The 4 Types of Facebook Group Posts to Increase Engagement

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As business owners, we’re always looking for ways to find new customers, expand our brand’s reach, and grow year over year. So we read blogs, listen to podcasts, and do everything the marketing experts tell us to do.  And while we flood the usual suspects with our marketing materials, there’s one channel that is often overlooked: Facebook groups.

Creating a Facebook group for your business allows you to do several things: create an exclusive place for your biggest fans to engage and interact, showcase your expertise, and solicit important feedback for your business.

Now I know what you’re thinking…”Who has time for Facebook groups? What will I talk about? What if nobody joins or interacts with me?” It’s like your worst fears from middle school are suddenly resurfacing, and we understand completely.

Recently, we sat down with Dana Malstaff, founder and CEO of Boss Mom, about the strategy she used to grow her Facebook group to over 36,000 members in the last few years (and it’s still growing at the rate of 1000 new members a month!). Below we’ll share some of the most popular engagement post types that Dana used to create a thriving community.

The 4 Types of Posts That Generate Group Engagement

One of the topics Dana and I chatted about was the types of posts one should use in their Facebook group to encourage engagement. Dana has 4 types of posts that she uses in her Facebook group:

#1. Help Me with a Decision Post

This type of post is exactly what it sounds like—you ask your group to help you make a decision about your business. For example, if you are creating new business cards, you might put a picture of a couple of options and ask them to vote for their favorite. Or if you are launching a new product, you can ask your audience what they like or dislike about it.

For this type of post, you might be tempted to use the polling feature in Facebook groups. Don’t! You want members to leave a comment instead because this will increase engagement and will help boost the post’s visibility in Facebook’s algorithm. So while the poll feature keeps results concise, it will make you lose out on engagement.

The people in your Facebook group are invested in you and your business and want to see you succeed. When you ask for their advice on different aspects of your business, it gives them a sense of involvement and makes them feel ‘in the know.’ This sense of belonging is a key driver for loyalty and future engagement.

#2. Opinion Post

Now, you may think asking your Facebook group for their opinion is the same as asking them to help you make a decision. But the Opinion Post is when you ask your group about something general or related to your industry, not necessarily your business. For example, you may ask your group “What are your favorite podcasts?” or “What is the most influential book you’ve read this year?”

These types of questions are easy to answer for your group members, and it gives them an opportunity to share something about themselves (we all love doing this!) so they feel valued. The other benefit to asking for opinions is that people within the group may find other members who have similar interests, which then gives them an opportunity to interact and engage with each other. It’s like they just made a new best friend!

#3. Call to Arms Post

The goal of this type of post is to get your group to rally behind a topic. Something that they can read and think, “this is so me.”

This post type will look different depending on what your niche is. For example, if you’re a designer, you might ask your design group to “show off the best/worst design they’ve ever done.” Or maybe create a post where people can vent about their frustrations about design.

People LOVE these types of posts because it gives them a chance to feel part of a narrative and have their voices heard by people who can relate.

#4. Irresistible Engagement Post

The “I can’t help myself” posts are quick and easy to comment on posts where you encourage your group to share their favorite GIF, drop an emoji, or comment with a 1-word answer. The whole idea is that the task is so easy to do that they just can’t help themselves and will engage.

A good example of this is “It’s Monday morning, drop a GIF of how you are feeling right now.” We all know Facebook users love GIFs so use this tactic often! Asking people to post fun things like their favorite memes or GIFs is a great way to create a sense of community within the group.

These posts are meant to be fun and entertaining. After all, all work and no play makes for one boring group!

Now that you’ve learned the four types of engagement posts to use in your group, we’d love to hear from you. What are you doing inside your Facebook group that encourages engagement? Leave us a comment below!

P.S. If you’d like to watch the full-length webinar with Dana Malstaff, click here.