10 Tips for Community/Media Managers

Social media management is this thing I kind of fell into. 

Back when I was in college, Facebook wasn't a thing. We were happy to rip songs off of Napster and have deep conversations over AIM. But in then past 10 years, the internet has become a new playing field for businesses, organizations, marketers and the like. 

The internet is no longer accessed on a big desktop computer, either. It's mobile and at our fingertips, available on our phones, tablets, laptops. People spend a lot of time online, most notably on social networks. It's where we get our news, where we connect with friends, where we share important information. 

If we, as individuals, utilize the internet in this way, why not businesses? It wasn't long before brands caught on, creating their own Facebook pages and Twitter accounts. Today, if a business is not participating in the conversation on social media, they are irrelevant. Yet, many businesses, brands and organizations realized that while they were very good at in-store relationships and even tackling traditional marketing, they were out of their comfort zone online. 

But who do you get to help you with social media? What degree do you look for? Social Media Management wasn't yet a focus in college. You couldn't get a degree to Twitter. What kind qualities does a company look for when hiring someone to manage their various social media outlets, knowing that how they are presented on their mediums would make an impression on their customers?

Well, they started looking for people like me: a solid writer with lots of social media experience. Bloggers tended to be early adopters of the social media movement, as it was their first line of defense in sharing their own content. So while you couldn't get a degree in social media, you could have a boatload of experience.

Social Media Managers, or Community Managers, are quickly becoming important positions for companies and businesses to invest in. In my experience, they come alongside and work together in tandem with the marketing team to accomplish online goals for the business. Unfortunately, in many circles, it isn't yet a respected role. When I tell people what I do, I get that squinty look with a response like, "So you mess around on Facebook all day?"

No. Not quite.

A Community Manager has to truly understand a business and its goals. There is strategy in what you write, how you write, when you share and how you share your messages across social media. There is data analysis. There is an understanding of online advertising options. There are pressures to meet marketing goals and to grow your online networks (while being trending, relevant and engaging). There is research: of what is happening in your company's industry as well as the social media realm (so you can always be on top of the latest and greatest). And, above all, you work hard to represent your company in a genuine way, capturing their voice in everything you post.

It's...a lot.

And despite what many think, it's not a job that "just anyone" can pick up and do. Well, they could. But I don't think it would be done well. It takes a specific skill set, as evidenced above. And while I am not an expert by any means, I've been doing this for a while. So, here are 10 things I've learned along the way:

1) Set An Example

Friends? If you want to work in the world of social media, you need to be on social media. This may be a no-brainer, but get involved and get networked. Consider your personal channels as a kind of resume to potential employers. It works against you as a social media expert if you have a measly following on your own networks. Work to build yourself, because in the process, you'll learn and have more to offer a client.

2) Know Your Company

It's easy to think that social media is formulaic and the equation for success can easily be applied across all industries. Except, it's not. I've managed a variety of businesses on Facebook. And what works for, say, a realtor may not work for a restaurant. The online voice of a dentist will sound very different from a children's boutique. 

It's important to meet (in person, if possible) with your direct supervisors or business owners to get a feel for the kind of presence the company wants to project as well as any goals (marketing or otherwise) they'd like you to help them reach. The better understanding you as the community manager has of the company, you're less likely to have miscommunication or a failure to reach initiatives. 

3) Research 

Community Management is a lot of research. First, as you get to know the business(es) you work for, you'll want to do ongoing research of their industry. What's happening in the news? What are the latest innovations? See what their competitors are talking about and engaging in. Become the expert on your industry. 

You also need to be an expert on social media. Which seems obvious. But knowing what is coming down the pipeline in terms of changes to the Facebook algorithm, terms of service for Twitter, and new networks being developed is imperative to keeping your  social media efforts effective and successful.

4) Get Networked

As you get to know your clients, you'll get a feel for their comfort zone of, and budget for, social media. Many small businesses can only designate a small portion of their budget to social media efforts, so you'll want to maximize what you can do for them within that budget. While Facebook does drive many community managers crazy (why does your algorithm and ever-changing reach numbers toy with our emotions, Facebook?!), it's where a lot of the current population resides online. 

So, essentially, there is a big audience there. And while it can seem like a vacuum, Twitter is not to be ignored. Make sure your clients are up and running on these traditional networks. If their budget and desires allow, these 4 are worth investing in: Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and LinkedIn. 

5) Bloggin' Time

The great thing about a company blog is that it allows the business to be an online expert in their own industry. Instead of sharing great articles from competitors, they are creating the content and putting it out for others to read. Having a base for their own content also allows companies to tap into SEO (search engine optimization). 

What is SEO? Essentially it means ranking high on a search engine search. So, for instance, say you have a client who owns a coffee shop. And they write blog posts about the various aspects of coffee, coffee-making, coffee makers, coffee trends, etc. They post this and people read it. Google picks up on that the blog is a popular expert source for coffee. So it gives it an increasingly higher ranking on search engines. Ideally, the company would get within the first page search results. It will mean more traffic to the site. 

6) Know Your Audience

While it is important to know your company, it's equally important to know your audience. A community manager can post great content all day and night, but if their audience isn't receiving it, it's worthless. First, get a feel for what the audience responds to. Is it pictures? Videos? Questions? Learn what kind of content they want from you. 

Next, when are they responding to your content? If you always post at 12pm and 4pm but it's not getting any eyes (Likes, RT's, Comments, etc), then what is the point? Look at your back-end data (such as Facebook Insights or Pinterest Analytics) to see when when your audience is online and when they are most active. 

For other networks, it also works to just experiment with sharing content at different times of day (try early morning, late morning, early afternoon, late afternoon, early evening and late night) for several days. Keep a log and see which times do best. Work with those times for maximum results.

7) Make it Visual

The world of social media is moving to a more visual era. Back when AIM was in, we were amazed at simply getting a message of text to another person with our computers. We've come a long way, and social networks are capitalizing on our draw to images as well as videos. Videos rank high in the current Facebook algorithm, and Twitter has recently enabled video sharing via tweets. Instagram has a native video application and Pinterest has worked to integrate it as well. 

Learn to take good pictures for your clients or, if you are like me, know your limits and partner with a solid photographer. Showcase your clients in pictures, as these catch the eye immediately in a newsfeed or timeline. If your client is willing, make videos. You may not be a videographer (nor may it be in your company's budget), but apps such as PartyParty make it easy to take photographs and turn them into .mov or .gif  files, which will have the same effect on social networks as an actual video will. 

8) Embrace Social Media Advertising and Data Analysis

You will be more marketable as a Community Manager if you can vary your skill set. And while it may not be important to all businesses, it's worth getting to know how advertising works on social media, as well as analyzing data to create reports for your clients. Some businesses don't care to advertise online or get reports, but others might. And having these skills will give you an edge on other candidates.

9) Social Media is the New Customer Service 

Gone are the days where people fill out a customer satisfaction card or spend time making a phone call to share their thoughts with a company. Happy and disgruntled customers alike know that the most public way to share their thoughts is via social media. Community Management isn't just writing and posting content. It is managing and maintaining customers and fans. This means responding to comments and messages, however inconsequential they may be. 

For larger businesses and certain industries, you will deal with addressing comments, messages and tweets that are of a customer service nature: a bad meal, unhappy with purchase, food poisoning, bad service, etc. You have to work with your company or team to have a response to such posts. It's important for the customer to be HEARD but also to get the conversation off the public timeline. Take the conversation to private messages or DM's, and get contact information so the owner or manager can reach out personally. 

Responding is so important in social media. Just the fact that a community manager will respond (preferably quickly) to any post or tweet sets your company apart from the majority of businesses on social media that do not.

10) With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility

Yes, it is fun to "play around" on Facebook and Twitter. But having the social media of an entire business, however large or small, in your hands is a great responsibility. Not taking your job seriously does not only impact you, it impacts the reputation of a brand. We've seen what happens when community managers are not careful with what the post, both on their business's networks and their personal networks. 

Take pride in your work and, above all, be careful! Check that you are logged in to the right account when posting. And post content that is well-written. I love writing, but I am pretty terrible with grammar. Luckily, I have worked with an editor on several of my clients and it makes a world of difference (also - she challenges me to be a better writer)!

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So are you ready to dive into the world of Community Management? What other questions do you have - leave a comment and I'll try my best to answer. For current Community Managers, what tips would YOU add? Leave a comment - I'd love to add your insight!

For more information on managing a Facebook Page, check out my Increasing Facebook Interaction series.


Want to work with me? You can find my information on my Contact Me page.

Increasing Facebook Interaction: Creating Community

Sorry it's been a few days, party people.  We are literally one week out from moving and settling on our house. To say that my anxiety is epic would be an understatement.  I feel like I could vomit from nerves at any given moment.

But bloggers do not cease blogging because of life chaos. OH NO!  We carry on!

Back to the important stuff: Facebook Pages!

In my previous posts in the series, we discussed the importance of posting consistently and frequently, as well as writing quality content, as part of your strategy to increase your interaction and reach on Facebook.

This week, we'll be discussing the Facebook Page as a COMMUNITY.

Topic #3: 

Creating Community

It is a natural human instinct to want to belong. Whatever our personality, we crave deep relationships and connections. As consumers, I believe we are drawn to the same aspects in a brand or company. People want to be KNOWN and HEARD.

Making it Personal

With this revelation about human nature, one of the best things you can do as a Facebook Page is to make it personal. This goes against everything we believe about marketing and business: "It's not personal it's business." 

Well, business just got personal.

Social media has bridged the gap between businesses and people. Before, we saw brands and businesses as big corporations. Now, with one tweet or Facebook comment, we are engaging the Man Behind the Curtain. We like knowing that real live people are behind the brands and businesses we love, whether they are local realtors or our favorite brand of pretzels. 

Ask, Share, Respond

In addition to being personal, community is built by creating an engaging two-way relationship. We need to stop looking at our Facebook Pages as a bulletin board for your propaganda and promotions. Instead, we must begin looking at our pages as a forum to engage. A platform to ask, share and respond. As page managers, we are not just throwing information out to fans/customers. We are creating an open and ongoing dialogue.

ASK: Our content is the first way we create community. Remember the 80/20 rule? Our content should be 20% self-focused and 80% other-focused. This is a great opportunity to connect with your audience. The Universal Discussion questions I talked about in my last post begins to open the door to get to know your fans better. Why? Because you aren't just throwing them your latest blog posts or current deals. You are digging under the surface to find out interests, opinions, facts about the people who have chosen to like your page. 

SHARE: Yes, your Facebook Page is partly a platform to share your promotional stuff. But if you are that dinner guest who only talks about him/herself, people will quickly be turned off. We really want to keep it at 20%. So, as you get to know your fans by ASKING, you'll have a better idea of what kind of other content to SHARE. I believe sharing relevant content and information that appeals to your audience is just as important as sharing your content and information. The relevant information makes you a resource as well as interesting. 

Being A Resource, Being Interesting

If you are a local business, consider sharing local events or promoting other local businesses. This makes you a local resource. If you run a parenting blog/page, share relevant news articles (car seat safety, product recalls) or funny parenting quotes/pictures. This makes you a parenting resource. Being a resource in some capacity make you worth people coming back to. If the topic of the resource is important to them, your content is now valuable and shareable.

Another example: As you get to know your fans, you may find that a bunch of them watch the same TV show as you do. So maybe on the night that TV show is on, you throw up a post right before it airs to ask who is watching or how they feel about the upcoming episode. This makes you interesting, and worth connecting with outside of your business or brand.  Or maybe you stumble upon the fact that a portion of your audience loves post-apocalyptic fiction. TALK ABOUT IT. Engage with your fans outside of your business/brand perimeters.

Don't be afraid to get personal!  Some of the best post traffic I see on the pages I manage are personal posts. Part of being personal is also having a sense of humor. Loosen your tie a little bit. If you work in an office, show a picture of some fun office antics (even if it's off-topic!). Share a picture of your family. Share some "Fun Facts" or "Trivia Questions" about yourself or your staff. Personal/humorous posts make brands and businesses real, run by real people.  

RESPOND: One of the greatest failures of Facebook Pages is a lack of response. So you put out great content on a regular basis. Good!  People like said content and actually comment. Great!  But if it falls on deaf ears, what entices them to continue engaging? People love to be asked, yes. They LOVE giving their opinions or weighing-in on a topic. But people love to be heard as well. Validate their responses. This gives them a chance to respond back to you. Now you have a conversation. Conversations build relationships, which are the cornerstone of creating community.

Chat Days

One tool I've used to create and build the community on the Confessions of a Stay-at-Home Mom Facebook Page are Chat Days. This is a one-two-three punch of posting frequently with good content that is personally interesting/engaging.  I've been asked a lot about how to conduct these Chat Days, and I thought this Creating Community post would be the best place to lay it all out.

I stumbled across the idea of Chat Days by accident a few years ago. As I was getting more personal with my fans, we got into a conversation about movies. So I spent the day asking questions every few hours on the topic of movies. I was surprised to find how many people wanted to weigh in.

Thus, Chat Days were born.

How to construct a Chat Day: 

1) Pick a topic (relevant or not relevant to your page - it's up to you the direction you want to take it). I've done Chat Days that are relevant to my blog (i.e: parenting/moms) as well as totally off-topic (movies, books, favorite brands, etc).

2) Tease the Chat Day. I like to mention the Chat Day the night before (usually after 8pm) - maybe hint at the topic to whet their appetites. Then I mention it again by announcing the topic 10-20 minutes before 9am. This reminds people of the Chat Day and alerts people that the Chat Day will begin shortly.

3) Create questions. Keep reading for a sample Chat Day schedule.

4) Schedule questions. I like to post every hour from 9am-7pm. I usually skip 6pm (I post some other kind of content during this hour), which gives me 10 questions for the entire day. I post every hour on the hour. I have found hourly keeps people interested, and they quickly learn to come back every hour for the next question.

5) Respond to questions. I like to answer each question in the comments, and if I have time, reply to some of the reposes individually. Some Chat Days get a LOT of responses, so I don't go through each one to reply. But if I have time, I do!

Sample Chat Day Content and Schedule:

Night Before

8pm: "It's time to CHAT IT UP! Stop back tomorrow, where we'll be chatting ALL DAY LONG on a fun topic (if you save the ticket stubs to every movie you've ever seen, you'll be in luck!"

Day Of

8:50 am - "Alright silver screen fans!  We'll be talking today about MOVIES!  Get ready with your favorites, your quotes and your recommendations! The fun starts in 10 minutes, so stop back by at 9am. A new question every hour, ALL THE DAY!"

9am -  Movie CHAT DAY  

           Q1: What was the first movie you saw in a movie theater?

10am - Movie CHAT DAY 

            Q2: What is your favorite COMEDY?

11am - Movie CHAT DAY 

            Q3: What movie do you quote on a regular basis?

12pm - Movie CHAT DAY 

            Q4: If you had to choose: DRAMA or ROMANCE?

1pm  - Movie CHAT DAY 

            Q5: Who is your favorite on-screen couple?

2pm -  Movie CHAT DAY

            Q6: Who are Top 3 Favorite actresses?

3pm  - Movie CHAT DAY 

            Q7: What is your favorite DRAMA?

4pm - Movie CHAT DAY

            Q8: Who are your Top 3 Favorite actors?

5pm - Movie CHAT DAY 

           Q9: When you go to the movies, what is your go-to snack?

7pm - Movie CHAT DAY 

           Q10: What is your favorite movie of all time?

As with everything you are experimenting with as you create your Facebook Page strategy, give Chat Days time.  Have the expectation that you will get little response the first few times you host a Chat Day. It is a new thing for your audience to get used to. They have to learn how to interact with your page in this way. I recommend planning 4-5 Chat Days and hosting one once a week. People will learn to expect them and get excited. 

You may find some topics go over better than others. I've had chat days where each response gets an overwhelming amount of traffic, likes, responses. Other days it's like crickets and no one is interested. I learn from those days what kind of content goes over best with my fans and cater future chat days to their preferences.

Are you ready?

Are you ready to get personal? It may be a little uncomfortable at first, and it will definitely take experimentation as to what level of personal your fans best respond to. Use questions, pictures, trivia/fun facts and Chat Days as a way to turn your Facebook Page into a resourceful, interesting and engaging community.

You may just find you enjoy it!

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We're closing in on the last post, which means we'll be starting our #FB30Day 30 Day Challenge in the very near future. Are you working on your strategy? I'd love to hear how your strategy is coming along.

What tools are you looking to create a community?

How do you want to get more personal on your Facebook Page(s)?

Leave a comment and join the conversation! And never hesitate to message me/email me if you want to go more in-depth or have more questions!

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An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up

Increasing Facebook Interaction: Content

Let's just get right to it, shall we?


In my last post, we discussed the importance of posting consistently and frequently. I encouraged you to embrace posting MORE as well as MORE REGULARLY. We covered Facebook Insights, and what to look for in terms of finding optimal posting times both daily and weekly. And then I told you to have patience: we are in this for the long haul. Part of making a strategy is implementing it over the course of 30-90 days, allowing room to study results and adjust to your audience.

It's a wild ride, people.

Topic #2: 

Content Is King

Every page is unique and different with unique and different audiences. So what works for one page may not work for another. Website/Blog fan pages may function differently than the business page for a realtor or clothing store. Algorithms change all the time. 

Adjusting Strategy and Expectations

So as we talk about strategy, we have to hold this "wisdom" loosely. This is not a "health and wealth gospel" where if you do A and B it will automatically equal C. It will involve a lot of studying of your audience and Insights, experimenting with timing and content, as well as possibly having to adjust your goals and expectations of the page (more on this later).


So now that we've talked about how much to post, it's time to talk what to post. As the old adage goes: Content is King. And it's true.  You could post lots of content in lots of places, but if it's not worth reading? It's pointless.The Facebook algorithm, however fleeting it is, always seems to favor interesting and organic posting and content (even though it is second to sponsored/paid posts). So as we have our own things we want to promote on our platforms (deals, blog posts, etc), what should we be posting?

Social Media as a Dinner Party

Let's pretend that you are at a dinner party. There are lots of people to interact with. In your experience, who is the most interesting and engaging person to talk to? First, let's agree on who is not fun to talk to. It's not…

…the person who can't talk about anything but him/herself.

…the person who doesn't seem to be listening to what you are saying.

…the person who talks to you once at the beginning of the party for 2 minutes then avoids you for the rest of the night.
  
Right? 

Those are the people I loathe talking to at events. Rather, the people we are most drawn to interacting with are dynamic. These are the people who work to engage with you. They are personable, they listen and respond. They talk about a wide variety of things and know when to change the subject if the conversation gets dry (or try new ways to connect to keep the conversation going).

Your goal for your Facebook Page is to be the most interesting guest at the dinner party.

Savvy?

Content Categories

Content for Facebook falls into four different categories:



Text

Text content is just that: text. No visuals, no links. It could be a simple question or statement: "Where are you going to dinner tonight?"




Pictures/Videos

This is visual content, with or without text. Example of this would be to share a picture of a coffee mug with text captioning, "Have you had your cuppa today?"



Links

This is the same as a text post, with a URL link somewhere in the text. You can also add a picture if you'd prefer not to use the thumbnail preview.



Sharing

When you scrolling your newsfeed and find something you like, whether it be an article, a quiz, a picture or even another page, you have the option to "Share" it. As a Page Manager, you can share it to a page you manage. While it may seem like this is the same as Picture or Link content, it is my understanding that it is weighted differently in the algorithm. Facebook like it when you are not solely self-promotional, but willing to share organically things you come across as well.

If you are posting several times per day, aim to have a mix of each content category each day. Four posts per day means that you can do one of each!

Creating a Conversation

So the next step is to take the Ideal Dinner Party Guest Qualities (being personable, dynamic, responsive, flexible) and put them into practice within the different content categories. You want to create a conversation. 

A good dinner party guest would ask questions about the person she is talking to. This is a great way to utilize the Text Content category.  I strongly encourage asking questions or making statements both inside AND outside of your "niche."  If you are a food blogger, there is a plethora of great discussion topics: what is your favorite cooking show on Food Network? Where is your favorite place to dine out? What is are your 3 must-have kitchen utensils.

But you want to build your audience. And maybe not everyone is a foodie. So how do you reach them? By creating universal discussions. Most people may not be interested in how to make flan, but almost everyone drinks coffee. So by putting out the question (in the morning as people are enjoying their java): "How do you take your coffee?", you are creating a dialogue that a lot of people can participate in. 


If already-established fans answer, it will pop up in their newsfeed that the responded to a comment on your page. Their friends, foodies or not, will see it. And if the content (ahem) is compelling enough, they may stop by to join the conversation. The great thing about human nature is that we love to talk about ourselves.  So discussion questions that are personal or ask for opinions/ideas/feedback are compelling to fans. 

Have a "call to action" in your posts from time to time. "If you twirl your spaghetti instead of cutting it LIKE this post!" or "Do you prefer to wake up EARLY or LATE?" Give them a reason to respond.

Consider this as you create your daily content. Put yourself in your audience's shoes: What would compel you to comment on, like or share a post?

Conversations Are Not One-Sided

Despite the fact that I know you are awesome sauce, I have a hard truth to share with you: it's not only about you.  Sure, as a business or blogger, part of the reason you have a Facebook page is to promote your business or blog. I get that. But remember, you have several precious opportunities each day to connect with your audience. 

Remember the party guest who only liked talking about himself? If the only content you share are your newest blog posts or your upcoming events, people will begin to tune you out.  I'm not saying you should never share that stuff. That's totally great content!  But if it's your only content, it will work against you.

I like the rule of 80/20. No, I'm not talking about ground beef. I mean, 80% of your content should be other-focused (i.e.; non-self promotional), leaving 20% to be self-focused (i.e.: self-promotional). 

For those looking to market and promote, this may feel constrictive. But hear me out: If you are building an audience who enjoys interacting with your non-promotional content because it is personal, engaging and interesting, they'll be more likely to see and interact with your self-promotional content as well.

Be Responsive. Be Personal.

As you begin to get interaction from your content, make sure you RESPOND. Don't be the guy at the dinner party who is talking to you, but looking everywhere else and randomly nodding and Mm-hmming at all the wrong times in the conversation.

If you get a comment, comment back! Thank your fans, celebrate hitting 500 likes, etc. If you get negative feedback, process that instead of ignoring it. But let your fans know you are listening. If you see something they enjoy, tweak your content to include that more. If you notice you have early morning or late night audiences, work in content at those times to reach them.

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This post is getting way too long, so I'm going to wrap it up! A little time and thoughtfulness can go a long way in the content you are putting up on your timeline. I hope you are encouraged to try new things, vary the kind of content you share, and more intently reaching your audience where they are. 

In the next post, we'll take content to the next level as we discuss how to make your Facebook Page a community. This one might be uncomfortable, because it will require you to get personal!

I'd love to hear how your strategy is coming along!

What kind of Dinner Party Guest is YOUR Facebook Page?

What kind of content do you need to work on incorporating more?

Leave a comment and join the conversation! And never hesitate to message me/email me if you want to go more in-depth or have more questions!

Read the next post in the series ---> 

Creating Community.

Increasing Facebook Interaction: Posting Consistently and Frequently

Who is ready to talk FACEBOOK PAGE INTERAAAAAACTION?

::crickets::

Yesterday, I introduced the intro post to this series on Increasing Facebook Interaction. There are a lot of community managers, social media consultants, brand marketers and bloggers who have become more and more frustrated by Facebook Pages. The algorithm is always changing, statistics are seemingly on the decline, and now they want money for priority in news feeds.

It's like life as we know it is falling apart.

I've found some things that have worked for me on several of the pages I manage, including the CSHM FB Page. I might keel over from laughing at any notion that I am an expert on the subject (it's actually a sacrilegious idea in several countries). But in this series I am up for sharing what has worked for me and what I would coach any other Facebook Page manager to try before totally calling it quits.

So let's get to it already. Alright alright alright?

I digress.

Topic #1: 

Posting Consistently and Frequently

I'm going to start us at the beginning, where I would if anyone were to come to me and lament their Facebook Page decline. I'm going to ask you four questions, and I'd like to you to answer honestly. This is a good thing to write down: in notebook, on a doc in google drive, etc. Let this be part of forming a media strategy for your Facebook Page.

Ready?

1) How many times per week do you post?

2) How many times per day do you post?

3) At what times during the day do you post/how do you space out your posts?

4) What kind of content do you post?

(FYI: We'll cover #4 in the next post)

Most page managers, in my experience, would answer the first two questions with "several times a week" or "once or twice a day."  When I ask why, they usually respond that they don't want to be spammy or annoy people by popping up in their newsfeeds.

Can I tell you a little secret?

You aren't popping up in people's newsfeeds.

Even before the increase in boosted posts and changes in algorithms, there was still an element of relevancy in how Facebook chose what to put in people's newsfeeds. The more a person interacted with a page, the more weight it would give the algorithm to have it placed in their newsfeed (and even then, it sometimes still didn't pop up).

So, if you are only posting a few times a week, you are losing ground fast in terms of being seen. 

Missing your audience

Let's pretend that Facebook did post a majority of your content in your fan's newsfeeds, and you posted, say, once a day at 10am. While many people check in on Facebook a few times a day, there are only a small percentage that would be on at 10am (or slightly before/after) to catch that post.  Think about how much of your audience only checks Facebook before and after work (8am and 6pm). Or only during lunch break or naptimes (11am, 12pm or 2pm). Or can only focus on Facebook after the kids are in bed (8pm).

You are missing all of those people, people!

Think of how you use Facebook. You don't scroll back to the beginning of the day to see what you missed (and, even that is only what Facebook chooses you to see). No, you may scroll back a little, but you'll check what's immediately happening. So you want to catch people as they are on.

Post Frequently

Even though it goes against everything we media-types know as being "spammy" it actually works in our favor to post several times a day, all week long. Don't worry: even if your fans saw, say, 4 posts from you each day, it is interspersed with the gagillion other posts in their newsfeed. 

I encourage managers to post several times per day (my magic number is 4, but that's just what I do on the business pages I run. I usually post more often than that on CSHM), spaced throughout the day. No one wants 3 posts back-to-back in their newsfeed from you. Then you are spammy. Rather, pick a morning time, an afternoon time, a later afternoon/early evening time and a night time. I often recommend something along the lines of 9am, 12pm, 3pm and 7pm. This way, you are hitting different members of your audience as well as spaced out enough that you aren't considered spammy to your fans.

The days and times that work best for you and your page(s) may be different than others. First, head to your trusty Insights…

Once there, click on "Posts"

Then take note of two things: DAYS and TIMES. 

You'll see in my current insights, that each day is equally responsive. I don't have one day that is better to post than another. Some pages may find that one or two days perform better. If you have days that perform better, DEFINITELY use those days.

Next, you'll see there is a graph showing when I get the most visits/responses from my posts. Mine always takes the shape of a whale (the fin on the left shows people heading to bed around midnight and sleeping until the whale's body begins as people wake up and start checking Facebook around 6am).

For this particular page, it's most beneficial for me to post between the hours of 6am and midnight, with peaks (as highlighted by the dots above) around 9am, 3pm and 9pm. I'm learning more that I have some "night owl" action (i.e.: an audience after 8pm) and I am starting to use it more with posts and questions at 8 or 9 o'clock.

LEARN from your insights. And work with them! If you have a crazy spike because you have an audience who sees/interacts with your posts at 6am then WORK THAT, GIRLFRIEND.

Post Consistently

While posting frequently is about the day-to-day, posting consistently is about the long haul: week-to-week, month-to-month.

This is where the patience comes in, friends. 

You have to give it time. If you post regularly for 3 days straight then fall off the face of the earth for a week or two, you can't expect to see results. I tell people you need to give it a month of consistency. Partly, for your fans/audience to get used to expecting to hear from you, expecting to respond to you. Partly because Facebook needs time to learn how people are responding to your page and adjust how it places content in newsfeeds accordingly. Partly, for you to make posting a habit. 

As you make your Facebook Page Strategy, I encourage you to commit to implementing frequency and consistency for 30 days. Warning: You may or may not see results during this time. What you are doing, though, is creating a habit for both you and your fans, as well as laying the ground work for experimentation and tweaking. After the ground work 30 days, take another 30-90 to try different things to see what works for your audience (this will come in the next post about content).

~~~~~

Are you ready to start posting more? Are you ready to commit to doing that for at least 30 days? 

We'll get more into what you'll be posting in my next post. In the meantime, spend time studying your insights and determining what days and times work best for you. Consider what kind of time investment you'd like to make in terms of how often you'll be posting per day (don't forget the lovely scheduling feature!  I'd perish without it!). Start writing the TIMING framework of your strategy. 

Don't be afraid to post regularly, people!

Until next time, I'd love to hear your tentative strategic plans:

How often do you want to commit to posting each day?

According to your insights, what days and times do posts perform best?

Leave a comment and let's talk strategy! And feel free to leave any questions (or email me/tweet me/message me on FB). I'm totes happy to talk you through your particular situation.

Read the next posts in the series --->

Content

Creating Community

Intro: Tips on Increasing Facebook Engagement + 30 Day Challenge

Let's talk about Facebook for a moment, shall we?

I know the moment Facebook enters the conversation, page/community/social media managers and bloggers alike start a low growl. The weeping and gnashing of teeth soon overcome even the most timid of us, as we wail in frustration at the increasing struggle we are all having with maintaining our various Facebook Pages.

Since the introduction of Facebook Pages, there have been a lot of ups and downs. Many of us were lulled into a false sense of security as we posted and easily gained a comment, a like, a view. As Facebook Pages became more popular, even the biggest of companies came to the table. Soon, Facebook had to begin tweaking the algorithm to make sure that only relevant posts popped up in newsfeeds. As a result, many pages saw a decline in the amount of people who saw posts, and consequently, who interacted with them.

Sad panda, right?

Then the dreaded happened: Facebook became a publicly traded commodity. And who can blame 'em? People have to make money, yo! Facebook managers grimaced as they found once again that the algorithm was tweaked, in accordance not only to relevant topics in newsfeeds, but favoring boosted and sponsored (i.e.: paid for) posts as well.

::le sigh::

What's a Facebook Page manager to do? Spend every last dime they don't have just so a few more people might see what they post? I've heard much riotous talk, particularly in the private social media groups I am privileged to be apart of. 

This is a common topic among the Philly Social Media Moms, most of whom don't have huge budgets nor a certainty that paying for posts is even worth it. Some have stopped focusing on Facebook or jumped the S.S. Facebook ship all together, choosing to invest time and energy into other media networks such as Twitter, Pinterest and Google+.

So what I'm about to say may cause a small riot:

Don't give up on Facebook.

Not yet.

Despite the decreasing interaction many pages have seen, some are still seeing solid (if not undulating at times) stats on their Facebook pages. I love the challenge of Facebook and manage several pages. And while some struggle, others are thriving.  After a conversation I had with some bloggy friends today, a few suggested that I might write down some of my tips and pieces of advice so that others may benefit.

I balked at this at first, mainly because, hello: I'm not an expert.  By any stretch of the imagination. Even with beer goggles on. I have had decent success with my Confessions of a Stay-at-Home Mom Facebook page, and while I am happy to share any small amount of knowledge I have, I'm always hesitant. Because there is no guarantee. Some Facebook Pages seem to excel while others flounder. And Facebook is always working against us with the ever-changing algorithm. 

(For instance, I wrote this post on increasing interaction 2 years ago, and while it is still generally relevant, things have changed even since then!)

Despite my reservations, I'd love to share what has worked for me over the course of several posts. At the end of the series, I'd like to then challenge people to take the information I share and form their own Facebook Page Strategy, which they will implement over the course of 30 days.  It will be a great experiment and hopefully we'll all come out of it with positive results!

I will start the first real post of the series tomorrow. But I thought I'd share, quickly (since I know this post is already way too long for SEO standards), what I'll be covering.

When someone comes to me lamenting their poor Facebook Page performance, I always ask the same questions:

1) How many times per week do you post?

2) How many times per day do you post?

3) At what times during the day do you post/how do you space out your posts?

4) What kind of content do you post?


While many share (with much gritting of teeth and histrionics) that they've tried everything, the more I dig, the more I find the same few problems. A lack of consistency, posting too infrequently, unvaried content, and too much self-promotion. When I ask about any attempts made to improve their audience/interaction, they usually admit they get too frustrated and give up after only trying for a day or two.

So, over the next few posts, I'm going to go into more depth about:

1) Posting Consistently and Frequently
2) Content
3) Building Community
4) Knowing and watching your Statistics and Results


Savvy?

The first post will come tomorrow - so stay tuned!

In the meantime, please holla back at yo' girl. I'd love to know:

How would you answer the 4 questions above?

What are the Facebook Pages you manage?

What is your experience with managing Facebook Pages?

Leave a comment and let's start this party!

Happy 4th Bloggy Birthday To MEEEEE! {Video}

Four years ago on this date, I wrote my very first blog post.

I've had my bloggy ups and downs: good posts, bad posts and downright ugly posts. I have posts that no one ever stopped by to read, and others that keep getting hits daily. 

A lot has been learned, and I am grateful. But most of all? Most of all, I feel blessed to have been apart of creating the most amazing community of readers and Facebook Fans a blogger could ask for.

So, to celebrate, I decided I wanted to DANCE IT OUT for my bloggy birthday.

Virtually, of course.

I did a shout out on the CSHM Facebook page, asking people to dance and send me the videos. 3 brave souls (and faithful readers) took me up on the challenge: Jeanene, Bekki and Jeannette.


Won't you dance with me?







Thanks to 4 great years, friends. Looking forward to many more amazing years to come!

Here are a few of my favorite posts from the past few years:

How to Become a REAL Mom

To Whom It May Concern (Thunderstorm from Hell in Pictures)

Are You Mom Enough? 

(with sidekick The Turnip Farmer)

I Miss You Like The Deserts Miss The Rain

(aka "Why I Love the 90's)

Skunked: A Cautionary Tale (Tail?)

Never Will I Ever: Thongs

How Do You Enjoy Your Oreos?