If you’ve noticed a significant decrease in how many people your Facebook posts are reaching, you’re not alone. Many business pages and influencers have reported seeing their organic Facebook reach decline over the past few years.
What is Facebook post reach?
Facebook post reach refers to the number of unique Facebook users who saw your post in their News Feed. So if your post was seen by 1,000 different people, your reach would be 1,000.
Reach is different than impressions, which is the total number of times your post was seen. For example, if those 1,000 viewers scrolled past your post multiple times, you may have 2,000+ impressions.
Why is Facebook post reach important?
Reach is important because it shows how many people you had the potential to get your message in front of. The more people who see your content in their feed, the more chances you have to:
- Drive traffic to your website
- Increase engagement and shares
- Build brand awareness
- Get conversions like sales or email sign-ups
High reach helps amplify your marketing efforts on Facebook. But when that reach starts to sink, it becomes much harder to achieve your goals.
What causes Facebook post reach to drop?
There are a few key reasons why your Facebook post reach may decrease over time:
1. Increased competition
Back in Facebook’s earlier days, brands and influencers didn’t face nearly as much competition in the News Feed. But as more and more pages have joined Facebook, it’s gotten extremely crowded.
With the average user following hundreds of pages, there’s only so much room for your content to get through. Even great posts can easily get buried.
2. Facebook algorithm changes
Facebook is constantly modifying its News Feed algorithm – the system that decides which posts users see. Many changes are designed to increase “meaningful interactions” and decrease spammy content.
Unfortunately, legitimate business pages can get caught in the crosshairs. When the algorithm shifts, your reach may suddenly take a nosedive.
3. Declining organic reach
Over the past decade, Facebook has deliberately reduced the organic (non-paid) reach of Page posts. Some estimates indicate organic reach has dropped from over 10% of fans to just 2-5%.
Facebook’s rationale is that they want Pages to pay for reach through ads rather than get it for free. But for Pages relying on organic reach alone, it’s been devastating.
4. Shift to algorithmic feeds
Facebook used to show posts in strict chronological order. More recently, they’ve switched to algorithmic feeds personalized for each user.
This prioritizes the content Facebook thinks you’re most likely to engage with. The downside is posts from brands and influencers can easily disappear in users’ feeds.
5. Declining user engagement
Organic reach is heavily influenced by how well your posts resonate with fans. If you post content they consistently ignore or don’t find valuable, Facebook will stop showing it to as many people.
So if your engagement metrics like likes, comments and shares drop, reduced reach can follow.
How much should post reach realistically be?
It’s unrealistic to expect your Facebook post reach to be 100% of your Page fans. Here are some benchmarks to set proper expectations:
| Page Size | Good Reach % |
|---|---|
| 1,000 fans | 50% |
| 10,000 fans | 20% |
| 100,000 fans | 10% |
| 1 million+ fans | 5% |
So for a Page with 50,000 fans, reaching 10,000 people (20%) with a post would be decent. But if you have 100,000 fans and are only reaching 2,000 people, that’s a red flag.
How to diagnose the cause of declining Facebook reach
If your Facebook reach has suddenly dropped, here are some steps to diagnose the potential cause:
Check for Facebook algorithm changes
Search online to see if any major Facebook algorithm updates were recently rolled out. Often pages will see reach drop around the same time due to a new algorithm.
Evaluate changes in your post content
Analyze whether you’ve changed the type of content you’re posting right before you noticed the reach decline. For example, switching from very social posts to purely promotional content could cause a drop.
Compare engagement metrics
Use Facebook Insights to compare your recent engagement rate to older posts that had better reach. Look for patterns linking lower engagement to lower reach.
See if competitors were affected
Reach out to competitors or other pages in your niche to ask if they’ve seen declining organic reach too. If they have, it points to a broader algorithm issue.
Review relevance of page content
Objectively evaluate whether your recent posts are as interesting and relevant to your audience as older content with better reach. Less relevant content gets fewer views.
Consider personal reach, not just Page reach
Check if your personal Facebook account also has declining post reach lately. This could indicate your content is less engaging overall vs. just an issue with your Page.
How to improve Facebook post reach
If you determine recent reach declines are due to your own content rather than Facebook, here are some tips to turn it around:
Post more engaging content
Analyze your best performing posts to identify what types of content gets the most reach and engagement. Then create more of that high-quality content.
Post at optimal times
Leverage Facebook Insights to find out when your audience is most active on Facebook. Focus your posting during those high traffic windows.
Improve clickbait headlines
Research what makes compelling headlines and rewrite yours to drive more clicks. For example, ask questions and highlight benefits.
Use relevant hashtags
Include hashtags for your industry, location, products, etc. to make it easy for people to find your posts.
Run engaging contests and giveaways
Sweepstakes, contests, and promotions create viral interest that expands your reach. Just follow Facebook rules.
Leverage UTM tags to track traffic sources
Using UTMs in your links allows you to see which posts drive the most website visits from Facebook.
Request shares and engagement
Directly asking fans in your posts to like, comment, share, and visit your site can help prompt them to take action.
Advertise to boost reach
Putting some budget behind your posts with Facebook Ads is guaranteed to increase reach. Even a small daily spend goes a long way.
Should you rely on just organic reach?
Given how unpredictable organic reach is on Facebook, it may not be wise to depend on it alone. Here are two alternatives worth considering:
Incorporate paid advertising
Running Facebook Ads gives you precise control over who sees your posts. You can expand your reach much wider with a reasonable ad budget.
Diversify to other platforms
Posting your content across multiple channels like Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter exposes it to totally different audiences.
This multi-channel approach reduces dependency on any one platform.
Conclusion
A sudden drop in Facebook post reach can be worrying, but is rarely permanent. By analyzing your content and metrics, you can identify opportunities for improvement. Focus on creating high-quality engaging posts, and supplement with advertising for the best results.