How To Deal With Facebook Frustration for Free

There is nothing more annoying in your social media universe than the constant changes by Facebook, right? Facebook has grown into the platform we love, but hate. Guaranteed, when the latest change rolls out, my feed fills with angry frustration. But to roll with the randomness of Facebook, you simply have to get this perspective…

It’s free. It’s still friendship based. And it’s only one of many tricks in your marketing bag (or it should be). So roll with it.

Yes, there is increasing pressure from Facebook to “pay for views” but you can do better than that. You don’t need to buy friends, and if you feel you do, then I strongly suggest you follow Mari Smith and learn how to do it right (she’s the Facebook guru with only goodness behind her advice). The surface level tools for buying ads and sponsoring posts let you scratch the surface of your potential audience. You need to understand the math of Facebook (the algorithm) and some developer tools and tricks that aren’t that hard, but still necessary, to do it well.

But I’m not here to give you a Facebook ad tutorial today, because I’ve yet to run a program where I’ve needed Facebook advertising. So pause before you spend.

All Marketing Starts With Engagement, Especially on Facebook

Facebook, like all methods of communicating with fans, friends and customers, is based on engagement. Engagement is another word for interaction. Facebook math (the algorithm) loves comments, likes and shares. If you need to encourage your friends to “engage” with you online, spend your time motivating them. Because over time, Facebook will reward the pages (business and personal) that are, well, most popular and the evidence is by how often and how well you are engaged with.

Tips to Get More Free Facebook Engagement

• Be interesting, provocative, shocking.
• Ask questions that beg an answer.
• Share quotes and memes that are deeply thoughful or very funny. These are the most shared.
• Be sure your blog post has an image linked to it.
• Create conversations way more often than you sell.
• Share other people’s posts (especially their selling ones). They will thank you with a like and a comment and so will their friends.
• Share other people’s posts. (Oh, yes, I do know I just said that. It’s a point worth repeating). Being sharing is also just plain nice.
• Show up. Frequently. You simply must post 2-3 times per day, with relevant content of interest to your friends/fans/followers. Use the “buffer” tool for posts that don’t have to be timely so you don’t have to be “live” all the time.

And the best Facebook usage tip…

Stop trying to find the masses and focus more on your fans. Use Facebook groups to connect and create community with those who already like your business. Giving more value, more frequently for free to those who have already hired you or bought from you is a highly more valuable use of your resources with greater results. Your future business comes from existing fans.

Use Facebook features to love up your existing fans. Read Customers & Fans: Love The Ones You’re With for more insights on why and how.

Facebook is frustrating. I get it. But it’s just one tiny piece of your bigger marketing effort, or it better be. Use the free features to their maximum capability before dipping toes into the paid for options. I recommend using them, but not unless you know how. There are other ways to grow your business too. Don’t forget that.