The Dos & Dont's of Facebook Posts

Let’s face it, using Facebook as a digital marketing tool to further share your brands, products and services has many benefits. It has a larger reach, it’s targeted, and best of all – it’s FREE (except for the boosting tool). But, along with this territory comes a whole new set of rules, dos and don’ts. To ensure you use this platform the best way possible, we’ve created a guide of Facebook post dos and don’ts to follow.

The 10 Dos

DO post engaging content – Write interesting, compelling and relevant posts that engages with your audience and gets them liking, commenting and sharing. Also share your campaigns on Facebook.

DO share external content from other sources - Posting interesting or valuable content to your Facebook page, even if it has nothing to do with your brand, builds trust between you and your audience.

DO keep posts short and sweet – Posts that are to the point, factual, with 140 characters or less, get more engagement.

DO post often, but not always – Share posts daily, at least 5 to 12 hours apart, but not late at night. This will show that the page is active.

DO participate in the conversation – Engage with your audience and what they have to say. Reply to comments on posts from your readers, this will make them feel valued. Especially respond if they have questions.

DO use pictures, videos and links – People are visual beings. Use more photos and videos in your posts and attach links with more information. Your Facebook posts’ engagement and impressions will increase rapidly.

DO run promotions on Facebook – Who doesn’t enjoy discounts, coupons and competitions? Share special offers and limited time offers with your audiences. Which is why it's important to know the difference between Facebook Ads vs Facebook Boosts.

DO use tagging – When responding to comments, mentioning another business or referring to a different Facebook page, use the tagging feature to let them know you’re talking to or about them.

DO ask open-ended questions – In this day and age, people love sharing their experiences and opinions on social media. The most active and engaging posts on Facebook pages usually are question posts. This is also a great way to get feedback from your readers.

DO say thank you – Don’t forget to thank your readers/audience for their continued support and feedback, as well as fellow companies for tagging or sharing your content.

The 9 Don’ts

DON’T excessively self-promote – Don’t bombard your followers with content only revolving around your brand. Schedule some fun and informative content into your Facebook posts. Try the 80/20 rule: 80% of your posts should be fun, interesting and unique, 20% on brand promotion.

DON’T use ‘clickbait’ – We all love cute pictures of kittens and puppies, but these have no connection with your brand and what it has to offer your audience. Rather give this one a miss.

DON’T over post – Too many posts shared to closely may annoy your audience or leave them feeling overwhelmed. Two posts a day is more than enough.

DON’T write in SMS language – Writin posts lyk dis wil not giv of da ryt impression. Make sure you keep your grammar and spelling up to standard.

DON’T pander – Don’t beg your audiences for likes and shares to increase your numbers on Facebook. It’s just not pleasant.

DON’T get hashtag happy – Hashtags are great if you’re looking to be found under specific topics on social media but using too many will lower engagement. Use hashtags sparingly.

DON’T duplicate posts or content – Repeated content will decrease engagement and bore your audience. Make sure all content is fresh, unique and new.

DON’T bad mouth competitors – We all have competitors in our various fields/industries, but don't share your thoughts and opinions about them on social media. Rather be a good sport and play nicely.

DON’T be shy or scared to experiment – This is a space where you can directly connect with your audience, so make the most of it. Also, experiment with different times and frequencies when posting to find that ‘sweet spot’. This is your opportunity to shine, so don’t shy away from your audience, their comments and feedback.