You’ve seen the Facebook group strategy, join as many groups as possible, and share your latest post every day until someone caves and buys from you.
Does this seem appealing to you?
Does this even work?
Facebook groups are a gold-mine. A treasure trove of potential customers granted, but we want a flurry of sustainable leads for our business, and to be the go-to person for our industry.
Here is what to do instead
Join groups where your ideal customer hangs out
I see you, photographers, all in a group together, I’m pretty sure a customer isn’t joining a group full of photographers to find just one. It’s completely ok to join groups with peers, but the likely hood it isn’t the place to find customers. Maybe for collaborations or partnerships though!
Think about where your customer spends their time, are they in local parent groups? Hobby or enthusiast groups? Do your research, and get creative. You want to pick a group where there is less competition for you, as it’s easier to become THE expert in your area.
Pick one or two groups to start with, as it takes time and energy to build relationships, you don’t want to burn yourself out or struggle to keep up with hundreds of groups. That just isn’t sustainable.
Find groups where there is activity, groups that are dead of engagement or neglected will just be pointless!
Read the rules – and be genuine
Don’t pretend you’re a parent if you’re not just to get close to your customers, no sleazy tactics please! Be open and honest. Admins of groups generally work hard to moderate the group and protect its members from bad behaviour, so check the rules, stick to them and don’t upset anyone or get kicked out. It’s a community and you have been welcomed in, embrace that.
Search keywords
That little magnifying glass is a godsend. You don’t need to spend an hour scrolling through irrelevant posts unless you have the time, of course, just search for keywords. Look for keywords that relate to your industry, or things that your ideal client might say. So for example, if you are a coach, people might be writing posts about stress, or being productive.
There are two main goals here:
1 – Listen and help – give your expert advice, give some value to the conversation.
2 – Get some content ideas straight from potential clients themselves!
Think of the group like an ATM – actually, this works for all social media – you can’t withdraw until you deposit. So no pitching and asking for the sale. We are here to give, give, give and give some more.
We want to be seen as the expert in our area, the go-to person, the one people call on when they have a specific problem.
For example
I am part of a local business owner group. No sales or pitching allowed. This is a safe space – no one likes to be pitched to, BUY MY STUFF!!
So I help where I can, I give advice, I give support.
I’m known in the group for knowing about social media, and for being nice and helpful.
I attend the group events, help the admins when I can. I’m known and visible.
So when anyone wants to hire a social media manager, guess who gets mentioned?
Build relationships
This process can take a while, it’s about building relationships, and is the more sustainable option for building authority and getting leads. Keep track of members who are ideal customers, and keep an eye out for their posts, you want to contribute to them to stay visible to them.
Share Knowledge
We are what we give, no sense in hiding our knowledge behind a paywall all the time, how will people see we are the expert?
You can do this by sharing in the comments, answering questions thoughtfully and with your expert knowledge, but also redirecting them to your own resources or blogs that answer their questions.
Make sure you aren’t just spamming your blogs all over the group, drop a comment along the lines of ” I have a blog that answers this question, it gives more info I think you will find helpful, would you like me to send it to you, or share it with you?”. Get permission first, this is about helping, not spamming.
So here are my tips on what to do instead.
I have my own Facebook group to help you get started with social media, get answers when you get stuck and you can join me for weekly live training and workshops.
