There have been many studies done on how people like to connect with brands on Facebook. And there are many different ways to reach fans: sharing content they might be interested in, launching a giveaway, creating a poll, generating community growth Facebook ads, etc. So which is the most likely to get a fan to interact? According to a recent study, brands should focus on putting fresh, unique branded content on the Timeline. These are the stories that are most likely to be shared.

According to this eMarketer study, many people deny they ever click on Facebook ads (44% saying ‘never’ and 31% saying ‘rarely). However, we consistently see an increase in the volume of clicks and visitor transfers in many of our clients’ accounts. Therefore, this study (reliant upon what people say they do instead of what they actually do) could be faulty. Regardless, it’s still helpful to see just how important it is to generate fresh content for a brand’s page.

Marketing campaigns – like quizzes, trivia contests and sweepstakes – were shared by users more than any other branded content. This means that once a person answers a quiz or trivia question, he/she shares it with their online communities. This increases the brand’s “social reach,” a Facebook Insights metric that allows a brand to see just how many people actually see their content (aside from their fans). The recently-launched Reach Generator initiative allows Facebook to ensure that brands’ fans see the content, which also increases the probability of sharing and greater social reach.

A unique tool your brand can use to marry the two (branded content on the Timeline and Facebook paid ads) is Sponsored Stories. These stories simply tell friends of your brands’ fans that he/she has taken an action on your Facebook Timeline. For instance, “John Doe likes Levelwing” or “Jane Doe answered a quiz question from Levelwing.” This kind of sponsored story lends credibility to your brand because the user’s friend endorses it. Therefore, we recommend people use fresh, branded content on their brand pages to provide a unique experience to current fans while also using Facebook advertisements with compelling copy to gain new fans.

The integration of Sponsored Stories is probably only the first step of many for Facebook to integrate brands into people’s social networking lives. Now is the time to tailor your social strategy to content generation for multiple audiences.

Related Articles:

Social Advertising and the Rollout of Facebook Ads in News Feeds

Is Your Business Taking Advantage of Facebook Timeline Changes?

Facebook Features You Likely Overlooked

Image Source: eMarketer