If you’re an agency that provides both paid and organic social marketing, we frequently get asked questions such as “I want to focus on building Page Likes on my Facebook profile, what’s the best approach?” Or “can you tell me which of my posts on Instagram had the most likes so I know what my audience likes?”
While it could appear that measuring engagement on social media is the most effective way to evaluate your results on Facebook and Instagram, We’re here to reveal an undiscovered fact engagements don’t matter.
Surprised? Here are our top four reasons engagements don’t always make the most effective way to gauge success.
Organic reach is dying.
Okay, this may be a bit dramatic. But the organic reach is dwindling to the point where the organic method alone doesn’t cut it anymore. Due to Facebook’s improvements in its ads and constantly changing algorithms, Only 1-2 percent or less of the “fans” will ever see any content you publish organically click here.
Look at it this way: an average person on Facebook is a “fan” of anywhere from 100-800 pages. Add families and acquaintances (which Facebook prioritizes), and it’s unlikely that your post is even displayed in their newsfeed. Even if you’re running a campaign to get more likes for your page (see the second reason), What now? Of the 1,000 likes you bought, just 10 of them will view anything you publish.
Fans do not equal target personas.
Have you taken the time to think about who your “fans” or “followers” actually are? Are they female or male? What is their age? Where are they located? What is their place of work? Why do they enjoy your page?
Many businesses assume that those who have liked or visited their website are their most dependable customers. This is because people who have clicked on a link and stated that they wanted your page are likely to be attracted to your product or service, would you think? Not quite.
When Facebook first introduced its ad service, it was clear that the sole target audience that you could afford to reach was your existing fan base. However, Facebook soon realized that not every user who hits the “Like” Like button is always the ideal person to promote your service or product. They also discovered that some potential customers may not have been fans of your page in the first place for various reasons, whether because they aren’t aware that it exists or don’t wish to.
Do you like those pages on the social media of each brand you love? The toilet paper does you like the most, and what laundry soap brand? Most likely not, but that does not mean you shouldn’t buy from them.
In response, Facebook launched more advanced methods of targeting paid ads. With the help of paid ads across Facebook and Instagram, it is possible to take your content and advertise it to everyone with an account on Facebook or Instagram. You can select specific attributes, such as CEOs of companies with 5,000 or more or women aged 35 or older who show a desire to play soccer. You can choose whether they’re either a “fan” or not.
The Facebook and Instagram engagement range
It is not all the time that everyone is an instant-social butterfly. We’ve all seen those social in offline settings; however, what about online? It’s not much different. The spectrum of online social media is between Inactive (does not create or use social networks) or the Author (creates their online content, such as the Instagram influential person).
The majority of us fall between the two. The two options are either spectators (consume content but don’t interact with it) or Connectors (we post content to social networks with families and friends).
Then, there are the Commentators. They tend to voice their opinions frequently, typically through comments or discussions on the posts. They are usually those who are sharing, liking, or commenting about your organic or ad posts. It’s important to realize that even if one is considered a “social butterfly” on social media doesn’t mean they’re in your ideal persona. In reality, the majority of your customers are Connectors or Spectators. Connectors.
If you come across an advertisement for a product you’d like to investigate, Do you typically make an effort to leave a comment on it? Or share it on your own Facebook page? Perhaps not.
Facebook, as well as Instagram engagements, don’t have any effect on business goals.
Facebook has conducted various studies to determine the connection between engagements and business goals. What is the relationship between post comments, likes, and shares related to brand recognition, advertising recall, ROI, and lead generation? The big news is that Facebook did not find any correlation.
What were the factors that correlated to the business goals? Impacts, unique reach clicks, and frequency. Think of the following three scenarios as an example.
It’s 6 am, and Tom is heading to work by train. He logs onto Facebook on his mobile and finds an ad by Starbucks to promote their new coffee drink. When he walks to work, He stops at his closest Starbucks branch and purchases the coffee. Tom did not respond to or post the ad through his private FB page; however, the advertisement impacted his investment. https://holyhellions.com/
Jen has been enjoying her time off over the weekend and browsing through her friends and family’s updates on Instagram. Jen was served an advertisement for a service that could assist companies in organizing their projects and tasks. She isn’t interested in advertising. After Sunday’s service, Jen is offered the same ad and isn’t part of it again. On Monday morning, Jen is having a conference with her team members, and they’re brainstorming ideas to manage their work. Jen is reminded of an advertisement she saw on the weekend and decides to search for it and ask for a demonstration.
Sarah is working and is scrolling through the feed on Facebook. She spots an ad for a brand she’s not interested in, but she likes how it looks, so she clicks “Like.” Sarah never is interested in this particular product.