As you may already know, Facebook has changed their business model to encourage paid advertising. On one hand, the shift in their model is amazing; it allows businesses to create incredible ads and reach people on the most sophisticated social platform on the planet. On the other hand, many businesses have seen their organic reach go from the thousands to the hundreds.

Wondering how to boost those numbers? Here is the plain and simple on boosting your organic reach:

1. Use Pictures and Videos in your posts.

In a busy, fast paced world text heavy posts are a thing of the past. Visually pleasing, fun and authentic photos and videos are Social Media gold and are hot items for engagement. According to the Social Media Examiner, “Photos are the most engaging type of content on Facebook, with a whopping 87% interaction rate from fans! No other post type received more than a 4% interaction rate.” Don’t forget about the videos! Videos uploaded directly to Facebook (not YouTube links) are “preferred” by Facebook and in a recent study done by Socialbakers, we discovered that videos uploaded directly to Facebook had a 50% higher organic reach than any other type of post! Amazing!

2. Target your Posts

Most of us know we can target paid posts, but did you know you can target your normal every day posts as well? Targeting your posts to your ideal market will encourage more engagement and thus facilitate more organic reach.

3. Quality Content

If all your business does is sell, sell, sell on Social Media, chances are your audience has tuned out. While everyone loves discounts, new products and weekly specials, social media is about interacting WITH your fanbase not AT your fanbase. Creating quality posts to emphasize the heart and personality behind your brand will encourage engagement and once again: your organic reach.  A good rule of thumb is 80/20. Think 80% quality content, and 20% marketing your products and services.

Engaging with your customers across the social landscape is the cornerstone of modern marketing. By employing these techniques, you can get your content out there even without paying for a boost. While I strongly suggest taking full advantage of the marketing tools Facebook has to offer, it can seem overwhelming for many business owners. YoungSocial offers full Social Media management to help you market, maintain and engage on all social platforms.