9 Ways to Get More Likes on Your Facebook Page by DIANA URBAN on FEBRUARY 4, 2013 Having a Facebook page is a great way to reach a new audience where they already go every day to peruse their newsfeeds. The more people who “like” your page, the wider your potential audience. Every time someone “likes” your page or a post on your page, comments on an update on your page, or shares one of your updates, your content is visible on their timelines — for all their friends to see in their newsfeeds. So let’s say John has 600 Facebook friends — if he comments on your latest Facebook page post, your post has the potential to be seen by 600 new people. Social endorsement is a powerful motivator, so this activity will encourage your fans’ friends to see what you’re all about. So the question is — how to do you start getting more likes? 1. Create exclusive like-gated content A like-gate is a custom tab, a.k.a. a reveal tab, on your Facebook page in which people who have liked your page already can see some sort of exclusive content. Everyone else — people who haven’t liked your page yet — will only see messaging that they need to like your page to get your content. Since your timeline content is visible to anyone –whether they liked your page or not — this like- gate gives people the motivation to like your page so that they can get something that’s free or exclusive. Here’s an example of a like-gate in action on U Stand Out’s Facebook page. This is what viewers see if they haven’t yet liked the page — the free download is locked: This is what people who have liked the page can see — they now have access to the form where they can get their free download: Major brands use this like-gating strategy as well. Here’s one of Sephora’s custom tabs pre-like: After the viewer likes the page, the prompt to like the page disappears, and the viewer can now click through to the application: 2. Promote your like-gate offer at the top of your Facebook page Once you’ve created your like- gate, customize your tab image to promote your exclusive content. Make sure that this tab is visible in the top row of images so that visitors to your Facebook page can see this offer. Remember — you can only link people directly to this like-gated tab if you’re running Facebook ads 3. Add a Facebook Like Box to your website or blog A Facebook Like Box is a widget you can add to your website that lets your visitors like your Facebook page without ever needing to leave your website. You can also include images of people who have already liked your Facebook page. If one of your website visitors have Facebook friends who have already liked your page, she will see her friends’ images in this view. Again, Facebook helps you use the power of social endorsement to your advantage. 4. Update your Facebook timeline regularly You should update your Facebook page timeline on a regular basis with new posts, updates, pictures, polls, etc. In fact, you should try to add something new to your Facebook page every single day. Not doing so would be a missed opportunity — every time you post something, your fans might engage with your content, leading a new audience to your Facebook page. Also, if your page has been dormant for weeks or months, you’ll get fewer likes from people who visit your page, see the lack of activity, and leave. To help you stay organized, use a social media content calendar to plan out your content schedule for the upcoming month. This will make it easier to manage a consistent content stream — you won’t have to remember to brainstorm new content every single day. 5. Make sure your fans are part of the conversation Don’t just post self-promotional content on your Facebook page. Instead, engage your fans in the conversation. Ask questions and share the content that they post to your Facebook page. Showing fans that your care about them and their opinions will encourage them to engage with your content more frequently, this increasing your exposure in their friends’ newsfeeds. It’s a win win. You can also create polls to increase interaction on your Facebook page. 6. Know your audience If you don’t know enough about your audience, you won’t know how to inspire them. If you can’t inspire them, you won’t get them to interact with you on your Facebook page, and your like-growth will be very slow. Asking questions on a regular basis on your page will help you understand more about what your audience likes, cares about, and wants to hear more from you about. Then post updates that you know will interest them — not just updates that help you promote yourself. 7. Respond to your fans If your fans post something on your timeline, or comment on one of your updates, always respond to them — especially when the activity level is manageable enough to do so. Answer their questions and participate in the conversation yourself. Even if they just say something like “thank you” or “great picture” — comment and say thanks, or “like” their comment. 8. Pay for new likes Facebook’s ad platform lets you create ads that specifically promote your Facebook page. If you have the budget, you can use this ad platform to get more likes from a targeted audience. This is a great way to jump-start your fan growth if you’re first getting started. Once you have momentum, it can be easier to grow your fan base organically. Facebook lets you highly target your audience. You can target them based on typical demographic criteria, such as age, gender, education level, and so forth. But you can also target them by the specific school they attend or company that they work at, and even by interest according to what they’ve liked before. Best of all, you can create ads that link directly to your like- gated tab. That means that new viewers will see the pre-like message promoting your exclusive content right away, so they’ll have the motivation to like your page. Choosing your like-gated tab as your landing view would be much more effective than landing them on your timeline. 9. Get step-by-step instructions for implementing these tactics These strategies have been proven to increase the amount of likes on Facebook pages , from blogs and small businesses to large corporations and household names.