Thumbs Up: Five Ways to Get People to “Like” Your Facebook Page

Just as a website needs traffic to be successful, an organization's Facebook Page needs people to "Like" it.

A successful growth strategy must speak to people in a way that doesn't make them significantly diverge from the real reason they logged into Facebook: to interact with their friends. Simply put, make "Liking" your organization easy.

Here's some tried and true ways to grow your community.

1. Ask People to "Like" Your Page.

It's simple, but it works. Send an email that explicitly asks people to "Like" your Facebook Page. Challenge your Twitter followers to "Like" you (e.g., "Help us get 2,500 Likes on our #Facebook page by Friday. http://on.fb.me/eQJU17 Just 372 more to go!"). On your website, include a prominent tout that asks visitors to "Like" your page, and make sure they can easily spot your Facebook icon. If possible, embed a Facebook Like Box on your homepage and in sidebars.

Tip: You can control what the people who do not yet "Like" your Page first see when they come to your Facebook Page. A simple tab that specifically asks people to click the "Like" button at the top of this page can result in a significantly higher conversion rate (in some cases, over 50 percent higher).

2. Offer Interesting Content, Often.

Naturally, people appreciate interesting links, videos, status updates, and other interactive material. But good content serves another purpose: It gets noticed.

Facebook's News Feed gets more attention than any other aspect of the site. While the algorithm behind what goes into the Feed is a secret, it's clear that a post with more "Likes" and comments is more likely to appear on a friend's News Feed. The friends of your current fans are the most likely to also be interested in your cause.

For this reason, it's also a good idea to add the Facebook "Like" button to any page or blog post on your website with interesting content — especially now that Facebook updated its technology to give this action more prominence in the News Feed.

Tip: Respond when users post on your wall — it's a great way to start a Feed-boosting conversation.

3. Host a Contest.

Although they require a bit of planning and (sometimes) a little financial investment, contests are a great way to exponentially grow your Facebook audience in a short period of time. Read Facebook's Promotion Guidelines before launching a contest, and note that successful promotions need both a quality prize and a low barrier to entry.

Tip: By using some simple code, you can hide the entry form for a contest to anyone who does not yet "Like" your Page. While you cannot automatically enter anyone who "Likes" your page into a contest, you can prompt users to "Like" your Page in order to be eligible for the contest.

4. Invest in Facebook Ads.

A small financial investment can make a big difference in your "Like" campaign. Facebook's advertising platform allows you to aggressively target users based on demographic details. This typically results in a significantly lower cost per acquisition (CPA) for "Likes" than it does for email addresses. A successful campaign will see a Like-CPA that ranges from $0.75 to $2.50.

Tip: Facebook recently added "Sponsored Stories" to its advertising platform. This type of ad will place your content in the News Feed and home screen sidebar of your constituents' friends.

5. Reach Out to Other Facebook Groups and Pages.

Identifying and leveraging like-minded constituencies on Facebook can increase "Likes." Using Facebook's search function, find Groups and Pages with similar constituencies, reach out to their admins, and ask them to promote your page. The process is a bit time consuming, but well worth the effort.

Tip: Offer admins some brand merchandise, a little cross-promotion, or even special access to your organization to help earn their cooperation.

Alex Kellner is the Deputy Director of Content & Distribution Strategy at Blue State Digital.

For more information about Blue State Digital's strategy & technology services, click here.