In order to attract new clients and candidates to your staffing firm, it is important to include the valuable tool of social media in your marketing plan. Many businesses create pages on Facebook, but most do not take that important next step and discover ways to actively engage with their target audience. In order to increase your chances of engaging potential clients and candidates, you need to determine how to successfully popularize your page and grow your fan base. In recent years, Facebook’s organic reach has drastically declined, so the pressure now falls on businesses to discover new ways to increase Facebook engagement.
Do Research
Research and proper planning are an important first step in your quest to increase online user engagement. Be sure to investigate the pros and cons of both organic and promoted forms of Facebook engagement. Each “Like” on your company’s Facebook page represents someone who has expressed an interest in your business. By liking your page, they have agreed to have your content appear in their daily feed. You must completely embrace this form of online marketing and make sure your posts are attention-worthy in order to draw people to your staffing firm. Social media also presents a challenge to businesses: How do you engage with your target audience in a non-invasive way? It is important to develop a comprehensive social media plan that encompasses an editorial calendar as well as an overall approach and tone that your company intends to take in all online posts. Ultimately, your goal is to encourage users to like, comment, share, and engage with your posts.
Share Wisely
After creating a Facebook page that incorporates your company’s branding message, it is important to determine what you intend to share online and how frequently you are going to post to your page. Remember that useful content is the number one method to draw people to your page, so it is important to generate high-quality material worthy of online distribution. Create posts that prompt your audience to act on the material by liking, commenting, clicking on a link, and ultimately sharing it with their friends. Consider using formats such as surveys, questions or quizzes to elicit a response from your identified target audience. Invest time into locating informative repurpose articles and sharing them with your followers. In doing so, you are establishing your staffing firm as a thought leader within your niche of the staffing industry and a reliable resource for your target audience. Post a link to your Facebook page on appropriate Facebook groups or community pages, but remember to not make a nuisance of your company by posting these types of links too frequently.
Everybody Loves a Contest
Online contests help to draw people to your Facebook page and encourage them to click on the “Like” button. By offering an enticing prize or incentive, contests are great ways to increase Facebook engagement and attract potential fans to your page. Consider holding contests on a weekly or monthly basis to increase your reach and build excitement about your page. Obtain permission and post photos of the winners in order to build anticipation for the next scheduled contest. Facebook has strict rules around contests so be sure to see the approved ways to create them.
Promote Like-Gated Material
Another form of organic Facebook outreach involves offering visitors useful materials in exchange for liking your page. A Facebook like is easy to do and considered much less invasive than having to submit personal information and email addresses on one of your company’s website landing pages. Educational content such as whitepapers and ebooks have the potential to drive your target audience to your page. By housing the ebook download form on one of your Facebook page tabs, you are effectively creating Like-gated content and ultimately increasing your Facebook likes. Make use of cross-promotion by including a call-to-action in your lead generation campaign emails or adding it to the header of your company’s website.
Invest in Promoted Ads
If your marketing budget allows for it, consider investing in a promoted Facebook ad as another way to increase Facebook engagement. In order to increase likes and drive users to your page, promoted ads allow you to target your ideal audience and sit back, while Facebook increases your page visibility. Choose your demographics wisely to ensure that your Facebook ad reaches the best possible audience. Keep in mind that just because Facebook promises to place your ad in the news feeds of people in your identified target audience, results are not guaranteed. Likes and user engagement do not occur unless your ad grabs the attention of the viewer, so remember to choose your ad content wisely.
Key Takeaways for Ways to Increase Facebook Engagement:
- Research all forms of Facebook promotions in order to make the best choices for your staffing firm and drive engagement
- Carefully choose shareable content that provides value to your audience
- Hold regular contests to drive new traffic to your Facebook page
- Make use of like-gated content to encourage visitors to interact with your page
- Promoted Facebook ads help to expose your content to a wider audience
About S.J.Hemley Marketing
S.J.Hemley Marketing is a marketing and sales consulting firm focused on driving tangible results for professional services firms. Brand matters, but not without ROI. With over 20 years of sales and marketing experience within staffing and recruiting, we have helped to drive successful branding, sales training, lead generation activities as well as defining marketing strategy for top organizations.