13 Effective Tips for Building a Better Facebook Marketing Strategy

Using Facebook to reach and connect with leads and customers can be a great way to give a more personal touch to your online marketing efforts. While the competition is fiercer than ever, there is still room for everyone to succeed on this social media giant. Facebook can boast of a whopping 1.5 billion active user from across the globe. The companies that make the most out of Facebook are the ones who aren’t afraid to jump in and get their hands dirty. You may be saying to yourself, “We want to have more of a presence on Facebook, we’re just not sure where to start.”

Don’t fret, we have 13 effective tips you can use to build a better Facebook Marketing strategy.

Marketing your business on Facebook can be a powerful way to build brand loyalty and increase your company’s reach. 49% of Consumers Like a Facebook Page to Support the Brand. (via social sprout) But even more than that, Companies that acquired customers from Facebook: B2C is 77% and B2B is 43%. (State of Inbound Marketing, 2012)

So let’s take a look at 13 ways you can build a better Facebook Marketing strategy.

1. Find Your Niche

While there may be over a billion people on Facebook, you’re going to have much more success if you narrow your approach. Understanding that “your product isn’t for everyone but it is for someone” is important. The better you understand your target audience, and the problems they are facing, the more focused your messaging will be. Focus on building a small but connected following. The more buy-in you get, the more likely they will help spread your idea.

2. Entice Your Audience

Want to grow your audience? Finding a clever way to reward your audience for sharing or engaging can be extremely helpful. Now, when doing this, make sure it’s actually something people want. If a giveaway isn’t your thing, consider a discount or special access to your product or service. Make sure your followers know what they get (or might get) and emphasize the value and scarcity.

3. Listen to Your Followers

Don’t just post, engage. Watch how they react to your posts and ask questions. Another great resource to see whether or not your followers are engaged is Facebook Insights. Facebook gives you very detailed information about your posts and how your followers are interacting. Keeping a close eye on these metrics will help you hone your process.

4. Focus on Adding Value

This goes along with the tip above, but at a more ‚Äòhuman’ level. When it comes to connecting with other people on Facebook, adding value is extremely important. Don’t just focus on self promotion, focus on adding value to your following. By sharing posts that connect to your audience, you build trust and help create a more personal connection with your brand.

5. Build a Better Design

Customizing your Facebook page can really set your business apart. Having a quality profile picture and banner image that work together can help people find you & connect with your brand. Make sure that you create a design that showcases your business.

Your Page’s profile picture:

• Displays at 160×160 pixels on your Page on computers, 140×140 pixels on smartphones and 50×50 pixels on most feature phones
• Must be at least 180×180 pixels
• Will be cropped to fit a square
• Is located 16 pixels from the left and 176 pixels from the top of your cover photo on computers
• Is located 24 pixels from the left, 24 pixels from the bottom and 196 pixels from the top of your cover photo on smartphones

Your Page’s cover photo:

• Displays at 851 pixels wide by 315 pixels tall on your Page on computers and 640 pixels wide by 360 pixels tall on smartphones
• Doesn’t display on feature phones
• Must be at least 399 pixels wide and 150 pixels tall
• Loads fastest as an sRGB JPG file that’s 851 pixels wide, 315 pixels tall and less than 100 kilobytes

Here are a few pages will awesome desigs.

• Evernote: https://www.facebook.com/evernote
• Starbucks: https://www.facebook.com/Starbucks/
• Jacksonville Jaguars: https://www.facebook.com/jacksonvillejaguars

6. Use Built in CTA

CTA’s a huge for conversions. Did you know that Facebook has a CTA built right into your page? Use this call-to-action feature! Facebook now allows page admins to select from a group of call-to-action buttons ‚Äî like Shop Now or Sign Up ‚Äî to add to the top of their Page. The seven calls to action available are:

• Book Now
• Contact Us
• Use App
• Play Game
• Shop Now
• Sign Up
• Watch Video

7. Customize Your Posts

Every social media network is different and you must treat them that way. Just because twitter limits you to 140 characters, doesn’t mean you have to do the same with Facebook. Create customized posts with more content for your Facebook audience. Feel free to add more detail and break it up into easy to read paragraphs. Just don’t overload your audience. Only post what adds value.

8. Take Advantage of Apps

There are a ton of apps you can use to beef up your Facebook page and marketing efforts. From adding maps to surveys, Facebook actually allows you to do a lot more with you page than you might think. Check out this great post from the team over al Social Media Examiner to learn more.

9. Use Multi-Media

Video Posts Average 62% More Engagement Than Photos (Sprout Social). Research by Quintly found that photos are still the most common form of content posted to Facebook by Facebook Page. Accounting for 54% of posts worldwide. While photos continue to generate strong engagement on this social media platform, videos are returning significantly higher numbers.

10. Pay Attention to Trends

Noticing trends and capitalizing on them is more of an art form than a science. Some people just have the knack to see things before they get popular. If you don’t have the gift, think, what types of other media does your audience engage with? Who in your industry is a leader and having success on social? Look at their Facebook pages and learn from their strategies.

11. Double Down on What’s Working

The old adage is true, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”  Is there a type of content that just seems to be working? Have you stumbled upon a posting schedule that is crushing it? Do that and more! This is why tracking is so important. You’ll never know what is working, if you don’t track it. Find what’s working and double down.

12. Respond to Comments

Social media is meant to be social. A great way to build customer loyalty and show your prospects that you actually care is to respond. Whether someone posts to your wall or mentions your company in a post, take that opportunity to interact and build good karma.

13. Just Because it Worked for Someone Else, Doesn’t Mean it Will Work for You

While we can learn from others, don’t assume that what worked for them will work for you. Test out their tips, (Including the ones I am giving) and see how your followers react. Each company is unique and not every tip will work all the time. As you learn, take what you can apply to your business and leave the rest.

There you go! 13 effective tips for building a better Facebook marketing strategy. I hope you found a few nuggets of helpful information. If you have any thoughts or other tips, leave a comment below.