Facebook’s still the biggest social media platform on earth — though you might not know it if you read marketing trade publications. TikTok, LinkedIn and Instagram get more press. Facebook sometimes gets forgotten.
But no other social media platform reaches as many people across as many demographics. Facebook has 3 billion monthly active users. 68% of Americans use Facebook, the most of any social media platform. Even outside the USA, Facebook is the dominant presence in basically every market but East Asia.
Just because it isn’t “buzzy” anymore doesn’t mean you can ignore it. Facebook’s broad audience appeal, variety of ways to engage and massive user base make it ideal for growing your community. You need to understand how to use Facebook to identify, communicate and engage with your audience.
Identify Your Audience
Before you can do anything, you need a “persona” or “cohort” for your audience. Start with an idea of who makes up that audience, what they like, where they spend time and what they want to do. Then take that persona to Facebook to start testing. Make sure you have a brand or company page set up on Facebook; this is the center of your marketing efforts.
Use your persona as a hypothesis. “We think this group is interested in us.” Advertising is a great way to test that theory. Narrow your advertising audience using that persona and do small, targeted buys through Meta’s ad platform. Lookalike audiences can be a handy tool for this by extending your reach.
Search for and join groups that you think match your audience persona. At this stage, listen, don’t talk. There are two primary things you’re looking for here:
- Are groups that fit your desired audience talking about things that are relevant to your brand?
- Are there regularly-discussed problems or opportunities that you can address?
If you have access to social listening tools, this can be a great place to use them. They can help you glean more data and make connections that might not be immediately obvious.
Gather all this information and use it to identify who’s actually interested in what you have to say. Don’t be too married to your hypothesis; follow the data.
Communicate With Your Audience
Once you’ve identified your audience, it’s time to reach out.
Define a production process for posts, Stories and Reels. Remember, consistency is key; keep to a schedule. People should be able to expect to hear from you at regular intervals on whichever feed they’re scrolling at the moment.
Once you’ve done this, set up workflows and tools that let you talk to your audience directly.
Add Messenger capabilities to your page. This lets people reach out directly to you and ask questions. Not available 24/7? That’s fine; add hours of availability to set people’s expectations. You should also set up automated responses to common questions like “When are you open?,” “Where are you located?” and “What does your business do?” For more information, see Facebook’s how-to on automated responses.
You should also consider using Facebook Live. This live streaming platform lets you broadcast to your audience in real time. Scheduled streams are a given; give plenty of warning so people have time for “appointment setting.”. But depending on your business, impromptu streams will work well too. Spur-of-the-moment broadcasts of interesting content (for example, a musician taking you through setting up for a concert) can get more people interested in what you have to say.
As you start talking to your audience, you’ll be able to tell which messages get them interested. Double down on the content that gets the most attention.
Drive Audience Engagement
When you communicate with your audience through posts, Reels, Lives or other similar methods, you’re taking the initiative to speak to your audience. Engagement is when your audience communicates back. You don’t have full control over that — but just like in a face-to-face conversation, you can open the door.
Engagement is a hot topic among social media managers right now; across the board, it’s been dipping. Platforms like TikTok have seen the most severe declines last year — but Facebook’s actually increased its engagement.
When you put out content through posts, Stories or Reels, follow our PII™ content framework to make sure you’re inviting engagement. Ask questions that open the door to comments. And don’t be afraid to take a strong position on something if you believe it and it makes sense for your brand. Strong positions create strong emotions (positive or negative), which drive comments and shares.
Solicit feedback on stream during Facebook Lives. Ask for input from the chat and try to answer questions or address comments while you’re still live.
Messaging offers engagement opportunities too, as surprising as that may sound. If you get insightful or interesting comments on posts or live streams that merit the effort, reach out directly to the commenter to say “Hey, here’s the answer to that question” or “Thanks for your input!” Keep an eye on the likes and shares on your page too; you can message people that follow your page without jumping through any extra hoops, and that can start a conversation. I know a guy who literally built his entire business through Facebook by commenting on the posts of leaders in his field, messaging influencers who showed an interest and creating shared business opportunities. A little genuine interest goes a long way.
Function Over Flash
Facebook’s not as flashy as the other social media platforms that dominate marketing news cycles these days. If you’ve ignored it in favor of “sexier” channels and aren’t seeing the results you’d like, give Facebook another look and use it to identify, communicate with and engage your audience. Don’t know how to get started? We can help. Just drop us a line, anytime.
Best Regards,
David Brandon
Copywriter
Rainmaker Digital Services