You have built a Facebook group and people are joining, but what do you do now? Now it is time to engage the group and foster discussions as a group admin.
Creating engagement involves posting regular content, sharing items of interest and then also encouraging your group to actively participate in the content you have on offer.
But even after running Business Business Business for 4 years I know you can get stuck for ideas on how to engage your Facebook Community so here are some insider ideas and tips for you to create engagement within your Facebook Group.
Post regularly
Your Facebook community wants to know you are there, to support them as well as encourage them to to post.
So as an admin that means you need to “be there” and post on a regular basis which ensures there’s always new content for your community
Exactly how often you post depends on your group but the aim is to ensure each time a member returns there is fresh information to enjoy. However, don't just spam your audience with meaningless content. That's a sure fire way to get them to leave your community and take their business elsewhere.
Content does not have to be lengthy and it can take a variety of forms including memes, quotes, videos, blogs, quizzes, and questions, but where possible, it should be visually compelling, which we will delve into below.
Ideas and tips for Creating Content and Engagement in your group:
Use hot industry topics - Find and utilise topics that your audience will appreciate being made aware of\, and don’t hesitate to ask them questions.
Share content other than your own - Sharing relevant and expert content by others serves to present your group as an authority in your field. It also adds value to the resources you offer and ensures your page is not focussed on self promotion and your products.
Use a variety of styles - Statistics indicate users are more likely to engage with content when it takes on different looks and styles. So employ the variety of tools at your disposal. This includes:
- Facebook Live - Facebook Live is a great way to build relationships, immediacy and recognition. It allows you to show the audience “the real you”, while demonstrating the personality and ethos behind your group. In turn, this builds trust while offering the opportunity to showcase products. Host a Q&A or provide a personal insight into the workings of your business and brand.
- Video - Video is a great tool for Facebook as it’s visually appealing and you can pack a lot of information into a short time.
- Memes - Basically a picture with short accompanying wording, meme’s are also visually compelling.
- Posts - Facebook posts are generally short and sweet. Where possible use a picture for visual appeal and if you wish, link it to other areas like your website for further reading.
Pose a question - Questions encourage interaction and engagement as users drop their answers in the comments. Questions often lead to further conversations about the topic and foster interaction between members.
To really get a group cracking, you can ask friends to assist by posing their questions too, and by encouraging members to get involved and ask what they want to know.
Offer a challenge - Challenges are a great way of creating immediacy and engagement and they’ve become a popular activity inside groups. They also enable users to feel a sense of accomplishment and increase the level of value provided by your page.
Tutorials - Tutorials help establish your business as the leader in the industry. Each week post a tutorial video that seeks to help and support your members.
Quizzes - Quizzes are fun for group members\, and they’re also helpful to gather data from members of your group. Use quizzes to find out about your members and their interests\, or just to check in and see how they’re going. You can also use quizzes to assist in market research for your next product or service should be.
Polls - Like quizzes\, polls are a great way of gauging the interests of your group while encouraging interaction. They also serve to help find fresh content ideas.
Create a poll for your group to vote on - it can be anything from proposed industry changes that may affect them to polls about your next blog title, logo, or the type of content for the next month. You can also encourage members to put up their own polls as a way of fostering support and interaction.
Ask for feedback - End relevant posts with a question that actively seeks feedback such as “what are your thoughts? Or “Have you had a similar experience?”\, “ What three things would you do in this situation?” etc.
Tagging - If there’s a post or discussion that may be of interest to select members of your group\, tag them in so they know what’s going on and can join the discussion.
Change it up - Finally\, don’t be afraid to change things up. A combination of scheduled events\, pop up items\, discussions and posts makes a Facebook Group feel exciting\, vibrant and social\, and that’s exactly what Facebook is all about.
Engagement is the key to ensuring your community stays involved and grows. Let me know how these tips work for you. If you want even more Facebook Group Tips take my Creating Communities with Facebook Groups eCourse.
