Social media is a powerful force on the Internet in the 21st century. You can ignore this fact if you like, but social media is changing the way individuals interact with one another and with businesses. As a webmaster or business owner, you need to figure out how to take advantage of the power and reach of social media. If you are like the rest of us, you no doubt have a Facebook profile already. Facebook boasts user statistics that are stunning, to say the least:
- 1.35 billion monthly users in total
- 864 million daily active users
- 152 million daily active users in the US and Canada
Facebook should play a critical role in your digital marketing strategy, and that starts with gaining followers. How can you do that? Well, we’re here to help walk you through it with some simply ways to gain Facebook followers.
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Suggest Your Page to Others
If you’re like the rest of us, odds are you have friends on Facebook. With 72% of online adults visiting Facebook at least once a month, chances are you have a lot of friends that use the social media giant. In fact, Facebook suggested this approach as one its eight ways to get more fans on the site. All you need is a profile and some real-world connections. Suggest that they follow you on Facebook, and you might find that connections of theirs eventually become followers of your page as well.
1. Hold a Contest
We all love contests, especially when the odds of winning are high. Even if the odds aren’t high, a good prize is often enough for people to throw their hat in the ring and try to win the prize. All you have to do is invest in (or otherwise scrounge up) a good prize to give away. Ask people to follow your Facebook page to enter their name in the contest and you’ll find your friend list expanding in a hurry.
2. Tag Users in Photos & Videos
One of the simplest ways to gain followers on Facebook is to tag friends, family members, and current followers when you upload photos and videos. You probably don’t have photos or videos featuring these individuals. However, you may have product photos and videos explaining current services or introducing new ones. When you have materials to share that you know attract a certain demographic, tag those individuals upon uploading them to Facebook. Doing so will attract their attention and increase your visibility when the post shows up in individual newsfeeds.
3. Add Your URL to Marketing Materials
We recommend combining your digital marketing strategy with your offline marketing efforts. Whether you are sending out direct mailers or handing out service pamphlets at a job conference, you should always include the URL for your Facebook page so readers and fans can become followers. Include your customer URL, facebook.com/yourcompanyname, and fans will be able to find and follow you easily.
4. Cross Promote on Other Digital Platforms
If you want to increase your online visibility beyond the cyber walls of Facebook, you need to start promoting your Facebook page on your other social media profiles. Connect your Facebook account to your Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and Pinterest profiles to make it easy for your followers on other sites to find you on Facebook as well. If you operate a blog, consider adding the Facebook widget to your page so your existing followers can easily share engaging content from your blog to their Facebook profile.
5. Create Fresh, Quality Content
The greatest tool at your disposal is fresh, quality content. Consumers and casual Facebook users alike want to interact with businesses and brands that create quality content. It is also worth noting that Google is constantly on the lookout for fresh content on websites. With fresh content generated on a regular basis, your site ranks higher on Google SERPs. With greater visibility comes greater attention from Facebook users.
Post short videos and relevant photos to your Facebook page for current users to share with others. Generate great content on your own blog and link to your Facebook page to get followers talking about your site and sharing your posts on their profile.
6. Engage with Others
When your followers reach out to your brand through Facebook, you should never ignore them. If they have something positive to say, respond with a personal note and share their story with your other users to improve the image of your brand and get people talking. Likewise, when people have negative things to say you need to engage as well. Work quickly to resolve issues and prove to consumers and followers that your brand is worthy of their time.
7. Reshare Content
Success on Facebook is a game of give and take. You take from others when produce good content and share media that gets other people talking. So what does giving look like? When you come across content among the brands and companies you follow within your industry, reshare that content on your site.
Not only does this boost the visibility of that other brand, it boost the visibility of your brand as well. It establishes a connection between your business and the industry you operate within, while starting a conversation about your brand.
8. Use Hashtags
When Facebook users log in to the site each day, they see a “what’s trending” section on the right-hand side of the desktop site. This tells users what topics are generating discussions on Facebook, and many of them are linked to hashtags. If you want to get conversations up and running surrounding your brand, use hashtags. Using hashtags makes it easy for followers to share and easily attracts other users.
With these helpful tips in mind, you are ready to increase the visibility of your Facebook page and gain more followers on the social media giant. It’s important to remember than gaining and maintaining followers is a constant task. You cannot simply start these tasks and let them manage themselves. You’ll need to remain active on Facebook to ensure your brand is properly managed if you want these approaches to payoff in the long run.