You’re not alone in asking whether there is any point to organic content on Facebook. On average, organic posts get a mere 2-4% reach, a drop in the ocean compared to a well-targeted, paid campaign.
Facebook’s organic reach has steadily declined since 2014, but the final nail in the proverbial coffin was the algorithm change in early 2018, which favours ‘more meaningful interactions with family and friends’.
Marketers have had to switch gears from frequent publishing to careful, selective content that adds as much value to their customers’ lives as posts from friends and family.
Still, many only achieve, at most, 12% organic engagement. So, why bother? Because of the value compared to paid. Organic engagement is from your most loyal fans, your brand advocates, most likely to share, like and comment and, therefore, spread your message in an authentic manner. In fact, most of John Brown Media clients’ are seeing significantly higher conversion rates for organic audiences compared to audiences who saw an ad via paid media.
Essentially, organic engagement is more likely to result in a click to purchase. In addition, strong organic reach can give a small algorithmic boost to paid posts. The key is to make sure your content adds sufficient value in order to compete with friends and family in the newsfeed.
It’s also good to remember that potential customers look to social channels to find a brand and understand its offering. These people are going to see the content on your organic feed. Facebook users are also more likely to use the channel to search for trending topics. Only organic content can be found via search.
This doesn’t mean you should stop your paid strategy, of course. It is, however, imperative that brands also have a strong organic strategy to support and add value to paid marketing efforts.