Facebook is continuously changing its algorithm that determines what kinds of posts their users want to see in their news feeds. In short, Facebook is using clues from you about what you want to see. Plus, they want to ensure the content from publishing pages like brands, businesses and schools do not smother the posts you see from your family and friends.
Unfortunately, this means that your page may likely see a decrease in engagement and notably web traffic because, in a sense, fewer of your fans are actually seeing the content you post to your school’s Facebook page. To help you beat Facebook’s algorithm, I am offering 7 tips to help ensure your content is seen and not forgotten:
- PAY-TO-PLAY – investing $5, $15, $50 or more into some posts will need to be a regular part of your Facebook strategy. Sure, promotional event posts like Open House dates would be a good play here, but as well, if you have a compelling parent or student testimonial, it would be a good idea to get more people to see this post as well. You may also want to create some targeted Facebook ads for people of a certain city name or age group.
- ENGAGE – as has been the case for a while, Facebook’s algorithm puts a premium on the content from pages where fans react, comment and share. So communicate to your parents and constituents that passive Facebook scrolling doesn’t cut it any more. If they want to help spread the word about your school, you desperately need them to react to the post (they can click on Like, Love, Haha, Wow, Sad or Angry). Encourage them to react with words, too, leaving comments about the posts. And of course, the “granddaddy of them all” is the share feature. This powerfully spreads your post into the news feeds of their friends, creating a powerful word-of-marketing tool in the hands of even the most introverted of users. As if I needed to say it, but engagement is not only on the part of the fan. If a parent, alum or student writes a review or comments on or shares one of the school’s posts, engage with them. Acknowledge their effort and maybe ask a followup question. Engagement is a two-way street!
- SEE FIRST – with one click, parents can opt in to seeing the posts of your school’s posts. Regardless of the algorithm Facebook uses, this puts your school’s posts at the top of their news feeds on desktop and mobile devices. This keeps your best posts from the morning from getting buried before the parent sees it in the evening. [*SEE VIDEO BELOW ON HOW TO DO THIS*]
- GET NOTIFIED – while not every Facebook user religiously checks his/her red circle notifications, many do. You can invite your Facebook page fans to return to your Facebook (on a desktop or laptop, not on a mobile device), hover of the “LIKE” button and you will see the options to “Get Notifications”. This offers yet another way that fans do not miss a single post. [*SEE VIDEO BELOW ON HOW TO DO THIS*]
- USE YOUR GROUPIES – I always advocate selecting your best ambassador parents/alumni to join a secret Facebook group for the purpose of marketing/promotion. You can communicate with this group about events coming up at school but also, whenever you post to the Facebook page, you can write a quick note to this group alerting them of the new page post. No more needing to text everyone or emailing the group. And members of this secret group also receive the red notifications so they will also see you posted something there as well. Because of the secret/private nature of the group, you may even want to specifically direct ways to react to the post such as, “would you please make a comment detailing how this post impacts your son or daughter” or “please leave a comment that includes some details about your favorite teacher or tradition at the school”. Previously, I have written an article about this group, calling it your secret marketing weapon!
- POST OFTEN – the numbers are not in your favor if you limit your page posts to just a few times per week. If Facebook is going to restrict or limit the visibility of certain posts, then having only a few will hurt your chances of being seen at all. If at all possible, look for ways to post daily or even multiple times in a day. You may want to subscribe to features like Buffer or Quuu to help you fill your content calendar. Speaking of content calendar, have your downloaded our FREE SOCIAL CONTENT CALENDAR yet? Click here to get it!
- BE VALUABLE – above all else, make sure your Facebook posts are of value to the end user. Provide helpful content for prospective parents as they look into the various choices for educating their children. As well, because you want to post things that are of value to them personally, consider ways your Facebook page posts can equip them to be better parents, wives, husbands, citizens or ways that encourage their faith through inspirational posts. When you are awesome, your fans will share your awesome content, too!
Click for a free consult to learn about a better way of marketing your school!
** WATCH VIDEO ABOUT INCREASING FACEBOOK ENGAGEMENT**
[ if embedded video does not play, click here to be directed to the Facebook post ]
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