By now it should be no secret that Facebook’s organic reach is falling. As of February 2014, it is only around the 6 percent mark. And Facebook isn’t shying away from this news either. In fact, Zuckerberg and his team are encouraging us to move toward ad spend if we want to boost our content.
It can be said, in all fairness, that this is unfair. It is unfair because, according to Facebook, business marketers now have to spend more money to get the same results they could have gotten years ago. But is this the end of the free-earned-media-value world for marketers? Far from it. Take, for example, the scare of banner advertising.
The “Death” of Banner Ads
Banner ads have been around since the ‘90s, but due to the influx of annoying pop-ups and possible virus infections, Internet users have gradually grown to distrust banner ads and what they’re promoting.
Why are they still here, then? Because they still work.
Studies have shown that most people don’t like to click on banner ads because they’re distracted by them. But research shows that people click banner ads more than they consume TV or outdoor ads. The CTR for banner ads is at 0.07 percent, while TV ads weigh in at 0.05 percent and outdoor ads are at 0.03 percent.
Related class: How to Launch a Successful Facebook Campaign
What Can Marketers Do?
Like the story of the banner ad, Facebook will stay on as a relevant marketing platform for businesses despite its falling organic reach. There are solutions to tackle this problem, and none of these involve money. Of course, ad spend can still be used to maximize your reach and increase your target audience, but here are some other ways you can improve your Facebook presence:
1. Visual bullet points. Visual bullet points gain a lot of engagement, and EdgeRank, Facebook’s algorithm, determines what
articles show up on a user's newsfeed. If your content gains traction, EdgeRank can help to boost your content even without the help of ad spend.
2. Opt-in emails. Another method to get around the fall in Facebook’s organic reach is to use opt-in emails. This is useful because your conversion rate from opt-in emails will be high. If your audience is willing to give you their email, chances are they’ll be interested in what you have to offer. Don’t let that go to waste.
3. Offers. Everyone’s a sucker for a great deal. Like what marketing consultant Jon Loomer says in his article about Facebook offers, an irresistible offer will get your fans to follow your page more closely. You can then use this as your first step to introduce your brand to them and slowly build up your base from there.
4. Retargeting. Since the number of people you’re able to reach on Facebook will fall, you have to ensure that your audience is made up of highly targeted fans who have a higher chance of conversion. Closely evaluate your page’s fans to see if your audienceis made up of “fake” fans or fans who are genuinely interested in your product or service.
Here’s the hard truth: there’s nothing you can do to prevent Facebook’s drop in organic reach. But that certainly doesn’t mean the end of Facebook as a viable marketing platform. In fact, if you cleverly plan your campaign and social media strategy, you may even see an improvement in your current Facebook marketing tactics.
Want to understand how to properly run and manage a social media campaign on Facebook? Watch Online Marketing Institute's Class, How to Launch a Successful Facebook Campaign and learn how small businesses can manage Facebook campaigns to maximize ROI.