Facebook has changed dramatically in the last few months. Your social media strategy must change too. Without major changes, many practices will find their visibility and results may perish. There needs to be a shift in your Facebook marketing spend, and more importantly in your strategy.
Let’s look at one scenario. In years past some practices may have invested anywhere from $200 to $500 per month for social media content and support. In those situations, you were generating visibility for your practice from posting on a consistent basis. Many agencies and consultants were recommending frequent content posting. At that time, Facebook’s algorithms seemed to favor frequency.
However today, due to the sheer number of businesses on Facebook, Newsfeed space has become more crowded and thus more competitive. So how can you still get the same visibility and benefit from your Facebook budget and effort? It will require a shift in your strategy, and your budget.
Below is a comparison – please note the budget, number of posts and visibility amounts are hypothetical.
I hope you see the increase in visibility that a shift in strategy can afford you today. These scenarios are based on what we are seeing for our clients. Not to mention, when implemented well, sponsored post campaigns can also increase interaction and word of mouth, and generate good will.
If you are still paying for content based solely on amount and frequency, be advised you may be wasting money. Better use of your budget would involve training your team on content development, time management and learning what other practices are having success with. Sometimes this means posting a bit less, and as always, focusing on quality vs. quantity.
An additional piece of advice is to consider partnering with a reputable agency or consultant for social media support. As the strategy shifts more from generic, filler and high frequency content, your practice will need to incorporate more complex branding and advertising techniques. What are you doing to shift gears in your social media and online strategy this year?
Great points Rita!
With Facebook’s recent algorithm changes, ads are certainly becoming almost mandatory – just run them in conjunction with offers, contests, surveys…etc. so they are attached to a tangible goal – not just a page or post like.
The targeting is where FB ads present so much opportunity – custom audiences, lookalike audiences, retargeting, interests, products people buy…etc.
Facebook is also doubling down on their local search scope, interesting to see how that plays out for local businesses.
Thanks! And more good news – much of Facebook advertising is still way more affordable (and less risk as there are no long term contracts) than yellow pages ads were 🙂