Did you know that wasabi is the most difficult plant in the world to grow?
Unless you’ve tried to grow it, or written a thesis on Japanese cuisine, we’re guessing this is news to you. But when you’re a social media agency trying to squeeze the last drops out of an analogy, you find out these things.
Stay with us …
In our blog 6 tips to grow your organic reach on Instagram we compared organic reach to organic produce – both take time and can be difficult to grow. In ‘Part 2’ we look at growing Facebook organically. Which is where the wasabi analogy comes in – because Facebook is the wasabi of social media.
Growing your reach organically on Facebook is a lot harder than Instagram due to:
- The size of Facebook (Facebook adds 500,000 new users every day)
- The number of users on Facebook (Facebook has 2.38 billion monthly active users)
- The sheer amount of content posted (to date more than 250 billion photos have been uploaded to Facebook)
Without paid reach, trying to reach your audience on Facebook can be like trying to grow wasabi in the Sahara. (FYI, in case you’re wondering, wasabi grows best in a wet, warm climate between 7 °C and 21 °C.)
But there are ways to give your organic Facebook content the best chance of survival:
1.Post relevant content
Facebook is all about showing people content that is most relevant to them. It’s what gets served up to them first. Work out who your audience is, and what they’re into. Then give them what they want.
2.Start a discussion
Comments, shares and likes on a post make up most of the ranking for the Facebook algorithm. So get people talking!
3.Use stories and live content
People who follow your page receive notifications when you go live, while stories keep you at the top of the news feed. Both help you stay in front of your audience. But don’t make a nuisance of yourself by posting content they’re not interested in. Stay relevant, otherwise they won’t tune in.
4.Add value
Give your followers a reason to keep coming back by sharing information that is useful to them. For instance, relevant articles and competitions. However, be careful not to use clickbait because it will reduce the reach of your post.
5.Post timeless content
Content that doesn’t have a shelf life will generate website traffic for longer. Think case studies and ‘how-to’ guides.
6.Use hashtags
Using the right #hashtags in your posts will help new people find your content. But, unlike Instagram, on Facebook less is more. One or two carefully selected hashtags is the rule of thumb.
Like growing anything, creating the right conditions is key. But sometimes even the most green-fingered find it hard to get results. The good news is, paid reach is less expensive than wasabi (fresh wasabi sells for around $250 a kilogram). A relatively small spend can dramatically increase your reach. Couple that with our tips above and you will yield a bumper crop.
Want to talk social media (or wasabi)? Get in touch.
