How to get more followers on your Facebook business account

As of January 2023, Facebook boasts a staggering 2.9 billion users worldwide, with Instagram attracting 2 billion users and TikTok trailing behind with just over 1 billion.

That’s a lot of potential consumers for businesses to reach out to and connect with. 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
• Last year, Facebook was named the best social media platform for generating the highest return on investment
• Facebook has been shown as the most popular site for direct purchasing
• 44% of consumers list Facebook as the most influential social media platform

So, what does that mean for your small business? Merchants who are 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. After all, 75% of people said they’d spend more with a brand that they follow on social media.

How to boost your followers for your Facebook Business page

Firstly, you’ll need to have a Facebook Business account ready to go. If you need help with this, take a look at our handy guide to setting up your Facebook Business page here.

With your page live and waiting to attract new followers, let’s get stuck in with our 14 top tips for how to grow your Facebook Business page.

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? 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 users are much more likely to head to your Facebook page and give you a follow. It gives your audience a helping hand to find you on various social media platforms.

Here’s an example from yours truly: 

 

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 a social page, so by adding this button, you remove any potential barriers and make it more likely that they’ll stick around on your site for longer.

Find out how 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 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.

There are, however, a few rules to know if you’re planning to set up a promotion through Facebook. You can check out Facebook’s latest rules and regulations for competitions here.

Or, to brush up on how to run one, take a look at our blog post on how to kickstart your own Facebook competition.

4. Provide value

With so many businesses vying for user attention on Facebook, it’s important that 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 that 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 mean more followers for you.

5. 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.

Looking to get your email marketing off the ground? Check out ways to increase your email mailing list here.

6. Partner with influencers in your industry

The influencer marketing industry has boomed in recent years and for good reason.

86% of marketers said that their biggest goal for using influencers was to raise brand awareness: which translates to getting their brand’s names out there. And the more eyes on a brand, the more likely it will gain a few new followers.

The trick to using influencer marketing to your advantage is to be thorough with who you partner with. Authenticity is key, so make sure you pick someone with an audience and values that align closely with your brand’s.

If you get it right, you’ll be getting your business in front of a wide audience that you might not have reached otherwise.

 

7. Use videos

Videos have been a big deal for online marketing for a while now. In 2022, an estimated 82% of all global internet traffic came from video streaming and 92% of consumers said that they wanted to see more video content from brands.

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. The popularity of TikTok also shows the power of short-form video content, with Instagram catching on by releasing its own version called Reels.

So, to get the attention of more users and up your following, start posting videos.

Find out everything you need to know on nailing videos for your business with our guide.

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 Hubspot research into when to post on social media shows that posting two to five times per week on Facebook is optimal, which essentially translates to every weekday.

Their research also found that posting any more than five times a week can cause engagement to drop significantly, and that posting more than once a day can cause both of the posts to compete with each other.

Our advice? Stick to once a day and pull back on the weekends.

9. Timing is also important

It’s not just how often you post but also at what time. This will 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 Audience Insights will provide heaps of valuable information about your followers’ behaviour. And on that subject…

10. Make use of insights

There are plenty of useful nuggets to be gleaned with Facebook Audience Insights which, when used properly, can work wonders for your follower numbers. This includes:

• 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 your competitors' likes, posts, and engagement and use this to strengthen your offering.

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
• Measure and manage the success of your advert

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 it could be content that’s:

• Funny
• Informative
• Appealing (like a giveaway)
• Innovative

Remember, posting on social media doesn’t always need to be about promoting your goods and services. 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 another 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.

You can also benefit from user-generated content by republishing their posts on your own Facebook page or even your website.

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 so people can find you easily
• Post consistently and at optimal times – you can find loads of helpful information tailored to your business to help identify this with Facebook Audience 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 more information, news and advice for small businesses, check out our blog.

Jodie Wilkinson

Head of Strategic Partnerships