Big brands have big likes!
Big likes are on your mind day and night!
And it should be.
Having thousands of likes for your Facebook page ensures you are going to have fans that will visit the next article you write for your business every time you post the update to your Facebook page.
In order to get results from social media, Facebook should be one of the top two networks you engage on and optimize.
Just setting up your Facebook page is not going to be enough.
One should develop a strategy in order to get those “likes” for the page. With a plan down you are on your way to more likes.
In this article, I will outline plenty of ideas on how to develop your strategy and tactics to get likes for your Facebook page and then on how to get more likes and engagement for your posts.
How to get more likes on your Facebook page
- Invite your email subscribers to like your page. Now if they are friends or family then that will be very effective when you are just launching your page. But to make this really work, you will need to offer an incentive of some type such as access to free content such as an ebook or a video.
- Share your blog posts on Facebook. Articles that offer insightful and educational information will provide a reason for people to visit and like your page. Don’t underestimate the power of this type of content.
- Share compelling photos. This is the most shared type of media on Facebook and can go viral if you happen to have that awesome “cat” or “baby” photo.
- Comment on other pages where your target audience also hangs out.
- Share and tag your business page from your personal Facebook account.
- If you host any live events take photos and encourage fans to tag themselves. Maybe even offer a prize for the most creative photo.
- Offer fans discounts and specials. This is one of the biggest reasons people like a brand’s page.
- Link your Facebook page to your Twitter account. You can also be set up so that it automatically tweets when you update.
- Host a contest. Make sure that one of the conditions of entry is that they have to like your page. Apps and platforms for helping you do this include. Shortstack, Rafflecopter and Agorapulse.
- Make it easy for people to “like” your page. One of the best ways to do this is to use a Facebook social plugin on your website or blog that is in a prominent location (top right on the homepage like I have on this page), so that people can like your Facebook page without leaving your site.
A Secret About Facebook Likes
While Facebook’s “Pages” allows individuals and businesses to amass a fan base, that doesn’t mean that people see it. An article on All Facebook explains how fan pages’ performances are exponentially less effective than their owners believe they are.
This secret is what most people don’t know!
The breakdown of the article demonstrates that content on fan pages is viewed by only 3 to 7.5% of people compared to the total number of fans subscribed to the page.
What that means for small businesses and companies is that a platform they might use for the majority of their advertising is woefully underperforming.
So, how do you fix it? Facebook uses an algorithm called EdgeRank that determines what users see in their feeds. With a little online training, you’ll be able to understand EdgeRank more, but there’s no surefire way to “game the system” (not that you’d want to do that anyway).
Still, there are things you can do to make your page more accessible to fans.
1. Fresh content is one of the elements EdgeRank uses to rank fan pages, so keep your content current and engaging.
2. Polls and questions are another great way to keep your fans interacting with your page.
So how can you grow your Facebook likes and increase engagement?
20 Ways to Increase Facebook Likes on Posts
- Advertise on Facebook to get more “likes”. This is the quickest way to grow your fan base. The Supre fashion brand did this to obtain 40,000 fans quickly.
- Rotate your ads “DAILY” people get tired of hearing the same thing in conversation so change your ad! Conversion (CTR) rates can drop by 50% after the first 24 hours. Do not “set and forget.”
- Add Facebook Social Plugin Box to your Blog and Website (60% of “likes” are achieved this way).
- Free exclusive video that can only be viewed if you like the page.
- Run a competition. Everyone likes a competition.
- Make it obvious on a custom landing page by providing a big bold “Like our Page.”
- Initially ask friends and family to like your page. A bit overdone but essential at the beginning.
- Offer a free ebook to obtain a “like” (just like you should be doing for email subscriber acquisition).
- Post content from your blog to Facebook whenever you write a new post. Facebook users love receiving new content on Facebook without having to go looking for your blog. Treat Facebook as an extension of your blog.
- Provide enticing high resolution photos. Compelling photos that are appropriate for your target audience will keep them coming back and make them share and so drive more likes from their friends.
- Ask questions regularly using Facebook’s native question app.
- Include a link to your Facebook page in your email signature.
- Create a compelling welcome video (using InVideo, for example) on your Facebook landing page.
- Simple but often missed: Add a “follow us” on Facebook button near the top of your website and blog pages.
- Create an incentivised “Like” page that gives people a reason to like your page.
- Include the Facebook like button on your email HTML template so that people can like your facebook page from the regular email newsletter.
- Add a large custom banner to your blog and website asking to “Like.”
- Add a link to your Facebook page as one of your three LinkedIn website links that are part of your LinkedIn settings in your profile.
- Add a newsworthy update that is relevant for your industry or market niche to your Facebook page every day.
- Offer “Special” including discounts to Facebook fans. The majority of Facebook users “like” a page to obtain a discount.
See how 10 smart marketers used the Facebook strategies above to double their email list by clicking here. Learn how to use Facebook to grow your email leveraging organic engagement. Click here to view the case studies.
How to increase your Facebook likes at a low cost
Boosting your Facebook likes doesn’t have to break the bank. Small business owners and creators can use a few simple, budget-friendly strategies to grow their audience:
#1. Target something people are crazy about
For me it was targeting all fans of Goku. Goku is a fiction character featuring in the popular DragonBall Z cartoon. His physique is immensely muscular and ripped. So, the key is channeling their love for this superhero and linking this somehow to your page i.e. them wanting Goku’s physique, and my page giving tips on how to achieve just that!
For High CTR’s you must have a picture that stands out! For me it was simply picking an image of Goku that was bright and with some of his muscles showing to grab attention. When you show a big and colourful picture of something somebody admires, it will get their attention quickly!
#2. Write a great title
My title was “Get Ripped Like Goku!“.
Notice how I mention what they admire in the title to grab attention and it’s short, punchy and exciting. It leaves fans thinking ‘wow I’d love to have his body‘.
#3. Write compelling copy
My content in the ad was “LIKE for Free Tips by Erny on How to Build Muscle and Burn Fat – Goku Style!”
What are the 6 key elements that worked for me in this advertisement?
- It is important that you give a call of action which is to like your page.
- Put that in capital letters at the start of your ad.
- Make them want to like your page so I give free tips on how to build muscle.
- Make it relevant to your page by including your name, so I put “Like for free tips by Erny“. This also adds curiosity, “who’s Erny?”
- Mentioning the name of the thing they adore again in the content of the ad is wise, so for me it was at the end of the ad ‘Goku Style!’.
- Also make sure that all first letters of words are in capital letters. I find this way, it is easier to read and stands out without looking unprofessional.
OK, great. You’ve got a very high CTR, but now what?
#4. Make your Facebook cover relevant
To get a great click to like ratio, I send all clicks to my wall. But I added images on my wall so they would think my page is really cool. So, I changed my cover to a cool fitness related Goku image (see below)
This makes the Facebook page relevant for the campaign that they would instantly like.
#5. Show the buzz on your page
I would also pin a status to the top of the page that would have a lot of likes/comments for social proof to show that there is a lot of buzz on my page.
Another important factor is to include statuses related to the ad campaign. So for instance, Goku likes sushi. So I would take a picture of my sushi meal and write “Eat Like Goku, to Look Like Goku!“, then include a picture of Goku dribbling next to my sushi.
Fun statuses like this will really engage fans and get them liking once they get to your page.
If you run a page that is personal i.e. your name is in the page title, then put a picture of yourself near the top of the page so when they click through they can associate a recent pictures of you in statuses. Remember that you can manipulate where your statuses show on your page by editing the dates. This can come in handy when testing how well fans convert when changing statuses at the top of your page.
#6. Set your budget low
One final and strange thing I noticed with the ad, is that when I set my budget higher, I ended up paying a lot more per fan. So I recommend keeping it low (I keep mine at £1 every day).
Even though growing your Facebook likes is important don’t forget to continue to grow both your email subscriber list and Twitter followers. Different users have different social network channels of choice and you need to be everywhere. “Synergize” multiple channels don’t “Monopolise”
Wrapping it up!
You now have a plan.
A plan of action!
Take these tips and add them to your social media strategy. Create sick content and get more connections.
So, how do you rack those likes up for your Facebook page?
Look forward to hearing about your success and tactics in the comments below.