The lowdown on boosting social media posts
“Should I boost my posts?” is one of the frequently asked questions I get as a marketing trainer and mentor, so I thought I would write this post to help those of you googling and looking for answers. Of course my answer to this question depends entirely on a number of factors relevant to your specific business, but, the following post has some detailed information and great thought-starters that should help you make some decisions and better choices with your boosting. For more personalised and strategic advice, please get in touch.
In this post, I’ll take you through what post boosting is, how it works, some best practices for getting the most out of this service and some key mistakes to avoid. Let’s go 👇
What is a boosted post?
Boosting posts on social media is still a popular way to increase engagement and reach a wider audience. Whether you're a business trying to promote a product, or a business trying to raise brand awareness for your services, boosting posts can help you achieve your goals.
There’s a lot of information out there about boosting posts and, while some people have great success, many others that I speak with have wasted a lot of money by not having a strategic purpose for their boosts. It’s important that, when you’re looking for advice, you choose a reliable and relevant source.
First, let's start with a quick definition of what boosting means. On most social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, users have the option to "boost" or "promote" a post. This means that the post will be shown to a larger audience than it would have otherwise (an audience that you can specifically target) through paid advertising. The exact mechanics vary from platform to platform, but the basic idea is that you can pay to have your post shown to more people, either within your existing audience or beyond.
What are the advantages of boosting posts?
One of the biggest advantages of boosting posts is that it can help you reach a larger audience and an audience of people who do not already know you - giving you reach beyond what you can generate organically through your social media content.
For example, if you're a small business trying to promote a new product or service, boosting a post that gives relevant and interesting details about that product or service can help you reach more potential customers/clients than you would have been able to reach through organic engagement alone. You don’t have to rely on the algorithms to choose to promote your post.
Another advantage of boosting posts is that it can help you increase engagement. Engagement is the target of a boosted post - meaning the platforms will send your post to people most likely to engage with the post. So by showing your post to more people, you're more likely to get likes, comments, shares, and other forms of engagement. This can help you build a stronger connection with your audience, and can also help you achieve your goals more quickly.
Best practices for boosting posts
Here are some tips for you to start thinking about using the boost feature or to perhaps check if you could do it better. I also have some of the common mistakes below this.
Target your audience: One of the most important things to consider when boosting a post is who you want to reach. Different platforms offer different targeting options, such as location, age, interests, and more. Be sure to take advantage of these options to ensure that your post is seen by the right people. Don’t just send it out to as many people as possible!
Use eye-catching images or videos: Posts with eye-catching images or videos tend to perform better than those without. If your post includes a photo or video, be sure to choose one that is high-quality and will grab people's attention.
Keep your message clear: The message of your post should be clear and easy to understand. Avoid using jargon or overly complex language, and focus on getting your point across in a simple, straightforward way.
Be consistent: One of the keys to success when boosting posts is consistency. Try to boost a post on a regular basis, rather than sporadically. This will help you build a larger and more engaged audience over time.
Monitor and measure: Keep track of your post's performance, and make adjustments as needed. Most social media platforms will allow you to track things like engagement, click-throughs, and conversions. Use this data to optimise your boosted posts, and get the most out of your ad spend.
What are some of the common mistakes people make when boosting posts?
Boosting the wrong kind of post
Not all types of posts are suitable for boosting. For example, a meme post that simply says “Happy Friday” might generate engagement but it won’t lead to any significant return on investment. Instead, boost posts that are already performing well organically, feature a strong call-to-action, an appealing image or video, or a timely message that aligns with with your desired audiences wants or needs (in relation to your products or services). Remember that this is an ad! Popping up in someone’s feed for no good reason is just annoying.
Not setting clear objectives
Before boosting a post, it's important to have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve. Do you want to increase brand awareness, launch something, announce news or changes, increase website traffic, generate leads, or boost sales? Knowing your objectives will help you create a more effective ad and target the right audience.
Not targeting the right audience
One of the biggest benefits of boosting posts is the ability to reach a specific and targeted audience. So, if you don't target the right people, your ad will not be effective. To avoid this, make sure you use detailed targeting options such as location, age, interests, behaviours, and more.
Not using a compelling call-to-action
A call to action (CTA) is an essential element of any social media ad, and is often overlooked when boosting posts. Without a CTA, people won't know what action you want them to take. Make sure your CTA is clear, compelling and prominently displayed on the ad. To find out more about CTAs, you can download my free guide here.
Not optimising your ad regularly
Once you've created the ad and set it live, don't just forget about it. It's important to regularly monitor the performance of your ad and make adjustments as necessary. This may include tweaking the targeting or budget - but be aware that ads generally take a few days to get going so too many changes at the beginning will hinder your results. For this reason it’s always good to get some organic reach and engagement on your post before boosting - this information will help the advertising algorithms learn more quickly.
Not planning ahead
Most platforms will not allow you to alter your post after it has been boosted so make sure you use a post that is correct and that has information on it that won’t expire. Double check that your call to action is timely, relevant and correct.
Expecting too much
Like I said earlier - a boosted post’s objective is to get engagement on your post, not clicks to your website, phone calls, follows or anything else so don’t expect that (think of them as a bonus). There are other advertising strategies that you can layer onto a boosted post that make it even more powerful. Please get in touch if you would like some help with that.
If done right, boosting posts can be a fantastic way to achieve the social media goals you have set for your business. Paid ads are an important part of your social media strategy and can even assist you to build a stronger organic presence and community around your business and brand by attracting genuine customers and clients.
❤️ Hi I’m Erika ✌️ I’m a marketing specialist with a BA in Media and Comms, Masters of Marketing, Certificate in CX (Customer Experience) and over 25 years experience. I’m well placed to help you navigate the sometimes overwhelming world of marketing and social media. I work with you one on one or create fun and action-oriented workshops and webinars for groups, organisations and businesses. Book a free discovery call with me or simply email me to get the conversation started.
For more tips, connect with me on Facebook and Instagram or just get in touch, I'm always happy to help.
