Most Facebook marketing advice is written for a version of the platform that no longer exists. Strip out the tactics that stopped working and a short, boring list remains. It happens to be the list that works.
Decide what the page is for
A page that exists to collect followers has no way of telling whether it is succeeding. A page that exists to move people towards a shop, a booking, a newsletter or a support conversation can be measured and improved. Pick the destination first.
Post less, and better
Reach is allocated by how people respond, so five weak posts actively damage the sixth good one. A smaller number of posts that earn genuine responses outperforms volume in every test anyone runs.
Accept that links are penalised
Posts that send people off the platform are shown to fewer people. You can argue with this or you can design around it: lead with something that stands on its own, and give people a reason to follow the link rather than making the link the entire post.
Use video properly
Native video uploaded directly still gets preferential treatment over a link to a video elsewhere. Captions matter more than audio, because most people watch without sound.
Reply to people
Comments and messages are a ranking signal and a customer service channel at once. Pages that respond build audiences that respond back, which is the whole mechanism by which reach is earned.
Advertise narrowly
Paid reach is no longer optional for most businesses. The mistake is spending it broadly. A small budget aimed at a well defined audience consistently outperforms a larger one sprayed at everyone.
Build something you own
Every tactic here depends on a platform that changes its rules without consulting you. Use the page to collect people somewhere you control. That is the only part of this that is durable.
What to ignore
Engagement bait, bought followers, pods, and anything promising a trick. They produce numbers that look good in a screenshot and nothing underneath, which is obvious to advertisers and to anyone valuing the page later.
Thinking of selling?
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