This post will dive deep into how to start a Facebook Group for your blog.
One of the most solid free blogging advice you’ll find online is the importance of having a dedicated Facebook group for your blog.
I knew I eventually wanted to do it, but I wasn’t sure how or when to.
After some back and forth, I eventually created my first group. I was so hyped about how super niche and successful it would be.
So, I set it up and put in the finishing touches.
When I was done, I promoted the group on the posts in my group’s category.
It is worth noting that this category isn’t the most popular as it doesn’t bring me that much traffic compared to other categories.
As such, it wouldn’t pick up as fast as I wanted.
After a few weeks, it was literally just crickets.
A few people joined in occasionally, but it wasn’t fast enough to motivate me to keep it going.
Eventually, I abandoned it and went back to the drawing board.
Towards the end of 2020, I created a new group that currently has about 16,000+ members.
Like I do with my small victories on this blog, I document all the strategies I used before I forget.
This post will share more details on how to start and grow a Facebook Group for your blog or business.
Why You Need A Facebook Group For Your Blog
Disclaimer: I have 7+ years experience in Digital Marketing. I used to run an agency but now run a couple of blogs.
I’m sure you’re wondering if committing to another social media platform is worth it.
Like most bloggers, it is hard enough to juggle their blog and social media, which is why many people abandon their blog.
This is influencers’ biggest mistake, but that’s a conversation for another day.
Anyway, from the onset, I was hyper-focused on my goals.
I knew I had no desire to be a social media influencer, so I doubled down on my blog and focused only on strategies that would bring me traffic in the long term.
This included Pinterest Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and Facebook Marketing.
So, if you are serious about being in the long-term game of blogging, here are a few reasons why you absolutely need a Facebook Group:
It is fantastic for Referral Traffic
I’m sure you’re aware of the diversified sources of traffic.
My most significant source of traffic used to be strictly Pinterest.
However, towards the end of 2020, Pinterest started acting up, but I wasn’t too affected because I had already begun to implement SEO strategies, which were picking up quickly.
So, when my Pinterest traffic dipped, I wasn’t affected.
I had SEO as a backup.
In May, Google will release another significant update to the algorithm.
Most times, when this happens, it affects your traffic.
This is why I’m glad I started my Facebook group early enough.
As the only admin, I can run my group however I like and share my links to my blog as much as I like.
Trust me, there’s nothing as exhilarating as that.
In just two months since my group exploded, my traffic has also doubled SIGNIFICANTLY, and this is just the beginning.
It’s great for building your community.
Just a few years ago, Facebook started prioritising its groups because it noticed that many people weren’t spending as much time on the platform.
It became a place where the Boomers hung out.
But with the groups at the forefront, a lot more people had some reason to stay on the platform.
I mean, there’s no other platform that does groups as well as Facebook does, so you can give them all the credit.
If you’re struggling to build a community on Twitter, Instagram, or even your email list, a Facebook Group is a great place to start—as long as you do it correctly.
There’s nothing like being genuine and building trust with your audience, who will always listen to what you have to say.
It is key to increasing Affiliate Sales.
When I started my Facebook group, my primary goal was to diversify my traffic.
I didn’t realize how much it would impact my affiliate sales.
While I had to put in some extra time daily and do more than just moderate and engage with my audience, seeing that payout at the end of the month made it all worth it.
So, whatever your niche, as long as you can find like-minded people to build a community, you’ll definitely see an increase in your affiliate sales.
It is essential to inform your content strategy.
If there is one issue I see many bloggers struggle with, it is their content strategy.
There’s always that question,’ How do I find what to write about?’ coming up.
It can quickly become a weekly struggle if you are not as grounded in content marketing as I am.
Before I started my Facebook group, I already had a solid content strategy that reflected my blogging goals.
I wasn’t writing just for the fun of it. I was super strategic about the kind of content I posted.
This is why sharing my content and generating traffic quickly was easy.
I had written the right things.
But as my group grew, I realized I started getting more ideas on what to write.
Whenever I noticed a specific query pop up several times, I noted it.
If it specifically got a few people asking me for answers, I included it in my content calendar for the following month.
While I ultimately write for the search engines, it is also great to write content that addresses a specific concern that my members face.
Of course, it is usually well-optimized for Google, so it is a win-win situation for me.
How To Start A Facebook Group That Will Attract Members.
Starting a Facebook Group is pretty easy and straightforward.
You can create one as a profile or as a page.
I chose the latter to separate my personal life from my blog.
I also linked my page to my group so I could interact with it and grow it simultaneously.
It’s amazing how far Facebook has improved over the years.
While I don’t want to share a step-by-step tutorial for creating a group, which you can easily find online, I want to share certain tips that will help you optimize your group and attract the right members.
Name your group with searchable keywords.
There are tons of groups on Facebook.
The people who are looking for them are looking for something specific, either based on their location, interest, or experience.
So, you want to make sure you’re using keywords that are actually searched for.
Don’t worry if the keyword is popular.
In fact, chances are, if the keyword has popular groups, you’ll also get members quickly.
It’s now up to you to differentiate yours from the rest.
Except for your group, which is an exclusive closed group for people who bought a course from you or attended a class, make sure you’re very strategic with your group.
Fill in the description to attract the right audience.
This also goes without saying.
While you can’t entirely filter out the kind of audience you attract, you can be deliberate about the ones you accept.
So, fill in your description, add some rules and/or membership questions.
Use all the tools Facebook has made available to you to moderate your audience and manage your group.
Use the membership questions to filter out inactive or un-serious members.
Some people just go around joining all sorts of groups and spamming them.
You need to be wary of these ones.
While it might seem easy and less tasking to allow just about anyone in your group, trust me you’ll have to deal with the consequences later.
Either create a filter from the onset or manually delete and block unruly members later.
It’s up to you. There’s nothing like a peaceful, highly-engaging drama-free group.
In addition to my 16,000+ members, I have 5,000+ pending requests which I’m not in a hurry to accept.
I take my sweet time to approve about 500 serious requests daily and don’t hesitate to decline anyone who doesn’t meet my requirements.
Engage, Engage, Engage!
After creating and setting up the group, the main work starts on keeping it running.
Some admins prefer to be anonymous and operate from behind the scenes.
But if you’re trying to build a community and increase your affiliate sales, your members must know you.
As much as you can, establish your authority.
Welcome new members and respond to as many questions as you can.
If you already have a response in the form of a blog post, do not hesitate to share it to avoid repeating yourself.
Let your members be familiar with you and seek your opinion before others.
The more you engage and share your expertise, the more your members learn about what you stand for.
At the end of the day, in your absence, your members will stand up for you and respond correctly on your behalf.
4 Tips for Running a Successful Facebook Group
After running my Facebook Group for about four months, I have a few extra tips to help you along the way.
Decide how much time you want to dedicate daily.
Running a Facebook Group can be very tasking and time-consuming, so some people prefer to let their groups run by themselves.
In my experience, I’ve learnt that the only way to prevent it from taking over your life is to make a plan.
Look at your daily schedule and decide how much time you want to approve new member requests, engage, and/or post.
Based on the group analytics, I’ve noticed that the weekends are the busiest.
So, I make sure I plan adequately for them so that they don’t ruin my schedule.
Between my two blogs and Pinterest, I already have quite a bit on my hands.
Be consistent
The first 3 – 6 months will require all your attention, so be consistent.
Life always happens and there are times when you can’t show up.
Just don’t make it a habit.
If you have something going on for some reason, be transparent with your audience.
Don’t just ghost and expect everything to be back to normal when you return.
Respect your audience as well.
Create an initial content strategy to add value to your group and not run out of ideas.
In the beginning, if you’re not sure what to post or you’ve yet to create blog posts to share, create a content schedule of sorts.
Write down a few topics that you’ll discuss weekly and try not to spam your audience.
Yes, educate them and show your expertise, but don’t take over the entire group.
Let others talk, too, and engage with them.
Work on adding value to them and they will always listen to you.
Don’t hesitate to take a professional course to become certified or boost your confidence.
Write down your ideas ahead of time so you don’t struggle when you need them.
Also, get inspiration from your members.
If you see misinformation flying around or a number of people coming up with the same issues, address them in a post.
This way, you never run out of ideas.
Take charge and identify overzealous people who want to take over early on.
I promise you’ll always find these kinds of people.
They don’t want to create their own groups but would rather try to take over from someone who has put in so much work and effort.
They usually start off by being overly opinionated about anything and everything.
When you start to notice the signs, don’t hesitate to block them.
It saves you so much stress of arguing back and forth.
Running a group is hard enough.
You don’t need that extra stress.
Take breaks when you feel exhausted.
You can’t pour from an empty cup.
If you start to feel cranky, tired or exhausted, it is time to take a break before someone says something that gets on your nerves and causes you to lash out at them.
If you don’t meet your quota for the day, you and your group will be fine.
In Conclusion,
I hope you have found this post on starting a Facebook Group incredibly useful and that it has given you the nudge you have been looking for to start one.
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