NEW YORK— EyeCarePro.net, which works with ECPs on the development of their digital and social media presence, has examined the recent development of promoted or sponsored Facebook posts:

With all the effort we put into our Facebook page posts, it is natural to wonder how many of our fans actually see them. Wouldn't it be nice if we could have some guarantee that most of our fans would see what we are trying to share with them?

Well now we can have that assurance, at a price of course. In May, Facebook released Promoted Posts. For as little as $5.00, businesses can promote a post, which guarantees that the post will reach a much larger percentage of the page's fans and their friends as well.

Posts that are less than three days old are eligible to be promoted and can be targeted to a specific location or language. Not only does a promoted post reach more of your fans' newsfeeds, but when a fan Likes, comments on or shares the post, their friends will see it as well.

According to a recent Facebook video about promoted posts, "When you post on your page, it currently may only reach a limited amount of the people that Like your page each week. Your promoted posts will be seen by a larger percentage of the people who like your Page than would normally see it. It will also be seen by a larger percentage of the friends of people who interact with your post."

Facebook also gives you the chance to assess the ROI of a promoted post as it gives you the ability to track the number of people that saw it.

Unlike a Facebook Ad, which appears along a separate column to the right of the page, a promoted post actually appears in the newsfeed. The only distinction is that it is labeled as "Sponsored" in the bottom left corner. (See the example of a Promoted Post below, courtesy of the Facebook Help section).

 

We recently tested out a promoted post on the EyeCarePro Facebook page. From our promoted post we saw 225 organic views and 490 paid views (out of 471 fans), for $5.00. But! The viral reach was 497. Our conclusion is that the key is still to write interesting posts that people like and comment on, and you'll reach WAY more people.

To promote a post, visit the sharing tool used to create a post. Located next to the "Post" and "Public" buttons will be a "Promote" tab. Clicking on the "Promote" drop-down menu will allow you to set your budget to the amount you wish to spend (such as $5 or $10). Press "Save" and wait to see your post.

 

For more information about promoting posts on Facebook, visit Facebook.com/help/promote.

For an additional perspective on promoted Facebook posts, read about the experience of CLICK contributor Alan Glazier, OD, who recently wrote in CLICK on this topic.