Yes, your page will be more successful if you have a strategy.
There are many ways you can improve your Page. Firstly you need to choose a goal – Increase page likes, Increase engagement or Increase your reach.
Encourage engagement by asking open ended questions. What are your prayer intentions for today? What is your favourite prayer? This encourages people to engage with your post by leaving a comment, it is good practice to respond to comments even if it is just a Thank you or like the comment.
Increase likes by posting a wide variety of high quality and relevant posts. You may want to design the post image using the popular app Canva. Start your social media plan by planning posts for significant solemnities and Feast days for the year. Make sure you include important Feast days for your parish community. You can find some other post ideas here .
Improve your reach by growing your page. How can you grow your page? Think about your potential audience, have a link to your Facebook Page on your parish newsletter and website. Do you have a school attached to your parish, ask the school to share a post and share your Parish Facebook Page on their Page and put a link in the school e-newsletter. You can also pay a small amount of money to create a Facebook Ad.
You can incorporate your parish strategy into your Social Media Strategy. Social media platforms are a great way to communicate the goals set by your parish Senior Leadership Team. You can communicate parish goals and challenges with a dynamic post, for example encouraging people to invite their friends and neighbours to Alpha or Christmas Mass.
In order for a parish vision to stick in the minds of parishioners it needs to be recast over and over again. Post informative posts reminding parishioners of your parish vision. Posts can be an effective way to gather feedback by asking for comments or posting a survey form.
If you need any more ideas or want help formulating a plan for your social media posts please contact me at amalone@cdoc.nz
Anna Malone