THE Facebook Cheat Sheet: 21 Sneaky Tactics to Generate a Buzz on Facebook

You have set up your Facebook Page and are all set for the flood of new fans but all you have managed is three likes from your friends and one from your mom. How do you get people to Like you?

You need some buzz! Generating buzz on Facebook or any social media platform doesn’t have to be too hard, you just need to get the ball rolling.

21 Sneaky Tactics to Generate a Buzz on Facebook

First, you need to be very clear about what your Facebook Page offers. Why should someone like you? Make sure you are providing great content while keeping things fun and social. Then try a few of these tactics:

#1: Provide great content – This is the number one strategy to get your Page Liked and shared. The content does not need to come only from your blog. Share other people’s great content while giving them a shout out.

#2: @Tag people or pages who are featured in a post – Use this sparingly as some Pages do not want a lot of tags on their page. It also can be annoying if you do it every day. Say nice things about the people or pages you are tagging and you will be noticed.

#3: Make sure you are encouraging conversation and Likes to stay visible and get into the Top News – When people comment and Like your post, your posts will be more likely to show up in their Top News feed.

#4: Start a debate – Be a little controversial and open up a subject for debate. Don’t alienate your audience but ask their opinion. If you use this tactic make sure you monitor the conversation so people don’t attack each other. Here’s a great example of a News station posting a story and asking their community to weigh in.

#5: Link to your Facebook Page in all your Bios – You can always direct people back to your website but getting the Like is more important than getting the website visitor.

#6: Run a Fan of the Week – People love to be featured. Talk about their business and put a link to their Fan Page.

#7: Use the Facebook Videos – When you upload a video to your Facebook Page, not only is it there on your Page where people can reference it later but if your video is shared, a special Like button appears in the corner of the video that allows people to easily Like your page if they don’t already. The key is making sure you include valuable content in your videos that people will want to share and then ask them to share it when you post it!

#8: Host a free Event or free Webinar and use the Facebook Events feature – Nothing is more shareable or viral than a quality free webinar or event.

#9: Post on the wall of the Event. Be active to be visible – When you post an update on the wall, people you have invited to your event get a notification, even if they haven’t RSVP’d yet. Don’t post something every day and make sure you are posting something relevant, but it’s a good way to keep your event visible.

#10: Comment on other Pages as your Page – Remember to add value and participate in the conversation. You will first have to log in as your Page, Like the other Page as your Page and then watch the News Feed of your Page (click Home when you have logged in as your Page) to see some of the recent posts of Pages you have Liked.

#11: Ask fun questions that anyone can answer – Don’t always be Mrs. Serious Business Page. Ask a purely social question such as “What celebrity would you choose to have dinner with and why?” or “What is your favorite movie?” That will encourage everyone to participate, even the “lurkers”, and create community.

#12: Have a Fan Page Day – Encourage people to post their as their Page and introduce themselves. People love to share and get to know each other. I love when I see people interacting who I know have met through my Fan Page. That’s what it’s all about.

#13: Be regular – Have a regular posting schedule so that your community knows what to expect and can share with others. For example, have a question of the day, an article of the day and a fan of the week all at the same times.

#14: Hold a contest – Give something away that is valuable to your audience. It doesn’t have to be too expensive. The Facebook Page Chocolate for Breakfast gave away some chocolates and got over 700 entries and 400 new likes to her page in one week. Pretty slick. Use a 3rd party contest application, such as Wildfire to run your contest.

#15: Have Facebook “Office Hours” or host an Expert – Do an on-Facebook Event such as anyone can post live questions for an hour and you will answer them or have an expert in your field on your Page Wall answering live questions. It’s fun and creates buzz around your Page. Ask some of your key supporters to be there to help seed some of the initial questions.

#16: Include a “reveal tab” with a freebie – Give something away on your Facebook Page for people who like your Page. You will need to use an iFrames application to create a reveal tab.

#17: Encourage people to ask questions – Make sure you are encouraging interaction and responding promptly. With the Facebook notifications feature, it is now much easier to monitor when people post questions. Try to respond to the questions within an hour or two if you can.

#18: Start a poll with the Questions feature – If you haven’t had much luck with the Questions feature, try asking easier questions. The questions feature is also a perfect way to crowdsource and get information about what your audience needs.

#19: Ask people to upload fun photos and tag themselves in them – This doesn’t have to be a contest (in fact you aren’t allowed to run a Facebook contest where people are required to upload a photo directly to your wall), but it could be something fun. A photographer friend of mine, Image Maven, has people upload photos to her wall and she does a free mini-critique of the photo. Awesome!

#20: Post often – This is the number one mistake people make on their page is not posting often enough. To be visible you need to post at least once per day.

#21: Use photos and videos creatively – Photos and videos are much more shareable and rich. Post photos of yourself and your business and you will get great feedback.

Andrea Vahl is the co-author of Facebook Marketing All-in-One for Dummies, available for pre-order on Amazon for a sweet deal. She also doubles as Grandma Mary Social Media Edutainer and can be found at www.AndreaVahl.com.