Community breeds success on Facebook.
Without a community, you have no listeners to help you build brand awareness and deliver ROI. You must have a community filled with people who like you and share your content with their friends. Your goal shouldn't be to merely increase the number of your Facebook Likes - it should be to attract quality fans from your target audience. Their activities, in the form of comments and endorsements, can increase your shares on Facebook.
A Like on your Facebook page is not just a vanity metric. It signifies a real person who is interested in your brand. The team at Wishpond, makers of a social media marketing suite for brands, has assembled 7 great tips to help you increase your number of Facebook Likes as illustrated in the infographic below. These suggestions are focused on like-gates and Facebook's Like Button plugin. Give some of them a try to boost your Facebook engagement!
7 ways to get more likes on Facebook
1. Like-gated contests
Contests are the easiest way to get people excited and convert them to Facebook fans. Lure them with a prize that's relevant to your target market. Most third-party Facebook contest apps, like Wishpond, come with a "Like-Gate" feature. This hides the contest entry page from users who haven't liked your page.
2. Like-gated coupons
People love coupons. Even a discount as small as 10% motivates people to buy from you. The best way to leverage coupons is to require a user to perform a simple action in order to get one. A great tactic for this is to like-gate a coupon so that it's only redeemable after a certain number of people have claimed it. This creates a sense of urgency and urges people to share with their friends, which attracts more Likes.
3. Like-gated ebooks
Sometimes content that answers audience questions or provides educational information is a better incentive than a discount or a prize, especially in the B2B space. Ebooks usually have landing pages that include a form users must fill out in order to download them. Instead, try putting the download form in a tab on your page. That way you can like-gate it to increase your number of Facebook Likes.
4. Facebook ads
Facebook ads are the easiest way to increase your Likes because you are guaranteed visibility to a highly-targeted audience. Your ads appears while a person is browsing Facebook, so it's unlikely that they have any intent to buy anything from you at the time. You can provide an incentive to drive clicks on your ads using contests, like-gated coupons, and like-gated ebooks by using the call-to-action "Like us to _ _ _ _". This formula can be used to drive Likes based on any type of incentive.
5. Add a Like Button or box to your blog
A great way to capture visitors on your blog in a fairly non-invasive way is to get them to like your Facebook page. Make it easy for people to do so by using one of Facebook's social plugins, such as the Like Box or Like Button. Don't make the mistake of forcing users to go to your Facebook page by providing them a link - this will dramatically reduce your conversion rate.
6. Add a Like Button to your website header
Putting a like button in the top-right or -left corner of your website is an easy way to drive Likes over the long haul. The easy-to-see location can also include a call to action such as "Like us to hear about our deals". This won't conflict with any contests or promotions you're running and doesn't need regular updating like some of your other content.
7. Exclusive like-gated videos
Facebook users love exclusive behind-the-scenes interviews and live event broadcasts, and they're nice incentives for people to like your page. They can be like-gated just like ebooks, coupons, and contests. But keep in mind that people can watch videos anywhere, so those that you offer need to be very special in order to get people to opt in and watch them.