10 Ways to Grow Your Facebook Group in a Timely Manner
Facebook is one of those social media platforms with the power and potential to become a valuable business asset, and a vital part of a comprehensive lead nurturing strategy. There are many ways you can leverage Facebook for inbound marketing and conversions, from simply posting quality content with inspirational storytelling to placing the right ads in front of your target audience.
But beyond these obvious tactics you should already be using, have you considered creating a social media funnel and a growth strategy through Facebook groups? Have you considered the power and potential of a dedicated brand community on FB? If you haven’t, then now is the time to invest in this approach and take your brand to that next level.
Creating a FB group is the first step towards building a brand community and a following of devoted brand advocates who are actually interested in what you’re selling or what you have to say. But that’s just the beginning, so let’s take a look at what you need to do in order to grow your FB group and achieve better marketing, sales, and brand-building results on social media.
Start with a Posting Schedule
First things first, understand that the modern online audience likes consistency. If you want your following to grow organically and continuously, you need to be consistent in your branding, values and identity, tone of voice, the content you create, and your posting schedule. After all, how can someone develop a meaningful relationship with your brand if they don’t know when and where you’re going to post next?
This is something that everyone learns at entry-level marketing jobs when they’re tasked with creating their first social media strategy - ensure consistency. So first, make sure you know how to reach more people with good facebook posts and what kind of posts you’re going to publish.
There are many types of content your can post in your FB group, and the selection is quite diverse so that people don’t get bored:
- Asking meaningful questions
- Talking about trending issues and topics
- Posting infographics
- Adding original images
- Posting inspirational quotes
- Posting announcements and teasers
- Sharing behind-the-scenes content
- Publishing case studies and testimonials
- Bragging with user-generated content (don’t forget to give credit)
- Posting a variety of videos
These are just some of the content ideas you can use to get started.
Once you know what you’re going to do post, it’s time to create a schedule. This requires some research on your end into the online habits of your target demographic. Aim to understand where the majority of your followers are from, when they are online and for how long, what their preferred content types are, and more.
You can use the features in Facebook’s advertising tool to get more insights about different audiences, but you also need to do your own due diligence and create detailed audience personas. The goal here is the same, gather as much information about your audience and existing followers.
Once you have the data, create a posting schedule that will deliver engagement and interactions, and consider some social media management tools for scheduling and posting automation.
Create a Contest to Elevate Engagement
When it comes to some concrete ways to grow your group through engagement and genuine interest, there’s probably nothing better than running an occasional contest. People love competing for prizes, and even if it’s just a random draw and not a competition, they will still jump at the chance to win a prize. This is your opportunity to spark engagement and interactions, and get more people to join your group.
Launching a Facebook group contest is easy with the right tools and templates, and there’s a variety of ways you can make each new contest more unique than the last. There are many ways your business can benefit from Facebook groups, and the key is to keep things interesting every time, but also to continue offering valuable prizes.
A branded pen and a trucker hat with your logo on it is not going to do it, so make sure to sprinkle on some more value for your cherished members. What you give them is up to you and will depend on your brand and the industry you’re in, but keep in mind that valuable prizes attract valuable customers.
To boost entries and get more people to join your group, simply make it a requirement for people to become members of your FB community to be able to enter the contest.
Promote Products that Matter to Your Members
Outside of contests and giveaways, you should use your Facebook group as a new sales touchpoint and leverage the community to boost your sales processes. Now, you can’t be blatantly sales-focused in your posts and spam people with deals and new products all day long, because when you get too much in their space, people start to leave.
No, you need to inspire and incentivize them to check out your products, follow the link to your landing page, and just follow the road signs to conversion. For product managers, social media shopping is all about elevating the value of every product post through storytelling, problem-solving, and of course, high-quality products on social networks.
You see, promoting products in your group is not just a job for your social media managers. You need to get your sales experts involved in order to bring customer-centric copy to life that will inspire them to take that first step.
With that in mind, be sure to:
- Choose relevant products according to popular demand, pain-points, and consumer and market trends
- Always offer a small discount for your loyal community members
- Don’t be overly promotional
- Focus on solving concrete problems with every product
- Use storytelling to inspire and connect with group members, make them relevant
- Make it a thing - schedule your product promotions so that people know exactly when to expect another great product post
Publish Valuable Content
You might think that people have joined your book for those sweet deals, but rest assured that the majority of your members are not in that stage of the buyer’s journey. Most people are here to learn something, to get some valuable insights, read some interesting stories, connect with like-minded individuals, and support a cause that resonates with them.
So, you trying to sell them something all the time is not going to work - you have a much higher chance of turning Facebook followers into paying customers by prioritizing quality, informative content.
If you’re working with an inbound marketing agency on your Facebook strategy, the team should prioritize quality content over product promotion, and they should focus on:
- Long-form and short-form articles
- Detailed infographics with valuable information
- Relevant statistics and trends
- Answering individual questions and solving individual problems (make it into a Question of the Week)
- Running live Q&As and AMAs
- Posting comparison charts between products and brands
All of this will get people interested without making them feel like you are desperate for a sale. Once they engage with the post, they will follow the link to your landing page all on their own.
Engage with Members in Meaningful Conversation
There is a difference between being in a group and being a member of a community. Your goal should not be to run a group, but to build a devoted brand community with members all over the world who will actually interact and engage with your brand and each other.
To do this, you need to spark interest and meaningful conversations through Messenger marketing and especially through engaging posts. People might post something on their own from time to time, but it is your job to post daily, ask the right questions, offer advice and guidance, and engage with people in the comments.
You might think to yourself “easy enough” but hold up, it’s not that simple, not if increasing brand growth on FB is the goal. To engage with people and inspire them to keep the conversation moving forward, you need to ask open-ended questions.
Before replying to a comment or before asking a question in a post, ask yourself “how would I answer this?”. If the answer is a simple yes or no, then that’s not the question you should ask.
Instead, make sure that everything you write sparks a debate and a healthy exchange of opinions. Most of the time, you won’t even have to ask a direct question, but simply make a statement - the goal being to pose a problem and reach a solution.
Inspire People to Spread the Word
Thriving communities can get very popular, very quickly, and if you do word-of-mouth right, pretty soon people will start sending you requests to join from all corners of the world. There are many ways you can promote your group, including through ads and by implementing some great Facebook ad ideas, through regular social media posts, announcements and email newsletters, blog posts on your site, discussions on forums, and more.
But one of the best ways to boost WOM organically is to leverage the existing community. To do this effectively and grow your online community through WOM, it’s important to:
- Use CTAs with every post
- Weave soft calls to action into your content
- Ask people to bring others into your group who could solve concrete problems
- Create a need for more high-quality members when you can’t solve a problem
- Incentivize members to share your group with their friends as a part of a contest or giveaway
- Spread the word of your group through your other marketing channels (include a clear value proposition each time)
Weave Your Brand’s Values into the Group
When people come together to become a part of an online community, they do so by rallying around common causes and values. Needless to say, they’re not going to do this all on their own, nor are people going to join your group just to find good content, an occasional meme, and some cool discounts.
No, people need to feel driven to join. Moreover, they need to feel driven in order to stay. One of the best lead generation strategies you can implement in your FB group is to weave your values into every piece of content you post. This includes visuals, and you can use a free Facebook cover maker to create beautiful cover photos that will capture their attention and inspire them to take action.
Everything you do and say in that group should help portray your brand’s values and resonate with the hearts and minds of your members.
For example, a clothing brand should talk about more than clothes, such as sustainability, ethics in fashion, green practices, fair trade and worker exploitation in the industry, and more. This is what will rally people around a common cause and inspire them to become lifelong brand followers.
Reward Members when You Hit Important Milestones
Your company will reach many important milestones through the years, as it continues to grow, innovate, and evolve. Each of these milestones is an opportunity for you to use Facebook groups for marketing and better engage your community members, strengthen your bond, and attract new members to your group.
You can do this on all social media platforms, including Facebook where you should invite members to celebrate these important milestones with you. Simply posting about what you have achieved and thanking your valued community members for making it happen is often enough, but you can go even further and reward them for their loyalty, as well.
The emphasis here is not one the rewards so much as it is on bringing people together. Remember, you have achieved something with their help and support, but if you want to give them something, then make it a small discount or bundle some products together to create a nice thank-you package.
Set Clear Rules and Expectations for Your Community
When people find a group, they might be a bit apprehensive to join because they don’t know what to expect. There are a lot of groups out there that only post promotions but offer no quality or substance, and quality customers crave both. This is why the no 1 cool trick to managing social media nowadays is to set clear expectations while at the same time engaging your community through quality posts.
Thankfully, you can set clear expectations and put their minds at ease by putting all the rules, guidelines, and information about your group on the application page. When they click on the join button, they should see a detailed description of your group and its community guidelines, telling them exactly what to expect, what kind of behavior is allowed, but also talking about your values and why they should join.
The more detailed you get and the more value you offer, the more quality members you’re going to attract to your group.
Don’t Spam People
Last but not least, don’t spam people. Don’t tag people out of the blue in your post without a good reason, don’t tag people in the comments unless addressing them directly, and whatever you do - do not slide into their DMs.
Remember, DMing people is only a valid strategy if you have a good cause and if you have expert sales agents behind you. People are not joining your group only to be spammed in the chat with promotions and discount codes, they’re there to be a part of a community.
When you do send them direct messages, make sure to personalize them, make them relevant to the individual and their buying intent, and create a compelling narrative. Here’s what that looks like.
Bad: “Hey Sheila, thanks for joining! Here’s a coupon code you can use right now to get 15% off your purchase at our online store!”
Good: “Hi Shiela, we just want to thank you in person for being such an active member of our community. You’ve been on this journey with us for a while now and it means a lot to us to have someone like you support what we do here at [Your Brand].
Rest assured that you are exactly the kind of community member that keeps us all moving forward, and we want to thank you for sticking with us. When you’re ready to use it, here’s a little discount we prepared just for you. Thanks again for being a part of our little community.”
The difference between the two is obvious, but let’s break it down. The first example is overly sales-y and it strikes at the new community member immediately without offering any real value other than a small discount. As far as personalization, there is none, and the member is not engaged or incentivized to buy anything.
The second example, on the other hand, creates a personalized narrative and keeps the message focused on the individual. More importantly, it engages with the individual only after a certain amount of time has passed, allowing them to become a valuable member of the community with a high conversion potential.
After that, you just seal the deal with a little discount code that they can use only when they feel ready.
Over to You
Anyone can create and run a Facebook group, but few can unlock its true marketing and sales potential. Make sure not to make the mistakes that so many social media managers and business owners make, rather, use these tips to build a thriving online community.
Instead of focusing on yourself, focus on solving real-world problems and addressing peoples’ pain-points. Instead of pushing products, push engaging stories and content that will rally the community. Use your values to forge lasting bonds and inspire people to spread the work of this amazing online community - this is the way to achieve your sales and marketing goals organically on Facebook.
How to Develop High-Performing Facebook Groups Communities to Fuel Your Brand’s Growth
Despite all the new trends with social media, such as viral TikTok dances and Snapchat’s reemergence, Facebook is still one of the most active social media platforms. Boasting over two billion active users, Facebook is a powerhouse for marketers to tap into new markets, attract unique audiences, and build loyal communities of followers.
Facebook Groups are among the most engaging virtual communities on all of social media. Over 1.8 billion people are part of at least one Facebook Group, and according to Sprout Social, 40 percent of marketers view private groups as a top social media trend to prioritize.
For brands, this offers an opportunity to create and promote engaged communities to fuel growth without massive advertising spend. The more time and effort you devote to groups, the more likely you’ll be to build a community that will provide value to your brand.
What are Facebook Groups?
Facebook Groups are a place for your brand’s customers to gather and bond over your products or services. Members can get together in a public, or private, group and have discussions, post content, rally around causes, learn about your products, and gain access to exclusive knowledge or content.
Basically, a Facebook Group is a haven for your loyal customers to show how much they love you. When a brand creates a Facebook Group, they can encourage chatter and build a loyal, authentic online community.
Facebook Groups have many benefits for brands, such as:
- A direct line to loyal customers and their unique insights
- A chance to build long-lasting relationships with customers through engagement and value
- Improved organic reach, since Facebook’s algorithm prioritizes content from groups with high engagement
Types of Facebook Groups
Facebook offers three privacy settings for groups, which can be changed at any time.
Public
Public Facebook Groups allow anyone with a Facebook account to see what members post and share. While this has less of an exclusive community feel, it opens opportunities for others to happen upon your group in their newsfeed and join the club.
Keep in mind that public groups can be tricky to moderate and control, so you must have a close watch over the content and comments.
Private
Private Facebook Groups show up in searches, but members must be approved by moderators or administrators manually. Only current members can see who is in the group and what they’re posting and sharing.
This option is great for creating an exclusive atmosphere while also keeping the group discoverable. You can also ask membership questions and add guidelines/rules members must follows. It comes up in search, but you have control over who can enter, post, and comment.
Hidden
Hidden Facebook groups are private and secret. They can’t be searched, so only those who know it exists can find it. Otherwise, hidden groups have the same privacy settings as private groups, so only members can see other members, post, and comment.
While hidden groups are more challenging to build and grow, the unsearchable nature and exclusivity makes them appealing to most audiences. Only you know what is appropriate for your brand and your audience.
If you want to get started with Facebook Groups, discover the steps you need to take to build your community.
Prepare to Launch the Group
Before you can launch a Facebook Group, you need to determine the best way to create a community and what type of content and experience you want to provide.
Create a List of Topics or Prompts to Engage the Group
Consider the topics you’d like to discuss in the Facebook Group. Take a look at your audience and identify the topics and conversations that are taking place within your existing community and among your competitors.
Settle on three to five content pillars that you can use to generate interest and momentum in the group. You can format that content a number of ways:
- Polls
- Questions
- Experts/Industry Leaders
- Giveaways
- Industry News
Test Your Ideas
Once you have your list of content pillars, test them on your social media channels to see which ones resonate with your audience. Ask questions, run polls, and conduct surveys to get feedback on what your audience wants to discuss.
This legwork provides valuable insight into what you can provide for your community and how you can hit the ground running with your initial launch.
Build an Email List
Ideally, you’ll already have an email list from your website and social media channels. If you don’t, put some work into building an email list and getting a larger audience. When it comes time for your launch, you can use the email list to promote your upcoming Facebook Group, build anticipation, and get members quickly.
Launching the Facebook Group
When the research is done, you can get ready for your launch. Here are a few ways:
Announce Your Launch to Your Email List
Leading up to the launch, send out an email with a link to the group and an announcement about the content you’ll be providing. Inform people of dates and how they can become a member of the group.
Remember that no one wants to be first to the party. Wait to approve members until you have 15 or 20 requests to join. Then, approve requests around the same time.
Create a Welcome Post
Now that you have some members, take the time to welcome them personally and ask them to help with the group. Your welcome post should be pinned to the top of the group and include on-brand information or an engaging question to prompt members to comment.
You can also create a pinned post with group rules, if appropriate. Most Facebook Groups have rules related to approved posts and harassment, but you can choose whatever you decide is appropriate for your audience.
Grow Your Facebook Group with Best Practices
Facebook Groups don’t just grow on their own. You have to put time, effort, and consistency into engaging with your group and attracting new members, especially at the start.
Take a look at these best practices for growing your Facebook Group:
Promote Your Group
Even with an email blast, it may take a while before your audience is aware of your Facebook Group. Be sure to post about your new group on all your social media channels, on your website, in your email blasts, and during customer communications.
Be sure to post multiple times. Newsfeeds can get crowded, so your audience can miss your post and not know your group exists. Post regularly to ensure that everyone sees your group and knows how to join.
Engage with Your Group
As the group creator, you have to engage with your members on a regular basis. Just like posting content, you should schedule time to interact with the group members at least once a week, but more often if you can.
If engagement with the group is challenging in your busy schedule, include time in your calendar or set reminders to go in and reply to comments and respond to new posts. Your audience is there for you and your brand, of course, so give them what they want!
Assign a Moderator
One of the challenges of having a Facebook Group is maintenance. You have to keep an eye on new posts and reply to questions regularly, which can be difficult to fit into the other day-to-day responsibilities.
Assigning a moderator takes some of the pressure off. Ask someone on your team to take on the role of group moderator to scan comments, address questions, and approve posts. Sometimes, trolls make it into groups and ruin the experience for others, but a moderator can manage inappropriate or bullying comments to keep the group running smoothly. Moderators should also approve new member requests.
Let It Flow
Your audience is in your group for your brand, but that’s not the only reason. Most likely, your audience has common interests and everyone wants to connect with like-minded people. Let other topics come up and encourage engagement within the group to fuel growth.
Maintain a Strong Brand Personality
No matter what your group members are talking about, your brand personality should show through in every conversation and interaction. Your group is intended to connect with your audience, show who your brand is, and demonstrate what you want to achieve. This will attract like-minded people to the group and allow it to thrive.
The best way to showcase your brand personality is through your name, description, and branded content. Make sure your messaging throughout the group communicates your brand and you share content that relates to what you have to offer and how you differ from your competitors.
Don’t Turn the Group into a Pitch
You and your team can, and should, participate in the group. Post content, ask questions, and engage with your community through comments, but don’t make it about sales. Your audience knows what you have to offer and how to purchase your products or services – that’s not why they got into the group. They’re in the group to engage with people that have similar interests and your brand is the commonalities.
For example, Awkward Essentials created a Facebook Group called AWK Talk. Given the nature of the products, our audience joined the group to discuss not-safe-for-work topics with an open and similar group of people, not to hear pitches about our products.
Start Your Virtual Community
Facebook Groups offer an excellent opportunity to form a tight-knit, virtual community of loyal customers and fuel your business growth. Groups take some work to launch and maintain, but it pays off in brand awareness and customer loyalty.
-Author Bio: Frances Tang
Frances is the founder/Captain Awkward/CEO of Awkward Essentials, a company that makes products that address the unspoken parts of hygiene. She is also the inventor of the dripstick — an after sex cleanup sponge. Frances Tang never intended to build a company around a post-sex cleanup tool, but the Awkward Essentials founder saw a need — and an opportunity — for an entrepreneur willing to go there. Now, Frances is leading a revolution for female founders, showing that fearlessness is a founder’s most important value.