Engagement is key to selling online but actually stirring up engagement can sometimes feel easier said than done. Today I'm sharing a simple formula of posts that are specifically designed to boost engagement! These post types are perfect for your customer Facebook group and are designed not only to boost engagement on your posts, but to nurture your audience – which is what ultimately leads to a sale.
Ready to dive in? Let's do this!
Ask your audience to help you make a decision.
Some more examples of decisions that you could ask your customer to make are:
- What color lipstick to wear
- If you should take a career car or a cash reward instead
- What outfit you should wear to dinner
These do NOT need to all business all the time. In fact, it's extremely valuable to mix in some just-for-fun posts that are lighthearted and don't require a lot of thinking. These are the easiest posts for your audience to engage with and they build a personal connection between you and the person who is reading the post.
Pro Tip: Did you know that polls on Facebook do not count as engagement to the Facebook algorithm?
Only comments, reactions or likes, and shares count as engagement! So instead of creating a poll for people to vote on, as them to comment their vote instead.
Ask your audience to share their opinion and thoughts on a subject.
People love to give their opinion, so this type of post is an easy one for people to commit to commenting on. Opinion posts are different than decision posts though: In a decision post, you are asking for A or B… 1 or 2… X or Y. Your group members or choosing between provided options and so it requires very little thought on their part. In an opinion post, members are encouraged to share their personal thoughts and explain why.
An example of an opinion post might be:
“When it comes to skincare and makeup, how much time do you generally prefer to spend getting ready?” or maybe:
“Help! I need to find a great recipe for home made pizza dough. Who has one they love?”
If you use our AnchorCard Digital Business Card you've also experienced this kind of post. One of the first things we tell all new AnchorCard clients to do is post their AnchorCard on their Facebook page and ask their friends to check it out and give their opinion.
Not because our clients actually need their opinion… but because people LOVE to give it! And this generates lots of activity on their AnchorCard really quickly. And that causes a ripple effect:
Because their AnchorCard is such a powerful tool for recruiting and sales we WANT a lot of activity. And so a fast and easy way to get a lot of people to check it out is by asking for their opinion. People visit their link, start clicking around and now they are exposed to products and even the business opportunity.
Then they go back to the post and comment their opinion – and THAT is algorithm gold. When people comment on your posts, Facebook takes that as a sign that your post is really interesting and starts showing it to more people.
Can you see how one simple request for an opinion can generate SO much important activity?
Alignment with your audience.
Think of the “feel,” “felt,” “found” method when it comes to creating content for this type of post.
I know how you feel. I’ve felt that way, too. I found x helps!
You are giving your audience permission to feel the way they are feeling and to know they aren’t alone in feeling that way. You're also presenting a solution to the problem at hand.
For example, have you ever gotten a new gym membership with the intention of using it everyday and well… it starts out great but then sits for days (ahem, weeks) collecting dust instead of steps? Yeah, me, too! It's all good girl. We've ALL been there. The important thing to know is that you can dive back in today – you are right on time!
You may have been kicking yourself over not staying consistent with your workout plans just now, but I just gave you permission to have slipped up. Isn’t it a relief knowing you’re not the only one? This is how your customers will feel, too!
I challenge you to share something raw and authentic with your audience this week. Think about what has happened in your life, even something small, that they might relate to? Here are a few ideas to get your brain juices flowing:
- A story that relates to moms with kids
- A story about your pet (#PetFail anyone?)
- Something about keeping your house clean
- Maybe a struggle you overcame in your life as an adult
Tell people what you have to offer!
Many people think that if they post a product image, that is enough – people will see it and get excited. As long as I share about a product and put it out there, if someone sees it, they’ll buy.
Sorry, friend, but posting stock product photos and one-liner captions just isn’t going to cut it! You’ve got to show your audience why they should care in a way that doesn't feel like you're pushing them toa gree with you. Instead of listing benefits of your product (even if you add emojis and make it pretty!) it just won't be enough.
Instead, paint a picture of what it’s like using your products. Think about how you can tell a story to get your point across. For example: instead of telling people how much you love being a business owner and how flexible your schedule is now, try telling a story about your “former life” and at the end, make the connection to how it was your business that allowed you to level up in your life.
It’s the difference between saying, “I had a steak and you should too” and “Have you ever had food so good your mouth waters just thinking about it and you crave it again for days? That's how it felt eating the steak from so and so's bar and grille”
Really paint the picture for your customers so they're totally hooked instead of asking them to care – help them imagine themselves eating that juicy steak -or in this case, using your products or joining your team.
Help your audience see you as a leader and an expert in your field.
Before you can truly expect someone to buy from you they need to firmly believe that you are the right person to trust. The right woman for the job.
In our Virtual Party playbook, a step-by-step guide that teaches network marketers how to host online parties that actually make them money, we teach how to use this type of post to build trust before you ask guests of your online party to buy. It's one of the most crucial steps in having a party that actually brings in profit and it's because people just don't buy unless they see you as someone worth taking advice from.
In addition to this method that we teach in the Virtual Party Playbook, another really easy way to do this is through customer testimonials.
Think of a time when you had your eye on a product. I’ve been on the lookout for the best running leggings. I currently wear some that I picked up at Aerie, but I could really use some shaping/lifting so I'm not pulling them up halfway through mile 1 (I can't be the only one who does that… LOL!).
Sure, if I walked into Fabletics or Lululemon the salesperson will obviously tell me that their product is the best on the market. But that just makes me wonder if I'm getting the real information Do you know who I’m going to turn to for authority, though?
I’m going to ask the random strangers in the runners Facebook group I'm in — the people who are using them everyday. I trust that they are going to give a more unbiased review of the product! And they're definitely going to tell me what they don't like too.
It might seem counter intuitive, but I bet if you think about your own habits you'll realize that you do the same thing. People trust advice from friends (or even strangers who leave online reviews) more than companies themselves. When you share a testimonial, you show your customers that you can be trusted because someone just like them said so.
All of these posts work hand-in-hand to create a well-rounded and balanced experience for your customers. No more crickets, girlfriend! You now have 5 simple Facebook posts to choose from that you can immediately start using to boost engagement today:
- Decision Posts
- Opinion Posts
- Permission Posts
- Compelling Posts
- Selling Posts
- Trust Building Posts
And to help you start strategicly planning your posts I've created a simple, easy to use Savvy Social Media Engagement Planner – and you can download it totally free!
Drop your email below to download it now!
