You’ve heard everyone in the digital marketing space talk about engagement. It’s everywhere!
Put simply, to grow your social media presence, you have to grow your social media engagement. But what a lot of people don’t understand is how to get that engagement and why it’s more important than follower count.
Keep reading to get my take on why building your engagement is one of the most important parts of digital marketing.
What is Engagement?
Engagement is an umbrella term for whenever someone interacts with your content on social media. It could be as simple as someone liking your post or viewing your video. Engagement also includes comments and shares.
Why is Engagement Important?
Engagement is important because it shows you that your followers are getting something out of your posts. The majority of people who engage with your content are the people who care about your business. They are your loyal fans and supporters.
Plus, the more engagement your posts get, the more Facebook sees your posts and your page as valuable. When the algorithm views your posts as valuable, they will push your content onto more feeds – even people who aren’t currently following you.
TRUTH: Getting a solid amount of engagement is more important than your follower count. Would you rather have 10,000 people like your page and get 10 engagements per post? Or would you rather have 1,000 people like your page and 100 people actively engage? 0.01% vs 10%? Obviously, the latter is better!
Examples of Solid Facebook Posts that Generate Engagement
Before we jump into the post ideas, I want to draw your attention to some changes Facebook has recently made to its newsfeed.
Facebook users are now able to better customize their feeds to only show information that they’re interested in.
The Facebook “Home” button on your app will act more like the “for you page” on TikTok or the “search” page on Instagram. That “home” feed will now show more content from new creators and other “Suggested For You” posts.
The newly-added “Feeds” button will show posts from your friends, groups, and pages. You can learn more about this change by reading this article.
Don’t worry! This is a good thing, marketers!
This means the people who see your posts actually want to see them because they’re keeping you in their chosen feed. Also, let’s be honest, most people aren’t aware of this change and are still following a feed with “all” – friends, favorites, groups, pages.
Now … onto the post ideas!
Idea #1: Text Only Questions
This type of post is an excellent way to drive engagement.
As you can see in this example from St. Mark Ministries, people love to answer simple questions about your brand or business.
You can also ask them questions about themselves, such as in this example from #SocialSchool4EDU:
Not only will this drum up engagement regarding your original question, but your followers often start engaging with each other, too!
Idea #2: Short Form Video Content
Thanks to TikTok’s rise in popularity, Facebook is now pushing short-form video content. This is important to remember because it means that your video content will do well on the site.
It could be a quick, few-seconds-long video or a longer one, such as this example from Tasty Junior. Either way, your video content is sure to draw some attention!
Idea #3: “Share the Love” Posts
This type of post is a favorite of mine because I love to shine a spotlight on the people who make each brand what it is.
This example from Gillespie Productions is a great example of a “share the love” post. It spotlights a team member and invites the audience to engage with the post to show the team member some love.
You can also use this idea when announcing a winner of a contest or thanking a partner, such as in this example from Excelsior Morning Rotary Club.
Idea #4: Have Fun with Emojis
Everyone loves emojis! Why not feature them in your posts and use them to drive engagement?
Take this post from St. Mark Ministries as an example:
It invites the audience to engage with the post without doing much, other than hitting the like button.
You could also invite your audience to comment with an emoji with something like:
- Drop your favorite emoji below if…
- Give this a thumbs up if this resonates with you!
- Drop an emoji below if you are planning on attending this event!
- Leave an emoji below if you’re feelin’ this!
Any reason to use an emoji is a good one! 🥳
Idea #5: Encourage Tagging a Friend
A good way to drive engagement and encourage your audience to share your content is by encouraging them to tag a friend.
Here is a good example of this idea from our friends at StickerPrice, Inc.:
You want to be really careful with this one, though. Make sure your post is genuine to avoid people spamming their friends with your content. Some ideas include:
- Does this meme remind you of someone? Tag them below!
- Tag someone who would LOVE this as much as you do!
Here is another good example of this idea:
The Douglas County Fair used this idea as a way to drive engagement on their posts and to find registrants for their pageant. Talk about a win-win!
Idea #6: Ask for a Vote on Something Simple
If there’s one thing people love, it’s sharing their opinion!
Have your audience vote on something super simple, such as which headshot you should use, what you should name your next sale, or what product you should introduce next.
In this example from Tasha Schuh, she asked her audience to vote on her new Facebook profile picture. And wow! Look at all of those comments!
Another one of my clients posted in her private community group, asking for people to vote on what to name her podcast. Not only was this wildly successful but it also gave her some ideas that she hadn’t even thought of before posting! That’s how the podcast, Mastering Social Media for Schools, got its name.
Tip #7: Share Genuine Stories
This one seems simple – but you might be surprised at how many people struggle with showing up authentically on social media. When you share real, genuine, and interesting stories, people will react accordingly. When you are authentic, or even vulnerable, with your audience, it shows.
Take this example from my own social media page.
My daughter, Nora, is the light of my life and I could not wait to share the news of her birth with the world. My authentic love came through on this post and everyone who saw it was also genuinely happy for me.
Be careful to stay away from curated authenticity, though. People will see right through it and it will turn them away from your brand.
Tip #8: Throwbacks
One of my favorite types of posts are historical posts! Throwback Thursdays are always so much fun and audiences love them, too. Even if your organization is fairly young, you can still use this idea. Write little-known facts about your company, industry, or location – just phrase them as “did you know” type posts.
Melissa Swink did this really well when she posted this:
I found another great example of this concept on St. Mark Ministries’ Facebook page.
People loved interacting with this post. There were a lot of comments from church members about how they remembered when this event happened! This post brought back memories and created some quality engagement.
Idea #9: User-Generated Content
User-generated content is quickly becoming one of the best forms of content. Audiences love to see people just like them enjoying your product or service.
One way to encourage people to share their content with you is by offering a submission form for photos or asking them to add their photos to your post. This idea works for most types of brands or businesses but especially ones that are hosting a big one-time event where people will naturally take photos, like a concert or a fundraiser.
Take this post from the Douglas County Fair, for example. This contest post offered audiences a great incentive to share their photos and engage with the post. In return, the fair got hundreds of awesome pictures that they could use to promote the fair all year long.
Idea #10: Ask for Engagement
When all else fails, simply ask for what you want! People are much more likely to engage with your post if you tell them exactly how to do it.
To make this easier for you, I’ve put together 100 great ideas that you can plug right into your content. Click here to get your hands on this valuable resource!
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There you have it! Ten really great ideas that are sure to boost your engagement and keep your audience coming back for more!
Don’t forget to download my free resource for 100 ideas to get you started!