Guest post courtesy of Christine Shivecharan

As you may have seen in a previous post, Facebook has been incredibly busy with the release of the Post Scheduler and recent Admin Changes. Now Facebook is creating some new buzz with it's Sponsored Posts. While this can be good news to some Business Page owners, it is creating some frustration with others, here's the scoop:

Facebook gives us the ability to engage our fans and promote our business in ways that only social media could allow. But as we all know there is a lot of competition out there and it can be tough to stand out. Facebook has introduced Sponsored Posts to Business pages as a marketing tool for page owners.

What Are Sponsored Posts?

A Sponsored Post is a form of paid advertising that can allow a post to be seen by more people. We've all seen the ads in the side bar and while most people rarely click on them, I myself try to ignore them. Sponsored Posts go right into your fans newsfeed just like a normal post. The more people that comment and "Like" the post, the bigger the reach will be. 

Sponsored Posts Trump Regular Posts

But what does this do to your posts that you do not "Sponsor"? Here's some things I learned while researching the new Sponsored Posts: Only a small 10-20% of your followers will see a "regular post" while sponsored posts will have a much higher 60-90% of followers seeing your post (depending on how long they pay to Sponsor the post, up to 3 days max).

Facebook said this when asked about a regular post vs a Sponsored post being seen, "If you don’t promote your post, many of the people connected to your Page may still see it. However, by promoting a post, you’re increasing its potential reach so an even larger percentage of your Page audience and the friends of those interacting with your post will see it."

Only Pages That Have More Than 400 Followers Can Sponsor a Post

What does this mean for pages that do not have that many followers? It means that they have to work that much harder for their post to be seen! According to Facebook they recommend gaining friends by doing the following: "Invite Friends, Email customers, customize your page address, Use Facebook ads."

Most of us already have done most of these tricks to grow our reach on Facebook. What more can be done and how can my "regular posts" be seen, you ask? In my next post I will introduce some ways to help you extend your reach on Facebook and come out on "top" to be seen by your fans without being Sponsoring a post.

Is The Newsfeed Fair Game for Paid Advertising?

What's your take? Is Facebook just looking for more reasons to gouge small businesses or is this a great opportunity to get creative with your marketing and give yourself an edge? Share your perspective in the comments below...