Companies that master the art of Facebook posting can expect to reap the rewards of better engagement and impact. Successful companies should be looking to optimize each post for maximum effect. Here are a few ways your business can improve the quality of posts to increase customer engagement.

Properly Sized Images

It’s no secret that posts with images perform better than posts with just plain text. However, by ensuring your pictures are of adequate size, you can maximize effect and ensure images are not distorted or cut when posted. A shareable image should have dimensions of 1200x628 pixels at least. Having photos at a resolution of 1200x1200 will ensure that it isn’t cut or distorted. Keep this in mind whenever you are posting photos.

Link Sharing

There are two ways to share a link on Facebook. The first is by uploading a picture and including a link in its caption. The second is a direct post of the link, which comes with a description and an image sourced from the link. Facebook has found that users generally prefer clicking on direct link posts, as they are provided with more information. A direct post seems to be the way to go when it comes to posting links.

Facebook Targeting Options

Facebook’s Target Interests option allows you to direct your updates to a specific audience. You can select interests that best match your target audience every time you post. This can be a great tool that can help you reach customers who would be most interested in your business.

Facebook also has a Post End Date option. This option allows users to preset the post’s lifespan in the newsfeed. After the date has expired, the post will not be seen in anyone’s news feed. This is a great tool to use for time-specific posts such as event promotion.

Calls-To Action

Posts should include a call to action as often as possible. This call to action should be specific and non-intrusive. It may be a question or a request, and it should flow naturally within the post. Call to actions shouldn’t be used to directly drive sales, but rather increase customer interaction. A recent Facebook update has reduced the amount of overly promotional posts appearing in the news feed. When you make a post, you should be focusing on comments rather than sales.

Post at the Right Time

When posting on Facebook, keep in mind when your audience is most likely to see the post. Tools such as Facebook Insights allow you to check when your fans are most active so you can schedule your posts around that time. Posts should go live 30 minutes before your fans are active, so it can be live as soon as they log on.

Keep these tips in mind, and you can start expecting better results from your posts. Facebook posting is a strategic and measured discipline. Mastery of it will bring great results.