and wonder why no one interacts. Schedule posts for the best times and you will see a huge improvement in your reach. To find out what times are best, see 'When Your Fans Are Online' under Insights and then Posts on your Page. It's very easy to schedule a post too. Just click on the arrow in your post button when on your desktop, or use a Pages Manager app on your phone. I've shared tips on scheduling and making the best use of your time in my post on Social Media Tips for Blogging Moms.

Five Tips Friday is a series of posts on five quick tips about parenting, blogging, social media, travel, or just about anything!


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