When it comes to digital marketing, and social media marketing in particular, Facebook is a top priority for many businesses. It’s no surprise, given that there are now 2.20 billion monthly active users and 1.15 billion daily active users. That’s some audience, right?
It’s not just the impressive amount of users that make Facebook one of the most desirable marketing platforms out there for lead generation. Far from it, there’s a whole host of reasons from cheap advertising costs and custom targeting to platform capabilities including chatbots and Facebook Live.
However, as you’ll probably know with any kind of marketing, things don’t stay still. So, what worked wonders on Facebook for you in 2016 may not cut the mustard now. It’s therefore crucial to stay up to date with current trends to ensure your Facebook strategy is as strong as possible. Here’s a roundup of tips and tricks for 2018 to help…
1. Emojis are killing it
Those little icons that express a world of emotions are providing to be an absolute gem when it comes to user engagement. They may seem trivial or something only tweens used to communicate with but, used strategically they can skyrocket the success of your posts. Hootsuite recently reported that using emojis in Facebook content can increase post likes by 57%.
Before you dive in however, make sure you know the meaning behind the emojis first. It’s a pretty common mistake that brands are making day in day out on social media so don’t fall into that trap. Used incorrectly, they can do more harm than good and lead to reduced engagement and a damaged brand image.
This can also put your brand authority at risk, especially if, like most brands, you’re trying to position yourself as ‘in the know.’ To help, a great resource is Emojipedia which regularly publishes updates and provides a breakdown of every emoji and its meaning.
2. Integrate your strategies
If you’re thinking about running a paid promotion, make sure it falls in line with your organic Facebook content. Like any digital campaign, in order to attract more customers, you want to be sharing the same message consistently.
This is quite a common mistake on facebook where brands plough all their efforts into promoted posts and neglect all organic their stuff. This can look inconsistent and poorly executed to users who click through to your Facebook page and see a feed of conflicting content.
When posting anything on Facebook, it’s important that your content has a consistent tone of voice and theme. For inspiration, look at some of your favourite brands and how their paid and organic content compares. Take a look at this great resource from Sprout Social too which provides some top tips on integrating content.
3. Go Live
Trust us, done well, this can work wonders! It’s no secret that Facebook algorithms love video, making this type of content ideal if you want to be seen. According to stats revealed by Livestream, 82% of consumers favour live video over any other form of content.
However, when it comes to live video, don’t put a hold on things because you’re waiting to shoot a professional stream. No, that’s not how it works. With Facebook Live, it’s all about authenticity and showing your audience a true snapshot into your brand. That’s not to say you should completely let your guard down and show any old thing. You should still put some planning into this content, just don’t over polish it.
Really thing outside the box with this one too. Constant clips of new products are interesting to an extent – but not if that’s all you post about. Why not hold a Q&A or stream a behind the scenes interview with a key staff member. You could also put on a live tutorial or give a tour of the office. The possibilities really are endless so get creative!
4. Tell stories
This feature is relatively new to Facebook pages having only been rolled out towards the latter end of last year. Plenty of brands are therefore yet to take advantage of what could be a great competitive edge.
Stories are the circular icons which appear at the top of the newsfeed. Rather than posting directly to your business page, you can now create a ‘story’ which disappears after 24 hours. This was cloned and rolled out after Facebook recognised the popularity of this feature on Snapchat and Instagram. What’s great is that now Facebook have incorporated this feature onto pages, brands that use it appear directly in the eyeline of their audiences.
It’s also a great way to tell your brand story and really open up to your audience. Authenticity and transparency are key to any successful marketing campaign nowadays so take advantage of this tool and show a personal side to your brand.
5. Update ads when they are live
Like any digital campaign, you have the power to adapt and change Facebook ads whilst they are live. You can therefore monitor the effectiveness of your ad make changes to enhance it. It usually takes a day or so to accumulate enough data and make a decision on an ads effectiveness – so don’t be too hasty.
However, if by day 2-3, your reach or engagements are lower than expected, it’s important to act and change things up. Here’s a few pointers to focus on:
- The targeting criteria you’ve selected is weak
- Your ad text is too long
- Your campaign isn’t cohesive – the landing page and Facebook ad are inconsistent
- Your campaign objective isn’t right
- The image or video you are using isn’t appealing to your target market.
By reviewing these elements, you should be able to tweak and enhance your ad to boost its effectiveness. Here’s a great video with some additional tips on how to scale a Facebook ad.
Targeting is also crucial for successful Facebook ads. For more killer tips on Facebook ad targeting, check out this blog post!
Conclusion
Like any form of social media marketing, it’s important to adapt. There’s no good in sticking with the same Facebook marketing strategy you’ve had since 2015 – things are undoubtedly different now. The tricks and tips we’ve listed in this article are things that are working for brands in the here and now. Try them out and play around with your content, your bound to find the sweet spot with your audience and scale your efforts on this important platform. Just be sure to check in with Facebook updates and any algorithm changes to ensure your plan is strong.
