Dear Socially Stephanie,
I'm at a loss. I'm getting a lot of traffic from Facebook but I only get a few likes on the content I share through our fan page. Is Facebook working even though I'm not getting any engagement? Help!
Engageless in Evanston
Dear Engageless,
Ahh, engagement...the social media pundit's favorite term. Engagement is like the hot new girl in town. Now, don't get me wrong, it's super important to have an engaged community spreading your gospel. But it's also important to understand what it is from a high level and how it benefits your bottom line. Sales!
Let's talk engagement. In the most simple term, engagement is the interaction happening around your business online. It's actions taken. It's conversations happening. It's participation. It's important because it shows that people like you (or that they don't). Think about it, if people are talking to you and about you, it must mean you are doing something right. Okay, so let's say people like you: does that mean they are going to buy from you? Not necessarily. But when you have an engaged audience, one thing that is true is that people are more likely to take action on what you say, and your click-throughs will go up because of it. If engagement is used strategically, the more engaged your audience is, the more traffic you'll see. And that's why it's very important.
Ready for the plot twist? Engagement doesn't only happen for businesses on social. A person can have an engaged audience, too. If they are spreading the word about you to their engaged audience, then those links they share will be clicked on. And that's where the real magic happens. It's the power of influencers. And in the social media world, influence and engagement are best friends.
So while your fan page reach may be down, your total Facebook reach is up. How do I know this? You are getting traffic from Facebook. Facebook reach is not only your fan page reach. It's the sum of every single person sharing your content to their audience and network. The more engaged their audience is, the higher your reach is. See how that works? It's a beautiful thing.
Remember, your story on social media is crafted by what you share and what others share for you. Social media is about the collaboration between people. It's a two way street and it is best when you are engaged with your customers, your customers are engaged with their social network, and your content is share-worthy.
So back to your question. Is Facebook working for you? Are you getting traffic from Facebook? Is that traffic turning into leads? Are those leads turning into sales? If you answered yes to those questions, then it is safe to say that Facebook is on your side.
Go get 'em!
Socially,
Stephanie
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Socially Stephanie is an original Social Media Today column published every other Friday.