Facebook Groups are a private (but can be public) online space where people with similar interests can come together to post and share content about their chosen subject. Another way to describe them is: an absolute miracle for any network marketer!
If you are in network marketing, you will know from personal experience that Facebook marketing can be both incredibly difficult and incredibly rewarding. Afterall, this is a platform which is easy to use and understand and, the best part is, people LOVE spending their free time on it. What more could you ask for?
Targeting your Facebook Group
However, these advantages come with the caveat that people rarely enjoy feeling as though they are being sold to while they are engaging in an activity they do to relax, creating a potential obstacle for social media marketing. This is where the importance of being able to properly tailor your content towards your target audience really comes into play. Understanding what your audience is interested in and what they will enjoy seeing is essential to the growth of any Facebook Group, Afterall people aren’t likely to remain a part of a group if they don’t enjoy the things being posted there.
As a network marketer, your group will be a place for people who are interested in your products, but you could create a group with targeted content e.g. skincare or weight loss only.
While it can be tempting to instantly start up a number of groups, all specifically tailored to all of your audience’s different interests bear in mind that running a Facebook Group successfully can take a lot of work to master. I’d recommend creating one group to begin with and then, once you’ve mastered the art of running the group successfully, branch off with niches later.
Six top tips for your Facebook group
There’s a lot that goes into running and growing a productive Facebook Group, and often it’s something that requires (at least to start with) quite a bit of cultivation and maintenance to really get it off the ground. But don’t worry! I’ve got a list of easy and super helpful tips and ideas that you can do to help supercharge your business to new levels:
- Have a great looking banner – First impressions count, so let the first impression that your audience has of your Facebook Group be a legitimate and professional group that’s run by someone who knows their stuff. Oh, and an extra tip! Change your banner regularly for extra engagement, it’s a great space for special promotions or to celebrate holidays like Christmas or Valentine’s Day.
- Invite everyone! – When you’re first setting up your Facebook Group invite everyone you know to join, any age, male or female. Then on the first of each month be sure to log how many members you have; this will give you some pretty comprehensive stats about who your audience is and will help you when it comes to tailoring content for them later on.
- Post Regularly – Yes, I’m aware that this might sound obvious. But when you’re running any business, the social media side of things can often get left by the wayside. People don’t want to be a part of an abandoned Facebook Group, keeping your posts consistent and regular is the best way to keep your audience engaged and interested. Thank goodness for Suggested Posts to give you the foundations for your social media. If you’d like to find out more get in touch with our team to arrange a demo.
- Ask your friends and family to invite people they know to your group – Sure, it can be a little awkward asking your friends and family for help, but what are they there for if not to support us in exciting business ventures? And the surest way to grow a Facebook Group is by making sure as many people know about it as possible, so the more people you have to spread the word the better! Plus, if they’re anything like you, they might LOVE your products or services as much as you, in fact they could end up becoming your number one customer!
- Interact with your group members – Again I know it may sound obvious, but it can become too easy for your Facebook Group to feel like a place where you are simply making announcements, advertising your products and looking for engagement. Don’t forget to engage back! Make your group members feel as though they are part of a community by rewarding them for referring new members or putting them into a draw with a thank you gift, replying to comments and by welcoming new members weekly (don’t worry, there’s a tool to do this under Members in your group).
- Take advantage of your platform – Facebook Groups have loads of incredible features at your disposal, USE THEM! Schedule and invite group members to Facebook Lives where you can show off products, do live demonstrations or even share other things like recipes or tutorials that you know will engage and entertain your audience.
This is just the tip of the iceberg on all the super easy but incredibly helpful things you can do to run and grow your Facebook Group, so that it can reach its full potential and can improve your social media marketing experience.
Don’t just sell
As with a lot of aspects of running your own business, the key to a successful and worthwhile Facebook Group is understanding and striking the perfect balance between engagement and advertising. There’s so many fun and engaging types of content that you can post in your group that will keep members sticking around and even encourage new members to join.
Funny posts – Do you have a group full of skincare or fitness lovers? Make or find some jokes about that! You’re all in the same group because of your shared interests, and no matter what those are there’s always going to be a reason to laugh!
Engaging questions – Tea or coffee? Nights out or nights in? Ketchup or BBQ? People LOVE questions that are related to all sorts of things because everyone’s got an opinion. And, if you can tailor them to your business even better! They’re a guaranteed way to get people talking.
Free Giveaways – One thing people love above all else is free stuff and they like it even more if they feel as though they can positively impact their chances of winning whatever it maybe be. This is a great way to get your existing group members to introduce new people to the group, by telling them they could win a giveaway prize for sharing the group or tagging their friends.
Post a selfie – Let your group members know you’re human, the aim of any Facebook Group is to create a thriving and active community with yourself at the centre of it all… that isn’t going to happen if your group members don’t know who you are! Don’t be afraid to post pictures of yourself enjoying the products you’re aiming to sell.
Every good business could benefit from running a Facebook Group. In short, they’re a place to establish repeat business and create a community of people just as interested in your products as you are.
And now you have some Facebook Group tips & tricks at your disposal there’s no reason your business can’t thrive and grow from having one too! Set out on the next step of your network marketing journey and set up your Facebook Group today.