Here is how to grow followers using Facebook groups. In this blog I’m sharing with you the best strategy for using Facebook Groups for marketing. This is a strategy I use myself and can confirm that it really works!
But before I crack on and tell you my Facebook Group tips, you must have an appealing and optimised Facebook Business Page – one that’s active and packed with valuable content. If it lacks lustre, no matter how hard you try to get people to follow it, you’ll struggle to see any positive results.
Increasing the following of your awesome Business Page will lead to more business!
The difference between Facebook Business Groups and Facebook Business Pages
A Facebook Page is one you own, manage and control. You get to determine the content.
A Facebook Group acts like a community forum which has been created for likeminded people to join. The members of the group will share a common interest and can post their own content and interact with each other.
The way you set up a group and a page are fundamentally different too. I won’t go into this here as all this finer detail is covered in my upcoming workshop “Create and Manage Successful Facebook Groups”. Click on the link below for more information.
How do I market my business using Facebook Groups?
Great question! Here’s how:
#1. Join groups as your Facebook Business Page
You’ll find that some groups are public, and some are private. When you join a public group, you have no option to choose whether you want to join as your personal profile or your business page – every time you will be forced to join as your personal Facebook profile. This doesn’t support the strategy, so ignore these groups.
Look for groups that are private as these will usually give you the option to join as your business page – these are the ones to target as it’s your business page you want to promote. Always look out for this box to pop up 👇.
After you’ve clicked the ‘join’ icon (shown as number 1) make sure to join as your business page (shown as number 2).
#2. Add valuable content to the group from your business page
Once your request to join the group has been accepted you can start to get social and interact. NEVER HARD SELL IN GROUPS. If you give it the hard sell, you may get booted out – check the rules of the group.
This is me getting social to raise awareness of who I am:
#3. Invite those who like what you have to say – these are your potential customers
Make sure you always post and interact under your business page profile – this is really important! When people from the group start to interact with you and like your posts and your comments, you will be able to invite them to follow your Facebook Page.
In the image below, you’ll see that I have clicked to see who has liked my post (shown as number 1), and just look how easy it is to invite them (shown as number 2)!
#4. Join Facebook Groups with good structure.
Active groups are the best. If you get accepted to one that lies dormant or just won’t work for you, don’t waste time on it. Look for groups where businesses are interacting with each other with regular comments.
You’ll find that some groups invite businesses to promote their business – and this is the ONLY thing they do. They’re not interested in information; they are there to sell. Walk away from these as you will see that there is no business interaction and people rarely see the posts so it’s a waste of time.
#5. Find out where your customers are
As I alluded to earlier, you need to put on your customers’ hat and really think about the groups they are likely to join. For example, if your ideal customer is male, don’t waste time interacting in groups which are predominantly female heavy. Consider why your customer would join the group too and help to address their pain points with relevant content.
Research, research, research. Actively search for the groups you want to target. For me, I target networking groups as this is where I can add the most value, I know that members of these groups enjoy learning how to market themselves effectively on social media and will likely benefit from my tips and ultimately services. When you search for a group, you will be able to see what the group is about and how many members it has.
#6 Be sociable and join in with the conversations
It’s not just about posting content. That would be exhausting anyway!
Read the posts and interact with them. You can comment to praise the post. You can comment to offer advice. There are lots of ways to leave a comment – the reason why you need to do this is because it gets your business on the radar of your potential customers.
And again, if they like your comment, send them an invite to your Facebook Page.
#7. Create your own Facebook Group
This really is an amazing way to raise awareness of your services and your brand. Firstly, you must gain clarity on the purpose of the group and what you want to achieve from it.
My private Facebook Group provides its members with lots of social media tips, a weekly livestream and invites them to ask questions in a safe environment. It is also the place where I can promote my workshops and online courses.
Plus, it’s an opportunity to monetize. For example, anyone who has paid for my services will receive an invite for free, anyone else can join for a fee.
Have a think about the things you can do with yours. Maybe you could run webinars and questionnaires – there is so much you can do and the return for your effort will be worth it!
Finally, have fun with them too!
Further reading
My recent blog, ‘How To Run A Facebook Group & Get Results’ will give you even more information on how to boost your digital marketing strategy.
What’s coming up: Facebook Groups 2021
My ‘Facebook Groups Online Workshop’ starts on 27 April and runs over four days – just one hour a day (with maybe a bit of homework!).
You’ll learn every stage to create a successful Facebook Group, how to grow your business, how to set it up, how to customise your URL, how to get found, how to engage and more besides! You’ll learn all the Facebook Group tips 2021 you’ll need to know to get you on the road to success!
Book your place and see the full course itinerary now using this link: Facebook Groups Online Workshop
Bye for now,
Becs
