Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms, with over 2.9 billion monthly active users as of 2022. With so many people using Facebook, competition for attention on the platform is fierce. This means that not all posts will be seen by a user’s friends or followers.
The Facebook News Feed algorithm
The main reason why some Facebook posts get less visibility is because of the Facebook News Feed algorithm. This algorithm controls what posts users see at the top of their News Feeds. The goal is to show users the posts that are most relevant and interesting to them, out of the hundreds of posts from their network.
The News Feed algorithm ranks and weights thousands of posts, taking into account over 100,000 different factors. Some of the key factors it considers include:
- How recently the post was shared
- The type of post – photo, video, status update, etc.
- How users have interacted with the post – likes, comments, shares
- The person who shared the post and how often the viewer interacts with them
- The number of likes, comments, and shares the post has received
Based on these and many other factors, the algorithm predicts how interesting each post will be to the viewer. It then ranks them accordingly, with the most relevant posts towards the top. Less relevant posts can end up buried further down the News Feed where they are less likely to be seen.
Post reach depends on engagement
One of the main ranking factors for the News Feed algorithm is engagement on the post – how many likes, comments, and shares it receives. Posts that get more engagement are seen as more interesting and are shown to more users over time.
So when a post gets little engagement shortly after it’s shared, the algorithm assumes it’s not very interesting. As a result, it won’t show it to as many people and the post won’t get much reach. Even if the post is interesting to some people, if the initial engagement is low, fewer people will ever see it to potentially interact with it.
Pages with low relevance score
The News Feed algorithm also takes into account the past posting behavior and engagement levels on a Facebook Page. Each Page has a ‘relevance score’ behind the scenes. Pages that tend to create posts users consistently find interesting have a high relevance score. Their future posts are more likely to be ranked higher.
However, Pages with lower relevance scores tend to have their future posts shown less. For example, if a Page posts inconsistent content that doesn’t align with their audience’s interests, their relevance score drops. Their posts won’t be prioritized as highly in the future.
Using targeted content
Since the News Feed algorithm favors content it thinks specific users will be interested in, posts with broad appeal sometimes struggle. For example, posting the same content to all your followers may not work well. Some may find it interesting while others don’t.
Targeting posts to specific audiences can help them get better reach. For example, only sharing a post about parenting tips to your followers who are parents. Or only sharing a tech news post to your followers who are tech enthusiasts. This helps ensure the post will be relevant to the audience.
Posting at low-traffic times
When you post can also impact how many people see it. Posting during peak Facebook usage times means more potential views. But if you post when fewer people are online, the initial views and engagement will be lower too.
For example, posting on Friday and Saturday nights when more people are out socializing means fewer will immediately see your post. Early mornings and weekday afternoons tend to have more Facebook traffic.
Having a small audience
The size of your Facebook audience also impacts reach. Pages with only a few hundred followers have a lower potential reach than Pages with thousands or millions of followers. Even if all the followers are real people who actively follow the Page, the sheer number difference matters.
With a small audience, even if a high percentage of them see a post, it’s still only reaching a small total number. That limits the potential engagement, which in turn limits how far the post will be shown by the News Feed algorithm.
Using too many hashtags
Some social media users try to game the system by adding excessive hashtags to their posts. The thinking is more hashtags equals more views. However, on Facebook adding a long list of irrelevant hashtags can actually decrease reach.
Facebook’s algorithm looks at post content including hashtags. Too many irrelevant hashtags may cause it to rank the post lower in some users’ News Feeds. The best practice is to only include 1-2 highly relevant hashtags, or none at all.
Having a business Page
Facebook has been attempting to increase ‘meaningful’ interactions between family and friends and decrease passive consumption of business/media content. This means the News Feed algorithm now prioritizes personal posts over business Pages.
Business Page posts generally have lower organic reach than posts from personal accounts. To hit a larger audience, businesses often have to use paid Facebook advertising.
Using a personal profile instead of a Page
To maximize reach as a business, having a Facebook Page instead of posting from a personal profile is best. Business posts directly on a profile will have even lower visibility than using a Page.
That’s because Facebook wants to show users mostly personal posts from family and friends in their News Feeds. Business and promotional content is heavily restricted unless you are posting from a Page and, in many cases, paying for ads.
Paying to boost reach
If organic, unpaid reach of your posts is low, another option is paying to boost visibility. Facebook offers options to run ads that promote your posts.
For example, you can pay a small amount like $1 per day to have your post show up higher in more News Feeds. This exposes it to users who otherwise may not have seen it.
Paid promotions are a way to get around the algorithm’s limits and reach a larger audience. It comes at an added business cost but may be worthwhile if you want maximum views.
Asking for engagement
You can encourage more engagement on your posts by directly asking people to interact – whether that’s asking them to like, comment, share, or click a link. When they do, it signals to the algorithm the post is interesting.
For example, “Don’t forget to like this post if you found this helpful!” or “Click the link in our bio to learn more!” Simple calls-to-action can boost engagement.
Posting consistently
Pages that post consistently tend to have higher relevance scores. This means their future posts are more likely to be shown by the News Feed algorithm.
Posting daily or multiple times per week develops a posting habit. Followers will be trained to expect new content regularly. They’re more likely to engage with each post rather than just seeing one post pop up occasionally.
Analyzing competitors
Look at competitors or industry leaders similar to your Page. When do they post? What types of content do they post? What engagement levels do they achieve?
Modeling your posting strategy after their success can be a good starting point. See what works well for their audience, as it may work for yours too.
Making video posts
Video content has some of the highest engagement on Facebook. If you have the resources, switching some text and photo posts to short videos can help reach more people.
Videos less than 2-3 minutes work well on Facebook. Post at least once a week to start and see what content resonates best with your audience.
Paying close attention to early engagement
Analyze how your posts perform in the first 1-2 hours after posting. Posts that quickly get good reach and engagement will continue performing well. But posts that stall early may not recover.
If you see a post isn’t getting initial traction, consider deleting it and trying again later. Or change up the content format – if it was a text post, try making it an engaging video instead.
Following posting best practices
Follow Facebook’s recommended best practices for posting to maximize reach:
- Post at 1-4 PM and 8-11 PM in the viewer’s time zone
- Post between Tuesday and Thursday
- Post videos up to 2-3 minutes long using descriptive titles
- Ask an interesting question or encourage comments in the post text
- Use relevant hashtags (1-2 per post) to help discovery
Adjusting targeting for posts
If your posts usually target a broad audience, try narrowing it down. For example, if you have a multi-product store, target each post about a specific product just to buyers of that product.
This focused targeting means the content will be highly relevant to that segment. The improved engagement will signal to the algorithm that it should show the post to more of that audience.
Running a Like Campaign
If a post has stalled with low reach, you can run a Like Campaign to get it some momentum. This entails paying ($1 per day minimum) to promote the post to more users and ask them to like it.
Once they start liking the post, it will gain more authority in the algorithm and be shown to an even larger pool of potential likers. This helps good but underperforming posts gain a wider reach.
Leveraging user-generated content
User-generated content often performs very well on Facebook because friends and family of the user are eager to engage with it. You can take advantage of this by sharing great user photos of your product or business.
For example, rerun photos customers have tagged you in on Facebook. Or share great reviews customers have left. Their friends are more likely to interact with the authentic third-party content.
Paying close attention to early engagement
Analyze how your posts perform in the first 1-2 hours after posting. Posts that quickly get good reach and engagement will continue performing well. But posts that stall early may not recover.
If you see a post isn’t getting initial traction, consider deleting it and trying again later. Or change up the content format – if it was a text post, try making it an engaging video instead.
Following posting best practices
Follow Facebook’s recommended best practices for posting to maximize reach:
- Post at 1-4 PM and 8-11 PM in the viewer’s time zone
- Post between Tuesday and Thursday
- Post videos up to 2-3 minutes long using descriptive titles
- Ask an interesting question or encourage comments in the post text
- Use relevant hashtags (1-2 per post) to help discovery
Adjusting targeting for posts
If your posts usually target a broad audience, try narrowing it down. For example, if you have a multi-product store, target each post about a specific product just to buyers of that product.
This focused targeting means the content will be highly relevant to that segment. The improved engagement will signal to the algorithm that it should show the post to more of that audience.
Running a Like Campaign
If a post has stalled with low reach, you can run a Like Campaign to get it some momentum. This entails paying ($1 per day minimum) to promote the post to more users and ask them to like it.
Once they start liking the post, it will gain more authority in the algorithm and be shown to an even larger pool of potential likers. This helps good but underperforming posts gain a wider reach.
Leveraging user-generated content
User-generated content often performs very well on Facebook because friends and family of the user are eager to engage with it. You can take advantage of this by sharing great user photos of your product or business.
For example, rerun photos customers have tagged you in on Facebook. Or share great reviews customers have left. Their friends are more likely to interact with the authentic third-party content.
Conclusion
There are a variety of reasons why some Facebook posts receive poor reach while others go viral. The unpredictable News Feed algorithm prioritizes relevance and meaningful engagement over any specific type of content. Strategically crafting engaging posts targeted to your audience and paying close attention to analytics will give you the best chance of being seen.
While 100% reach and engagement is never guaranteed, being aware of the algorithm logic and following Facebook best practices will help you maximize the visibility of your Page and posts.