According to Facebook, on average, 1,500 possible stories are filtered through per day on an average Facebook user’s news feed, but only 300 of them actually make it into a user's news feed (source: The Guardian). So how do you ensure your content is included in that 300?
Let's look into the Facebook-specific best practices for crafting attention-grabbing posts to be included in that 300.
1) Engage fans with high-quality photos.
Although Facebook has made moves to crack down on photo posts with links, images on Facebook remain to be among the most engaging posts. Instead of posting a text message, consider the option of reproducing the message as a nice graphic. This will increase the chance of your message getting shared or liked.
2) Remove links from copy/text.
Keep your copy succinct by removing the horrendously long URL you're sharing from the text in your post. Any user can click on the generated thumbnail or title for that URL to navigate to the blog post, web page, or any URL you're linking to, so there is no need to include it in the copy of your post as well.
3) Increase or decrease the post's word count?
According to a study from TrackMaven, posts with 80+ words garner 2X as much engagement. And yet, WeRSM also advocates that posts with 80 characters or less are the most engaging. What I feel is regardless of the length of the post, it must always add value to the reading experience. If the post has to be long, the 'punchline' has to be visible within the first 3 sentences before readers click the "See More" link.
4) Try different punctuation and emoticons.
According to the same TrackMaven study and AMEX Open Forum study, various punctuation and emoticon uses on Facebook garner different results respectively. Each is worth testing for which works best with your audience. More importantly, emoticons have a positive application in an informal environment like Facebook.
5) Post to the news feed before an album.
While albums on Facebook are great for organization, including photos within an album limits the engagement per photo uploaded. We've seen zero engagement on photos added directly to an album. However, if we upload that same image directly onto our news feed as a one-time update, it suddenly receives much more traction.
6) Publish after work hours and on weekends.
According to the aforementioned TrackMaven study, posts published after hours (5 p.m. - 1 a.m. EST), see 11% more interactions than those published during the day (8 a.m. - 5 p.m.). They also see 29% more interactions than those published before work (1 a.m. - 8 a.m.). This calls for a need to test and identify the most optimal part of the day to publish our posts, including after folks have clocked out of work for the day and over the weekend when they are staying at home.
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