Navigating the murky waters of Facebook algorithms can be frustrating. To an inexperienced user, it can seem as if there’s no rhyme or reason as to why some posts do better than others. But there is. And although Facebook is constantly changing its algorithms, here’s what we know right now about how to gain traction on your business’ Facebook page.
Videos Have Usurped Photos as King
According to Business Insider, photos are no longer the best way to reach your audience. In fact, they may be the worst.
“The algorithm has changed, punishing photos, perhaps in response to page owners trying to game the system by constantly posting photos, or maybe because Facebook has been shifting its strategy ever more toward video in recent months,” said Lara O’Reilly, a Business Insider author.
As a result, try pushing member testimonials to your Facebook Fans. Or, consider making fun, staff-made videos. Recently, we wrote about how an Anytime Fitness in Upper Lafayette, New Orleans “Thought Outside the Box” with its marketing by making videos to highlight a specific promotion.
And as I’ve written in the past, shooting your own video is now easier than ever. Now may be a great time to get creative and give it a shot. You may get more engagement on your Facebook page as a result.
It’s Getting Harder for You to Reach Your Audience
Business Insider also revealed that, “The number of people the average page post on Facebook reaches on average — without paying to promote it — has been declining rapidly in recent years, as the news feed has become more flooded and as the company has stepped up its advertising efforts.”
According to the International Business Time, in addition to crowded newsfeeds, the second component to low organic reach, “Has to do with Facebook’s proprietary algorithm, which culls news feeds so that users see — or supposedly see — only the content most relevant to them. Tweaks to the formula have resulted in a decline in reach for content the algorithm deems uninteresting or overly promotional.”
So how can you get more organic reach without paying a ton of money for organic posts? Here are a few tips, courtesy of the Search Engine Journal:
Consistently post quality content. The Search Engine Journal explained, “Similar to Google, Facebook puts a lot of emphasis on content quality and relevance. When deciding which posts to include in a user’s newsfeed, Facebook looks at engagement metrics, such as likes, shares, and clicks to determine the quality of each post.”
So, if you’re posting a certain URL or type of post that isn’t getting much traction, stop now and try something else.
Use Facebook insights. Fortunately, Facebook doesn’t leave you completely in the dark as to how your posts are doing. By clicking on the “Insights” button at the top of your page, you’ll find key data on likes, reach, visits, posts and people. There you can find what posts have reached the most people and even what times your fan base are on Facebook the most.
And as the Search Engine Journal pointed out, this information is completely free.
Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate. Like any strategy, evaluating your Facebook strategy is important. Don’t just try things willy nilly. Like I said, although Facebook’s algorithms may not seem like they have a rhyme nor reason, that doesn’t mean your social media strategy should be in the same boat.
Continue to navigate the murky waters of Facebook algorithms. And if you’ve found your way through, please let us know. We’re all trudging through, and maybe we can do so together.
Rachel Zabonick is the Editor of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@clubsolutionsmagazine.com. Reach out to her about exciting events or programs your club has implemented, or to share the amazing accomplishments of a member.
