How to improve your Nonprofit Facebook Fan Pages
Now that your Facebook fan page is up and running, the next move is to start engaging with your community with excellent unique content that connects to your followers. As there are so many Facebook fan pages out there, you have to make sure that yours stands out from the rest.
To help nonprofits in their Facebook endeavors the social network released a guide for non-profits looking to improve their fan pages. Here are some of the pointers:
Research
Before you begin posting, take a look into your community so that you know your audience and what they respond to.
Your Posting Strategy
Before you get posting, it is necessary to create a structure for your Facebook activity. Your organization would appear more organized if your social media activity is well thought through and planned. So sit down, and look at the statistics of the best times to post and the number of posts you want to release every day.
The TED Facebook page is one of the most visited Facebook pages and that page is updated 3 times daily. However, it is generally accepted that you should not update more than once or twice a day unless you have particularly compelling content.
Greater Good updates up to 4 times a day, depending on the occasion.
Think Visual
As much as people respond to well-written content, videos, pictures, and links are extremely crucial because they will catch people’s eyes faster than words. So consider posting interesting, quality videos and engaging pictures and photographs. If you have interesting events and fundraisers, take photos of them and create galleries that people can look through and comment on.
You could also allow your community to post pictures. If they did something that relates to your organization or attended an event that impacted them, they can take pictures and post it to your organization’s wall. Allowing your community to get involved by telling their stories will make them feel like a part of the community and that will push them to be more active.
Content Tips
Users respond to unique, fascinating content that connects to them, so remember to go beyond reporting or discussing a subject.
Question-based Posting
Inquisitive posts are a definite way to get your users engaged. Your fan page will become a space for dialogue so you have a personal link to your people. space where both the user and organization have a voice. You can write a post about a certain event or project but make sure to leave a discursive question that will get your community talking.
The Use of People’s Stories
It’s no secret that people connect with individuals and their unique stories. This is no different in social media. So try to make your posts personal. Maybe there’s a child, family, or community that you are working with. Tell their stories on your page and also make sure you keep your fans updated on these people and their progress.
Make it about the Fan
One way to engage with your community is to make a page about your community. Make your page interactive and allow them to be the central figures of your page. Give them a chance to post their story or a photograph or video about an event they attended or something that impacted them.
Use Facebook’s comment function to further engage and make it about the fan. Respond personally to the people who comment on your updates. This will make them feel listened to and connected.
Make it Personal
A great idea is to make your page more human by personalizing your posts. You can for example, have a member of your organization post in their own voice, or post in the first person. Your users will feel like a friend of the organization.
External Links
Communities respond to external links of interesting articles, so be sure to read popular sites and blogs for interesting content that you can link to your Facebook page.
Facebook is a very interactive space, and the internet has hundreds of resources you can take advantage of to add some fun to your fan page.