8 No-Fail Ways To Market Your Brand On Facebook

Originally published on Linkedin.com on January 29, 2016 By Brenda Della Casa

Photo: Houzz via Paperblog
It’s the grandaddy of social media platforms and with over 1.9 billion users, you’re going to need to strategize to stand out. The key to success on Facebook is to make your goal to engage your audience while offering valuable, insightful and interesting content. Here are 8 ways to get noticed.
Think about your content. As with all of your platforms, it’s essential to post thoughtful, relevant material rather than to “just get something up there.” Think about using a content calendar and cover various areas of your industry which will showcase your brand’s position and your understanding of your business. If you can schedule your posts under themes (which will make them cohesive), even better.
Think about your visuals. Use high quality, vibrant images that grab the attention of your readers and always include a call to action. Tell your readers how you’d like them to engage. Do you want their opinions on a newsworthy topic? Likes? Feedback? Keep questions as open-ended as possible for more thought out responses.
Pay attention to your teaser. When it comes to grabbing a reader’s attention, you’d have more time with a goldfish. According to researchers at The National Center for Biotechnology Information the human attention span is 8 seconds. The goldfish? Nine.
Timing is everything. Studies have shown that Thursday and Friday tend to be the best days for engagement, with 1:00PM offering the highest share opportunities. Likes get a boost at 3:00PM . While this information may be useful, it’s also important to pay attention to the trends in your own followers.
Be engaging. You don’t want to come off like a cold advert or too laid back. Stay somewhere in the middle: personable-yet-professional, and do have fun. Ask questions, showcase your personality and POV and never forget where you end and your brand begins.
Share the love. Showcase relevant content from other platforms and be sure to tag them and maybe even send them an email or a tweet to let them know how much you and your readers appreciate their content. Look at businesses and brands who have a large following of consumers you want to attract and think of ways to approach them with cross promotional opportunities.
Don’t forgo video. While text and links are great, video is the #1 engagement driver on Facebook.
It’s nice to be liked, but it’s great to be shared. Pay more attention to share numbers than likes as you’ll have a better understanding of the content your readers value enough to pass along to their network. Shares also help you with the acquisition of new followers and traffic to your site. Focus on hot topics, thoughtful pieces and gorgeous images.
Brenda Della Casa
is the Editor-in-chief and Digital Strategist for Preston Bailey Designs, the internationally-published author of Cinderella Was a Liar (McGraw-Hill) and a blogger for The Huffington Post, YourTango and Thrillist. She is also a digital content and social media strategist for a number of international brands and speaks on the topic to a global audience through articles, the PB Protege Program. An expert in content strategy and SEO, she more than quadrupled the social media numbers for PB Designs in 2.5 years.