How to Get More Facebook Likes

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Facebook is undoubtedly the king of all social networking sites, and like a virtual New York, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere! One of the key measures of Facebook success is the number of likes you get on your page, posts and status updates. But these likes can be elusive - so reeling them in requires some strategizing. Whether you're just trying to get more likes on your personal statuses, or attempting to promote your business online, this handy guide will help you to successfully navigate the finicky world of Facebook likes.

Steps

On Personal Posts

Post often, but not too often. Posting often increases your visibility on people's timelines, making it less possible for your posts to be overlooked or skimmed over. If you can become known for posting interesting and funny status updates, photos and videos, people will be more likely to stop and take notice when your name appears on their feed. The more people who actually pay attention to what you're posting, the more people who'll be inclined to like each post.
- A word of warning though, posting too often will just clog up people's feeds and they'll become tired of it, which may lead them to hide you from their timeline or possibly unfriend you - not what you want at all!
- A good guideline to follow is about 1 to 2 posts a day, everyday. According to an analysis done by KissMetrics, posting 1 -2 times a day increases other Facebook users' engagement by 40%.[1]
Post more photos and videos. People are very visually-oriented, so photos and videos are more likely to capture people's attention than wordy status updates. It only takes about half a second for a person to take in a picture, so it requires very little effort, and they can respond to it almost immediately. Interesting or funny videos are also a great way to get likes, but you may need to include a comment which entices people to watch the video in the first place, something enigmatic and intriguing like "This video is so funny I snorted milk through my nose" or "I can't believe this video is for real...needs to be seen to be believed!"
- Tagging friends and acquaintances in pictures is also a great way to get likes and possibly make new friends. People are narcissistic and like to see pictures of themselves (as long as they're flattering!) so get tagging and start rolling in the likes.
- With camera phones and apps like Vine and Instagram it's now so easy to upload your own high-quality videos featuring you and your friends. Again, people are more interested in things involving themselves, so a tagged video of your friends reenacting Katy Perry's new music video will probably get more likes than if you posted the official Katy Perry video itself.
Keep it short and sweet. People are lazy. And impatient. They want to be entertained and they want it now. Therefore, long-winded or wordy status updates are more likely to be given a cursory glance, then quickly scrolled past. Remember that Facebook is not a blog - people don't want a summary of your day, a description of what you ate for breakfast or a lengthy opinion piece on the latest episode of Breaking Bad. They want short, amusing anecdotes or concise updates on cool, interesting things you've seen or done. So give the people what they want.
- Unlike Twitter, you're not technically limited to 160 characters or less, but you should seriously consider imposing this rule on yourself!
- Of course, if you have a blog, you're more than welcome to share a link to these in-depth musings on your Facebook page. Once you've built up a reputation for posting interesting and unique status updates, people might be more inclined to click through to your blog.
Ask interactive questions. Another great way to get more likes is to be interactive with your Facebook friends, by asking engaging questions and requesting other people's opinions. You can also ask for other people's help or recommendations - people like to be the ones to give the best or most interesting answer. Examples of this might include something like:
- "Calling all techies! My computer is refusing to install the new version of iTunes...help please?" or "Anyone tried that new pizza place downtown? I need a cheese-y carb fix - stat!" Just be sure to reply to any respondents quickly so they'll be willing to help you out again in future.
- Do not abuse the question system though, you shouldn't ask questions that are too personal or that require too much effort from other users. For example, asking people whether a certain picture "makes you look fat" is a definite no-no, while asking people for an explanation of how to make a PowerPoint presentation is just lazy. Google it.
Like other people's posts. Sometimes you just need to establish a mutual "liking" relationship with another person, especially if you're not particularly close to them in real life. Even if someone enjoys or appreciates something you posted, they may hold back from liking it because they're afraid of seeming weird when you don't know each other well. In this scenario, you should be the one to break the ice by liking one of their posts first. This way they'll feel more comfortable, or maybe even obliged, to like yours back. It's a win-win situation!
- If you really don't know the other person all that well, you should be somewhat scrupulous in the posts you choose to like. For example, you should avoid liking a post that says something like "Just broke up with my boyfriend of 6 months - happy to be single again!" If you're barely acquaintances with this person, or if you happen to be friends with their boyfriend, it will seem weird if you like it.
- You should also avoid liking posts where the person is obviously upset or frustrated about something. For example, you shouldn't randomly like a post that says "My childhood dog just died at 15 years of age. RIP Fido, you will be greatly missed. :(" That would just be mean.
Be funny. Okay, so this can be hard advice to put into practice, especially if humor isn't your strong suit. But as mentioned before, people go on Facebook to be entertained, so if you can post something that makes someone laugh, or even smile, you will be handsomely rewarded with likes.
- Try to think of something funny or weird that happened to you and write about that. Or if you're brave, describe an embarrassing situation you found yourself in, such as calling your Spanish professor "Mom" or knocking over a cart full of pineapples at the supermarket.
- If you can't be funny, use someone else's humor instead. Search for an entertaining joke on the internet and post it to your wall, or share a particularly clever version of a popular meme. You may not have come up with it yourself, but you'll still get all the credit.
Avoid posts that appear attention or sympathy seeking. In general, people don't like Facebook posts which are solely intended to attract attention or garner sympathy. If you post those kinds of status updates, you're more likely to get a a disgruntled "tut!" and a roll of the eyes than a large collection of likes. Posts that fall into this category include those that are self-congratulatory ("OMG, can't believe I got signed with a modeling agency/ got the top exam score in my class/ got asked on a date by the hot guy/girl at Starbucks!), overly self-deprecating ("Just ate an entire packet of cookies - No wonder I'm so fat") or ANY pictures of you staring moodily/pouting/winking at the camera that you clearly took of yourself.
- You should also nix on the enigmatic or overly-vague posts which are clearly designed to elicit a sympathetic "what's wrong?" or "what happened?" Posts like "worst day of my life" or "some people have no shame" are two such examples.
- Posts like "I hate my hair! I wish it would just do as it's told for once!" are on the borderline. If you're known for your crazy, flyaway curls then it's probably acceptable. If, however, you usually look like you just stepped out of a Pantene commercial and could easily be mistaken for Serena van der Woodsen's long-lost sister, you will receive no mercy from the Facebook Gods and probably no likes.
- If you must post these kinds of statuses, at least try to keep them tongue-in-cheek by acknowledging that you're looking for attention. Use a clever hashtag (yes, you can do that on Facebook now) or simple "haha!" to show that you are not entirely serious.
Post at strategic times of day. Pay attention to your own Facebook habits and keep an eye on chat to see who's online and when. Then use this information to figure out the best times of day to post a status, so you can maximize the number of potential likes. Generally speaking, people are more likely to check their Facebook first thing in the morning and later on in the evening, after school or at work. Therefore you should time your posts to coincide with such periods of high activity.
- If you post things at unsociable hours, such as late at night or on a weekday afternoon, you may be disappointed by the number of likes your post receives. In this case, a lack of likes may have nothing to do with the quality of the post, but rather its poor timing.
- You will also need to consider external factors which may influence people's Facebook use. For instance, if it's a beautiful day, people will be less inclined to be inside on their computers, or if there's a big music festival or sports event on over the weekend, people may not check their Facebook til Monday. Try to save your best statuses for times when you know they'll be seen.
Cheat. So there are a few sneaky tricks you can try if you're really desperate for likes. One of the most popular is to post a status that says "Like for a number". Then you will proceed to send anyone who likes the status a random number via private message. Once that's done, you will start commenting beneath your previous status, stating each number and giving a short description of the person that number was assigned to.
- For example, if your friend Jessica liked your status and you sent Jessica the number 17 in a private message, you might comment "17 - One of the craziest people I've ever met - so fun to be around!" This way, Jessica will know you're talking about her, but nobody else will!
- Do the same for every person who liked your status...once enough people catch on to what you're doing, they'll want a piece of the action! A word of advice though - keep your "opinions" upbeat and complimentary, nobody wants to be insulted on Facebook, even if it's anonymous!
- Another, similar option is to post a status that says "Like for a H.O" (or just ho). H.O. stands for "honest opinion", so once a person likes your status you will send them a private message with your "honest" opinion of them (note the air quotes). Be nice - you're trying to win friends, not alienate them.

On Business Pages

Ask your friends and family. If you're trying to get a new page off the ground, the first thing you should do is invite all of your current Facebook friends to like the page. As admin, Facebook will give you the option to do this directly from the page.
- Make sure to include a comment where you ask people politely if they wouldn't mind supporting your new business and liking the page - people will respond more positively if you're nice.
- You could also encourage them to invite their own friends to like the page - even if only a couple of people actually do, it will increase the page's exposure exponentially.
Post interesting and interactive content. One of the most important ways you can encourage new fans and maintain your existing ones is to post interesting, informative and interactive content on a consistent basis. Try to post things that people will want to share with their friends, such as photos, videos, contests and relevant articles.
- Remember - if even one existing fan with a couple of hundred friends shares your post on their own wall, the exposure to your page increases hugely.
- Try to ask lots of questions and get people commenting on your posts, then make sure you answer each fan personally - this will encourage people to keep commenting and will inspire trust and loyalty in your brand.
- You can also allow Facebook users to upload photos to your Fan Page. People like things they can engage with.
Offer incentives. Offer an incentive for people to like your page, such as a special offer, coupon, or something creative. Make this offer exclusive to fans of your page, so people will have to like it in order to reap the rewards. This can be very effective and if the incentive is good, people will share it with their friends and families.
- For example, if you run an online clothing store, you could do a promotion whereby fans of your page receive a special discount code which entitles them to 10% off their next purchase.
- Or if your run a pet grooming salon, you could post a printable flyer which your fans can use to get one free dog wash. People love to get something for free, and once you've done it once, people will continue to check back with your page to look for more offers.
Contact admins of related Facebook groups. Facebook groups can have a large influence and can share your page with many Facebook users. Groups have the power to send out e-mail alerts to followers, whereas fan pages can only send a notification through Facebook.
- Try to entice the Group's admin(s) to share your page by providing good and relevant content and offer to promote their group on your page in exchange. A Facebook group won't want to send out spam to its followers, so make sure your page is related and that the relationship will be mutually beneficial.
- For example, if you run an ice cream parlor which receives a lot of business from a nearby restaurant, you could ask that restaurant to promote your parlor as a good dessert option or even serve your ice cream alongside their own desserts. In return you could hand out flyers promoting the restaurant to your customers and display sample menus in the parlor.
- Incentives like promotional codes and coupons will also help to encourage the followers of a group to like your Facebook page.
Poach fans from related pages. This step is a little sneaky when focusing on competitors, but in the cut-throat world of business promotion, is completely fair game. Say that you notice the page of a big brand or business is constantly getting comments from their fans asking for help or advice about their products, but no one ever responds to these queries. If you run a similar type of business, you can swoop in and answer any questions and then post a link to your own page, encouraging their fans to come to you instead.You can also offer a better discount on one of your products if they join your page. [2]
- For example, if you run a hair salon and you notice that fans of another local salon are always posting comments on that page looking for advice on how to achieve a certain hair style or recommendations on the best hair care products to use, but no one ever replies to them, you can take matters into your own hands and reply to those customers' comments and even advise them to like your page, as you regularly provide such helpful information.You can offer them a discount to like your page.Consumers love discounts.
- Be aware that this is a bold move and might create tension between you and the owner of the other business when they realize what you've been doing. However, it might teach them the harsh reality that you cannot ignore your customers - especially in the fickle world of Facebook.As an alternative, you can search for review pages of products & services, finding your potential customers that way.

Install a Facebook "Like Box" on your website. It's really simple to add a Facebook "Like Box" to your business's home page, which makes it easy for your website visitors to like your Facebook page without having to leave the website or go to the effort of searching for you on Facebook themselves. This is a good move as chances are that if a person is on your website, they are already familiar with your service or product and will be more inclined to like you on Facebook.
- You could also inform visitors to your site that by liking you on Facebook, they will be entitled to exclusive promotions, offers and content that they wouldn't receive anywhere else, even on the company's website - so if they like your brand they will need to like you on Facebook just to receive these offers.
- Also consider including a "Like us on Facebook" link in your employee's email signature. Most businesses send out hundreds of emails a day so this is a very easy way to garner more likes![2]
Run a "fans only" contest. This is a contest that only people who like your page can enter. The prize can be anything from an in-depth feature to one of your products. The bigger the prize, the more likely people will be to like your page and enter the contest. They might also be inclined to share the the contest with friends, encouraging even more people to like your page.
- You can make the contest interactive by using fun and interesting ways for people to submit their entries. For example, you could ask people to upload pictures of themselves with one of your products. So if you run a cupcake store, you could ask fans to post a picture of themselves eating one of your cupcakes.
- You could also ask people to post their stories on your Facebook page, where the best story wins. For example, if you own a flower shop and are offering a prize of a free bouquet of roses for Mother's Day, you could ask people to send in their favorite childhood memory of their mother, or the reason that their mother deserves to win.
Post job openings on your Facebook page. If you have any positions opening up in your company or business, think about posting that information on your Facebook page, along with a short job description and details on how to apply. This will encourage people to share the post with other job seekers and keep them coming back to your page for more updates.[2]
Encourage likes in the real world. Sometimes just letting real-life people know that your business is on Facebook is enough to drive the number of page likes upward. If your business is hosting or taking part in an event, why not take a photographer along to take pictures of those in attendance. Then let them know that can easily view the pictures just by liking your business's Facebook page! You can also hand out flyers and business cards with the call to "Like us on Facebook!" printed clearly.[2]
Run a well-targeted Facebook ad. For a fee, Facebook will promote your page to its users, giving you access to people you never would have reached otherwise. Make sure to use Facebook Insights to track your demographics so your ads are well-targeted at the correct audience, this will ensure that you get the most bang for your buck. You should also try to make the image and the wording of your advertisement relevant to current trends in your industry.[3]
- Be aware that Facebook ads can be costly, so make sure to set a budget you can afford.
- You can also buy Google ads that will direct traffic to your Facebook page.
Buy Facebook likes. Buying Facebook likes is a proven method of increasing the number of people who check out your page. This also increases your page's search engine ranking. Buying likes right at the beginning, just after you've set up your page, is good because it attracts real likes from people. It's the herd mentality - people will like what they see other people liking!
- Be aware that buying likes is a good method of getting your page up and running, but you won't be truly successful until real people start liking it. You will still need to engage with your customers in the comments and tell people about your business to have a really successful page.
Promote your Facebook page in real life. There are many ways you can promote your Facebook page in real life. More often people notice about your Facebook page in real life, the chances of them visiting and liking your Facebook page increases.
- Display your Facebook page contents live in your store television; it is like a Facebook TV (brandwand by thefunage.com).
- Print your Facebook page URL and stick it in your store.
- Print your Facebook page URL in the receipts or notices that you hand over to your customer.

Tips

Give-a-ways and contests are the most effective method, as well as putting a "Like Box" on your website.
If you're starting out and having trouble, buying likes can start you off.
Everyone likes The Oatmeal's take on this subject: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/facebook_likes

Warnings

Make sure your contests aren't just attracting people for the prize, and nothing else. You want the contest to get them to 'Like' your page, but you also want them to remain interested in what you have to say. Contests can get you a lot of 'Likes', but they aren't always of the highest quality.
NEVER just buy Facebook Likes and expect to build a huge site. While they are a very useful tool to get your page found and spark interest like buying backlinks for your website you need to promote your page in other ways, like contests if you want to see large amounts of real customers on your page.

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Sources and Citations

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