10 Tactics Guaranteed to Increase Engagement on Facebook

With an ever-changing algorithm and a decline in organic post reach, the ability to increase engagement on Facebook is a formidable challenge.

In fact, organic posts reach just 5.5% of Page followers, a drop of 2.2% in the last year. This has caused an increased motivation to use tools like Stories, groups, Messenger, and ads to make your content more visible.

Luckily, plenty of marketing professionals continue to keep up with Facebook and have found new ways of maintaining and increasing engagement rates with their audience.

So, if you’re looking for the best tactics to increase engagement on Facebook in 2021, check out the following ten actionable ways to get the job done:

1. Use Comment Guards to Increase Engagement
2. Boost Your Top Performing Facebook Posts
3. Send Chat Blasts to Your Facebook Contacts
4. Go Live to Increase Engagement Rates
5. Use Facebook Messenger for Advertising
6. Post Consistently and at the Right Times
7. Create Messenger Bot Drip Campaigns
8. Run a Contest for Super High Engagement
9. Avoid Using Too Much Engagement Bait
10. Get More Engagement from Facebook Groups

#1. Use Comment Guards to Increase Engagement on Facebook

If someone takes the time to comment on one of your posts, make sure to reply.

One tool you can use to reply instantly is a Facebook post autoresponder, which is also known as a comment guard.

Facebook autoresponders are a great tool to add some juice to all of your organic posts. And marketers have had nothing but success with Customers.ai Facebook Comment Guards. 

Autoresponders are easy to set up, will run fully automated, and are guaranteed to increase engagement on Facebook posts. 

So, next time you create some content that you would love to get a lot of attention on, try the following:

• Ask an engaging question on your post, such as, “Name your 10 favorite foods, go!” People love answering questions about themselves, it’s in our nature, and this always works.
• Have people guess the answer in the comments.
• Auto-send a private response with your Customers.ai chatbot via Messenger.

Then, when engagement on one of your posts is well above average, boost your Facebook post to ensure it receives a lot of engagement.

The more people that respond, the more visibility the post will get in your news feed. 

And the best part is that you automatically capture lead user data every time someone replies to your private message. 

Additionally, those contacts have now opted-in to receive promotional messages from your Messenger chatbot.

#2. Boost Your Top Performing Facebook Posts

As you likely already know, everything that happens on Facebook is determined by algorithms, and success goes to those who understand how to make those algorithms work to their advantage.

Facebook has a clear preference for content with high engagement. So, that means that posts that receive more likes, reactions, and comments are far more likely to appear in peoples’ newsfeeds. 

This is because Facebook wants to optimize the experience of its users and show them content that they are likely to be enthusiastic about and engage with.

When you boost a post that has already done well for you organically, you are creating a trigger for that exact same algorithm, which will make your post show up on news feeds. 

And because the content is already socially proven, it will increase engagement on Facebook.

In order to get the very best advice on how to boost a post on Facebook, we brought in Facebook marketing legend Dennis Yu, founder of digital agency BlitzMetrics, to share his infamous dollar-a-day strategy in this video tutorial.

Facebook’s “Boost Post” ad is often suggested as a tool that marketers should have in their arsenal if they want to battle the steady downward trend in organic reach on the platform. 

This has been happening year-on-year as Facebook has become an increasingly competitive place for businesses looking to broadcast their content to win larger followings and increase their sales.

Some of the many benefits of boosting a post on Facebook include:

• Increase in engagement
• Maximizing the value of existing content
• Allows you to test content cheaply
• Don’t need a conversion objective
• Ability to boost to targeted audiences

#3. Send Chat Blasts to Your Facebook Contacts

A chat blast is similar to a mass email, except it works by sending Facebook Messenger chats.

Chatbot marketing blasts have an average 70-80% open rate in the first hour because the Messenger Facebook tool is an engaging and familiar channel that’s preferred by a generation of mobile internet users.

Sending chat blasts and building Facebook Messenger chatbots is a scalable solution to increase engagement on Facebook.

And with chatbots, the entire process is automated.

For example, you can create and send chat blasts whenever you create a new blog post. 

Here’s a recent example of what a chat blast promoting your next blog post could look like in chat:

Chat blasting takes less than 5 minutes to set up.

Learn how to chat blast your Facebook Messenger contacts. 

#4. Go Live to Increase Engagement on Facebook

It’s no secret that video posts see higher engagement rates than photo posts. And video can be just as simple and inexpensive as photos by using your mobile phone or laptop.

In fact, live videos get six times more interactions than regular video posts.

When you go live, your video will shoot to the top of your followers’ Facebook news feeds.

Additionally, people who frequently interact with your page or have recently will get a notification letting them know you’re Live.

After your live broadcast is over, the video will appear on your Facebook page.

You can then continue to promote it, embed it on your site, or share it on other social networks.

At Customers.ai, we increase engagement on Facebook by restreaming our video content in syndication. 

There are lots of social media marketing tools that will simulate a live stream on Facebook Groups, Facebook Business Pages, Periscope, and other social media platforms.

One last tip to keep in mind: Vertical video gives you the most screen real estate on mobile devices. 

#5. Use Facebook Messenger for Advertising

One of the many digital marketing tools available on the Customers.ai platform is built specifically for Facebook Messenger ads.

Facebook Messenger ads present a rare opportunity to increase engagement on Facebook that savvy digital marketers are taking advantage of. 

And that’s because Facebook Messenger ads are different from regular Facebook ads. Most importantly, Messenger ads perform better than normal Facebook ads because they start a more engaging conversation with chatbots.

A couple of types of Facebook Messenger ads exist. There’s an ad viewed on any Facebook property that directs traffic to Messenger. And then there’s sponsored content that’s native in Messenger.

Another cool thing about Facebook Messenger ad experiences is that they can take place across the Facebook family of apps, including the Facebook newsfeed, Instagram newsfeed, Facebook and Instagram Stories, Marketplace, Messenger, and others.

And Facebook Messenger ads differ from your average Facebook ad because they always lead to a conversational experience between your business and prospects.

Here are four key reasons to use Facebook Messenger ads:

• Messenger ads outperform other ads by 2X-10X
• Instant lead and data capture
• Automated lead qualification and follow-ups with chatbots
• More features available for personalization

Take a look at the top 7 Facebook ad hacks of all time to get some more ideas!

#6. Post Consistently and at the Right Times

Due to the Facebook News Feed being based on an algorithm, your audience won’t necessarily see your content the moment it’s posted.

However, the time stamp of your post is one of the triggers for Facebook’s algorithm. Additionally, Facebook says that you’re more likely to see engagement if you post when your fans are online.

To learn when your audience is active on Facebook, use the Page Insights tool:

• On your Facebook Page, click “Insights” on the left column of the screen.
• Choose “Posts” from the inner left column.
• Then find the option, “When Your Fans Are Online”

Be mindful of your own time zone and match that up with your fans’ time zones.

Facebook has significantly improved its Insights tools over the years.

You should check your Facebook Insights at least once a month and note the content that your audience has engaged with most.

In addition to the subject matter of your highly engaged posts, also note the format of your top-performing posts.

Then use that information over time to guide your strategy to increase engagement on Facebook.

Lastly, the most important thing is to post consistently. This way your audience will eventually see your content regularly. 

Testing will help you determine how often you should post to increase engagement on Facebook. However, Facebook recommends posting two or three times per week at a minimum.

#7. Create Messenger Bot Drip Campaigns

Customers.ai’s many marketing automation tools include drip campaign features for Facebook, web chat, SMS, and other popular platforms. 

The drip campaign feature allows you to set up a sequence of messages delivered at specified intervals.

Marketers rely on drip campaigns to:

• Welcome and onboard customers
• Keep leads engaged with the brand
• Activate the use of sophisticated solutions
• Leverage automation to communicate at scale

Drip campaigns for email aren’t new. But Facebook Messenger brings drip campaigns to the next level with higher open rates and engagement rates. 

Plus, it’s super easy to do with a free chatbot in Customers.ai.

Creating a drip campaign is something you only need to set up once. And drips are a powerful tool to keep customers engaged as you continue to send them valuable, relevant content.

Learn more about Facebook Messenger drip campaigns.

#8. Run a Contest to Increase Engagement on Facebook

Giveaways and contests may be the best way to quickly increase engagement on Facebook. And the best way to run a Facebook contest is via Messenger.

Running a Facebook giveaway with a Messenger bot is an effective tactic for generating new leads, getting more fans, and expanding your network reach.

But contests using a chatbot to do the heavy lifting have even more upside:

• Instant lead and data capture
• Low-friction for user participation
• Automated follow-ups and management

Furthermore, running a Facebook contest is an opportunity for lots of innovative ideas. And that’s because you can get creative with the rewards, prizes, and incentives you decide to offer.

Keep in mind that it’s important to focus on aligning rewards with your brand and the giveaway you’re running. Giving away an Amazon gift card only provides an incentive to get a gift card, which has nothing to do with your brand. 

Instead, the prizes you giveaway should be things that your target audience would like to receive.

Check out these 10 Facebook Messenger bot contest examples for more ideas!

#9. Avoid Using Too Much Engagement Bait

Facebook engagement on organic posts continues to plummet.

Regular changes to the Facebook algorithm have increasingly forced brands to rethink how they earn likes, comments, and shares on their posts.

For example, Facebook is fighting against what it calls engagement bait and spam which they view as cheating their algorithm.

Two key takeaways from Facebook’s engagement bait crackdown is that what worked well for engagement in the past won’t necessarily work today and that companies need an explicit Facebook engagement strategy if they still want organic reach.

For example, it might be tempting to ask for likes and shares. However, don’t do it! 

Facebook now considers this engagement bait and its algorithm will penalize you by pushing your posts down the News Feed.

It’s okay to ask a genuine question or to ask your followers for their opinion and feedback. But you cross Facebook’s line when you ask for a comment that doesn’t indicate any real thought or consideration.

#10. Get More Engagement from Facebook Groups

Facebook Groups are the most engaged area of Facebook. 

As of 2018, more than 200 million people were members of Facebook groups that they considered to be meaningful. And those meaningful interactions in groups can create brand loyalty and lead to increased engagement on your Facebook page.

You can get engagement from groups by posting icebreakers like this one on our Facebook group Customers.ai Island:

Here are some additional ideas to help you get started:

• What’s your favorite [fill in the blank]?
• How do you [fill in the blank]?
• Why do you like [this brand or event]?
• Do you agree with [notable statement, person, event, etc.]?

Joining other relevant Facebook groups is also a proven way to connect with like-minded individuals and thought leaders in your areas of interest.

Important Next Steps

Now that you’re a Facebook engagement driving pro, master Facebook’s other +1 billion monthly active user platform, Instagram: How to Increase Engagement on Instagram.

• Create a free Facebook Messenger bot today with Customers.ai.
• Talk and learn about chatbots with other enthusiasts. Join Customers.ai Island, a Facebook group of over 35k marketers and entrepreneurs that are ready to support you.
• Advance your marketing performance with Chatbot University, a free chatbot tutorial and training area for chat marketers.