Carol Stephen — December 29, 2016 Follow @Carol_Stephen
How to Engage on Social Media: Facebook
Why Facebook?
Love it or hate it, Facebook is big and impossible to ignore. It’s not the elephant or the room, it’s the elephant AND the room! At over one billion users, Facebook is the most popular platform for social media marketers. Forbes has some of the top ten reasons to be on Facebook. Many people dislike the platform, since it has become “pay to play,” but you can’t deny that your audience is there.
“Fully 72% of online American adults use Facebook, a proportion unchanged from September 2014.”
~ Pew Research Center
Photo by The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas 
Popular with Everyone
In addition, “82% of online adults ages 18 to 29 use Facebook, along with 79% of those ages 30 to 49, 64% of those ages 50 to 64 and 48% of those 65 and older.” (Pew Research Center). So it’s the perfect place to engage with others.
Engagement
There are so many ways to engage on Facebook now. There’s live video, there are the usual likes and comments, and you can share posts and tag people or companies. There are ways to send messages either privately or publicly. Here’s one way to proceed–decide which level you’d like to be at, with Level One being the easiest, and Level Five, the most difficult.
Engagement: Level One
Simply read and “like” other people’s posts. This is the most basic level. If you’re engaging on behalf of a company or brand, choose where you spend your time engaging. Then make the rounds daily, just the way you might visit favorite relatives during the holidays.
Engagement: Level Two
The next level of engagement is to comment on others’ posts. Again, be careful where you spend your time. Choose those who are engaging! By the way, if you make a mistake while commenting, you can go back and edit your comments later.
Tip: Use a timer so you don’t get lost down a rabbit hole, distracted by endless cute videos of cats and puppies. Although that could be your reward once you get done!
Engagement: Level Three
Know your brand’s voice, and use it exclusively when you post. So, rather than posting with a generic headline, try writing a few different headlines until something comes to mind. Or, alternately, comment upon the content or the headline when you post. PostPlanner has an excellent article about using your brand’s voice to boost your engagement.
Engagement: Level Four
Consider the Five Ws and the H when you post: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How.
- Who is your audience? Your ideal customer is the middle of your bull’s eye.
- What issues bother them? Do a survey to find out.
- When are they online? Check your page’s analytics to see.
- Where do you want them to go once they’ve engaged with you?
- Why do they need the content you’re posting?
- How will the content you post help solve a problem?
In case you still don’t know why online relationships are important, Justine Pretorious answers that question: “Online Relationships — Are They Important?
Engagement: Level Five
Experiment and vary the types and amount of posts you make. So, for instance, do a newsy post in the morning, a more meaty post at lunch time, and a light-hearted post around dinner time. You might also post differently depending upon the day of the week. Having a strategy and then mixing it up is important–then keep track of what is working. Some social media managers post ten or more times per day. Others only post once or twice per week.
Which Engagement Level Are You?
Are you a six? Or are you closer to a two? Let me know in the comments! And thank you.
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