How to use Facebook Analytics for Your Site

August 1, 2023 | Social Media

Facebook Analytics for Your Site

If you’re like the majority of business owners, it’s probably safe to say that you’re using social media marketing in at least some capacity. And well you should be! It’s an incredibly powerful way to interact with customers, reach new audiences, and convert more leads.

But what many site owners fail to do, is to accurately measure the performance of their social marketing efforts. It’s not just the number of likes that counts! luckily, Facebook has a completely free and comprehensive analytics suite that they’ve dubbed “Facebook Insights.”

Facebook Analytics for Your Site

Given Facebook’s recently reinvigorated focus on providing relevant content from existing connections, it’s harder than ever before for brands to get that precious exposure to their audiences. Remember, at the end of the day, Facebook functions on an algorithm. If you’re familiar with SEO strategy, you know that a lot of tactics and methods are aimed at catering specifically to Google’s algorithm.

When you engage in social marketing, you want to take the same approach. Working with the platform and fine-tuning your strategy accordingly will have a significant impact on your results. This is precisely why Facebook Insights is such a useful tool for site owners. The better you understand what kind of content gets the most exposure and the most engagement, the better you can optimize your campaigns.

So what’s holding you back? Let’s dive in and learn how to use this powerful analytics tool to measure how your audience engages with your brand on Facebook.

The Basics

How to Access Facebook Insights

First things first, head over to your brand’s Facebook page. In the top navigation menu, click “Insights”.

Facebook Analytics Overview

At the top of the page, you’ll see a grid of data points and the time-frame. If you want to look at a 28-day overview, simply click the drop-down at the top left.

Facebook Analytics for Your Site

The following are the main sections of the Insights page.

Page Summary: This section of the page will give you a broad overview of the most important data points to consider. I’d encourage you to focus on page views, reach, engagement, likes, and followers.

Recent Promotions: If you recently ran paid campaigns to promote posts or content, you’ll see an overview of the results here. If you haven’t yet run any paid Facebook campaigns, that may be something you’ll want to consider in the future.

Your 5 Most Recent Posts: This section is pretty self-explanatory, but the data can be compelling. This is a great way to get an at-a-glance view of what type of content is resonating with your audience at large.

Pages to Watch: Here you’ll find a few pages that Facebook thinks are your likely competitors. You can get a quick idea of how you stack up by taking a look here.

Know What Insights Matter To You

The truth about the Facebook Insights tool is that much of the data will not be particularly useful for small business owners.

In order to effectively leverage this tool, you’ll need to know where it makes sense to take a closer look. Similarly, you’ll want to know what’s safe to ignore.

For most small businesses (there will be exceptions), paying attention to reach, engagement, and clicks should suffice. Clicks, after all, will be your main goal for most online marketing channels. And for good reason of course.

Engagement and reach are the second most important since they can serve as a pretty good barometer of how targeted your audience is, and how well your content is being received.

How to Understand Facebook Analytics Data

This section is a bit subjective and will depend on your unique circumstances a fair deal.

But there are some conclusions that you should be able to draw fairly quickly.

Facebook Analytics for Your Site

If you notice that your reach is large, but engagement is very low, you probably aren’t being specific enough with your targeting. Try getting more granular with demographics or psychographics to reach fewer people that have a greater likelihood of interest.

Of course, low engagement could also just mean that your content is boring, outdated, or lacks relevance. There are countless guides written on how to create enjoyable and “shareable” content so it would be a little redundant to cover that here.

But if you’re curious, here’s one of my favorites. It will help you ensure that when you create content, it’s worth everyone’s time to check it out.

If both reach and engagement are low, it means that you probably aren’t sharing worthwhile or relevant things to your audience. Take a second look at who exactly you’re targeting, and how you can better serve their needs with your Facebook content.

Another thing to look for is how many users click through to your website.

If you’re getting good engagement, but not many clicks, it may mean that you need to revisit your CTA’s or share shorter previews of your content.

Focus on attracting clicks, from the right people, at the right time!

This is where Facebook analytics suite can truly help you scale your social marketing success. Understanding where your efforts are most impactful, allows you to double-down on tactics that actually work.

Tips for Success with Facebook Insights

The following tips are sure to help out. So keep these in mind when you start your own journey down the rabbit hole.

Watch for patterns. Some of the best insights you can garner are going to arise from your ability to recognize patterns. Sometimes Facebook Insights can lay out conclusions for you. But other times, you’ll need to recognize the patterns yourself.

Export your data every few months

Facebook Analytics for Your Site

While the built-in tools are used for data visualization, it’s frustrating that the Page Summary metrics can only be viewed for 28-day windows or less. 

For many small businesses, the sample size of data obtained from a 28-day lookback may be quite limiting. So be sure to export your data to get an idea of larger trends.

Check Facebook Insights regularly

Since Facebook analytics data is updated in real-time, it makes sense to check in pretty often. Don’t forget to keep your finger on the pulse of your social marketing campaigns.

Follow these tips to improve your Facebook presence, and leverage the powerful Insights analytics platform to measure and improve campaigns. You’ll be well on your way to victory!

Conclusion

Like any marketing channel, it’s imperative that you be able to measure your progress. Peter Drucker is quoted saying “if you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.”

Now, I’m not usually one for quotes or blanket statements. I see the world in grayscale rather than black and white.

That being said, there’s some serious truth to Drucker’s words when it comes to marketing campaigns. If you can’t compare where you are to where you’ve been, how on earth would you know if you’ve made any progress at all?

Facebook marketing (and social marketing in general) is no exception to this rule.
If you want to be successful, you’re going to need to have your analytics dialed in. Luckily, Facebook has you covered with their own analytics suite.

You won’t necessarily need to employ any third party tools in order to keep your finger on the pulse of your social campaigns. Just follow the above tips and strategies, and leverage Facebook Insights to its fullest potential.

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3 Comments

  1. Facebook analytics has helped me gain greater knowledge about the audience’s interaction with content. The step by step guide and insightful tips provided here have helped me harness the power of data like never before. Now, I can make informed decisions to boost my site’s performance and engagement.

  2. I’ve always been a bit overwhelmed by Facebook Analytics, but this step by step guide really clarified the whole process. Thanks to the insights I gained, I’ve been able to tailor my content and marketing strategies more effectively, leading to a significant increase in website traffic and engagement.

  3. I’ve been struggling to make sense of my website’s performance, but your guide on using Facebook Analytics has been a game-changer. I’ve gained valuable insights into my audience, traffic sources, and content engagement. It’s made optimizing my site a easy job. Keep up the great work!

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