How to get more followers on your Facebook business account

There’s no question Facebook is the goliath of the social media world, boasting a staggering 44.85 million UK users in March 2020 - if you consider the UK population is 66.65 million, that’s pretty impressive, right?

There’s huge scope then for businesses to reach consumers on the platform, but don’t just take our word for it:

• Two-thirds of Facebook users visit at least one business page on the platform each week.
• 95.8% of social media marketing experts listed Facebook as the best platform for return on investment.
• Facebook has been shown as the most popular site for direct purchasing.
• 57% of consumers admit social media influences their shopping, and 44% list Facebook as the most influential platform.

What’s the takeaway? Small businesses looking to grow their consumer base and boost their bottom lines should really have a Facebook business page.

Having the page is one thing, but to get your hands on all the above benefits you need followers.

Did you know? Consumers who follow a business on Facebook are 79% more likely to purchase from them.

So, let’s get stuck in with our 14 top tips for getting more followers on your Facebook business account. 

1. Add links to your page

You know those little Facebook icons you see on the bottom of emails and in the corners of websites? Yeah, you need to make use of those. 

Pop a Facebook link at the bottom of any marketing emails, blog posts, and on your website, and consumers are much more likely to head to your Facebook page and give you a follow.

Here’s an example from Next:

2. Add a follow button to your website

You can take this one step further by adding a button that automatically allows browsers to follow your Facebook page without leaving your website. 

While consumers are browsing they don’t necessarily want to be redirected to their social page, so by adding this button you remove any potential barriers.

Top tip: you can add a like button here.

3. Run competitions

Who doesn’t love getting something for free? Running a competition, giveaway, or promotion on your Facebook page is a super simple yet effective way of boosting your follower numbers.

In fact, research shows 39% of Facebook users will follow a page to access a special offer, so use this knowledge to your advantage. Here’s an example:

“This weekend only we’re giving away a hamper full of all of our bestsellers to one lucky winner. All you have to do to be in with a chance of scooping the prize is follow our page and tag two friends in the comments below. Good luck!”

This approach is a double whammy, because not only will you entice the first user who sees this offer to follow you, but two of their friends too, who let’s face it, probably want to get their hands on the giveaway too. 

Top tip: brush up on Facebook’s rules for running competitions to avoid a potentially embarrassing blunder.  

4. Provide value

With so many businesses vying for user attention on Facebook, it’s important you differentiate yourself from the crowd and you can do this by providing value.

This could be in the form of tutorials, top tips and tricks, how-to guides, the latest news relating to your industry, and so on. 

If a user sees a post by your business which they find interesting, useful, and engaging, they’re going to want to see more and will potentially even share your post to their personal feed, both of which means more followers for you.

5. Use videos

Videos are the latest trend for online marketing, with experts predicting by next year, 2021, videos will account for 80% of consumer-based internet traffic.

The likes of Facebook and YouTube are currently on a mission to compete with live television streaming, and as a consequence, are pushing videos to the top of social feeds. So, to get the attention of more users and up your following, start posting videos.

For everything you need to know on nailing videos for your business check out our guide.

6. Reach out to your subscribers

Emails have been shown to be the most effective marketing tool time and time again - they’re more personal, land straight in consumers’ private mailboxes, and boast 40x more marketing success than other forms of outreach.

So, make use of what you’ve already got and invite your email subscribers to follow your Facebook page by popping a ‘join our Facebook community’ link to the bottom of your emails.

7. The FLC formula

Follow, like, and comment (FLC) has been shown to be a nifty trick for boosting your social media followers quickly, in fact, studies show if you play your cards right, FLC can be super effective. Here’s how to do it:

1. Head to a competitor’s page 
2. Go through their follower list and follow, like, and comment on users’ posts

Preliminary studies in FLC show up to a third of users targeted will follow you back, so although it may be a little time consuming your follower numbers are likely to reap the rewards of your efforts. 

8. Post consistently 

The key to nailing user engagement and therefore follower numbers is posting regularly and consistently but not overstuffing your page with content. 

The latest research into when to post on Facebook shows posting once per day is optimal, with a maximum of two posts in 24 hours, but if you do post twice, be sure to space those posts apart - no one wants to feel like they’re being bombarded.  

One study into the effectiveness of Facebook posts found when business pages posted twice a day, there was a 50% drop in engagement for the second post. Our advice? Stick to once a day.

As a bare minimum, you need to be posting content to your page three times a week to reap the benefits of the platform. 

9. Timing is also important

It’s not just how often you post but at what time too. This is going to vary from business to business so you’ll need to apply a little good old fashioned common sense to work out your business’ sweet spot.

For example, if you sell items for children, posting during the school run hours means your target audience - parents, are likely to miss your content. On the other hand, if your target audience is businessmen and women, aiming for peak commuting times ups your chances of being noticed.

Common sense isn’t the only tool at your disposal, Facebook insights will provide heaps of valuable information about your followers’ behaviour, and on that subject…

10. Make use of insights

There is heaps of useful information on offer with Facebook insights which, used properly, can work wonders for your follower numbers, including:

• User demographics and behaviour - you can use this information to target the right people at the right time.
• How your posts are performing - what’s working and what’s not? With this information, you can be sure you’re posting more of what your target audience wants.
• Competitor intel - you can look at the likes, posts, and engagement of your competitors, and use this to strengthen your offering.

To access insights head to your business page and click on ‘Insights’ at the top of the page.

11. Use paid for ads

Perhaps the most obvious way to boost your follower numbers is through paid-for advertising. 

Using Facebook ads you can:

• Choose your target audience,
• Select where to run your advert, 
• Set a budget,
• Choose an ad format, and 
• Measure and manage the success of your advert.

Top tip: you can find out all about Facebook ads and how to create them here. 

12. Create shareable content

One of the most effective ways of gaining new followers on any social platform, including Facebook, is by creating shareable content - we’ve already mentioned videos and competitions, but this can extend way beyond that. 

Shareable content is anything your existing follower base will see and immediately want to share with their friends and family, so could be content that’s:

• Funny
• Informative
• Appealing (like a giveaway)
• Innovative, etc.

Remember, when posting on social media it doesn’t always need to be about promoting your goods and services, but having a bit of lighthearted fun can do your follower base the world of good. Think about things like GIFs, memes, videos, and so on. 

Here’s a great example from clothing retailer PrettyLittleThing:

The number of shares here speaks for itself, and it highlights how your posts don’t need to be business specific to gain traction and boost engagement. When it comes to shareable content, it’s also a nifty trick to suggest your followers tag their friends in your posts, further widening their reach. Here’s an example:

13. Ask your customers to tag you in their posts

Whether you sell clothes, home furnishings, fresh produce or even office supplies, ask your customers to tag you in their Facebook posts so your business pops up in their personal feeds and gets seen by more potential customers. 

14. Get physical

Do you have a physical store as well as an online presence? If so pop a card on your countertop asking consumers to like you on Facebook, or even stick a decal in your window. 

Take this one step further by offering a discount or loyalty stamp for anyone who likes your page and leaves you a review, but just be wary that this could lead to fleeting followers who unfollow you once they’ve received their reward.

In summary…

We’ve covered a lot here, so let’s break down the key takeaways for boosting your followers on Facebook:

• Add links to your website and emails pointing people to your Facebook page.
• Post consistently and at optimal times - you can find loads of useful information to help identify this with Facebook Insights.
• To reach your target audience more effectively consider paying for ads.
• Boost engagement and followers by creating shareable content - this can be competitions, videos, help, advice and information, or just something funny.

For loads more information, news and advice for small businesses check out our jam-packed blog. 

Bryony Pearce

Copywriter