Best Ways to Grow Your Facebook Group… Fast!
So you maybekindasorta want to start a Facebook group but you think they'll be a lot of work and you just aren't sure if you should try it, because it'll probably fail anyway, right? Seriously, that's what a lot of my clients have said to me when I suggest using a Facebook group to help grow their businesses.
Or maybe, just maybe, you've already tried growing a Facebook group but it just didn't work… no matter how hard you tried. That's okay! Chances are, you just don't know what you don't know, and that's why your group didn't grow.
The bad news is, I almost always recommend starting a new group rather than trying to resurrect an old one. This may be upsetting news to you, because you thought the tips here could help you rebuild your group. And while they may be able to, the good news is... my experience has been that it's easier to grow a brand new group than to try to revive a dead one.
This means you can start from scratch – today – and have 100 members by the end of the week. Maybe even 1,000 by the end of the month. It all depends on you, your niche, and your audience. Let's dig in and figure out how you can set yourself up for successful Facebook growth.
The tips and tricks given in this post have been used to rinse and repeat Facebook group growth for several years. Yes, I've successfully grown multiple Facebook groups through multiple algorithm changes. And these aren't small groups; I've grown them to thousands of members, including one group to 50K+ (in 6 months) and another to 160K+ (in a year). I've helped friends grow their groups to 20K and even 50K members.
The groups I've grown have ranged in topics – all with very high competition – including:
- food
- fitness/weight loss
- making money online
- local groups
- and more!
While each group has its own idiosyncrasies, there are many actions I took that worked across the board. These are the tips I'm sharing with you today. With all this being said, some groups take longer than others to grow. Consistency is the key to making it work.
Why should you have a Facebook group?
I don't really do social media – and if I do, most of it is hired out. Facebook groups are different than other social media for me because I enjoy them. If you don't enjoy Facebook groups, don't start one – that would be misery!
I use Facebook groups for several reasons, including:
- to grow my blog (and then I use my blog to grow my group)
- to increase my authority
- to interact with my readers on a 1:1 basis – blogging doesn't provide that
- to provide feedback and answer questions (which gives me more content for my blog)
What it takes to run a successful Facebook group
It takes a lot of hard work to grow a group from 0 to 10,000 members and beyond. If you are just in it for the potential money, or if you're going to half-ass it, don't start a Facebook group. You have to be ready, willing, and able to support people along their journeys. When they join your group, they are expecting some type of interaction – with you and with others.
While we can't always be the one interacting, it's important to be active in the group on a consistent basis so you maintain control and order – and are able to keep up with what your audience needs help with. That's what the group is for, after all.
It also takes a little “luck.” Consistency pays off. It's the magic that creates booming growth – it's the “luck” I'm talking about. Sometimes the Facebook algorithm will put you in front of more people without any seeming rhyme or reason, but most of the time it's because you're interacting and feeding the Facebook monster what it wants (people to stay on the platform).
What is the time investment for a Facebook group?
I'm going to be real with you, because I hate that high-authority websites in this niche are saying you can “effortlessly” grow a Facebook group. That simply is not true!!
There is no set amount of time it takes to run a Facebook group, but if you don't have at least 30 minutes each day to dedicate to interacting with your group members, I would not suggest starting a group. Your group grows as your members become more and more interactive, which means you have to put in the work to make them want to interact.
The more you keep people on the platform, the happier Facebook is, and the faster your group can grow. Many times, people tell me they found my group from a “Facebook ad” – but I don't run ads for my Facebook group. What they're referring to is the “recommended groups” carousel that Facebook offers up when you're in other groups.
I'm not sure if anyone knows how to crack the exact code of getting Facebook to recommend you, but it seems they are a lot like YouTube and other platforms in the way that they “reward” you if you are active and get others to be active as well. The reward in this case is being advertised (for free!) to new potential group members who have already shown interest in your topic.
Additionally, I'd recommend spending time once or twice a month to schedule out your daily posts. I start with 1 or 2 daily, and as the group grows I go up to 3, 4, or even 5. I don't have a set number I post in PIPs because I love that group so much, I'd keep using it even if it didn't make me money lol.
Oh, and don't let me gloss over the amount of work it takes to vet and approve members (to keep spammers out), deal with moderator notifications, etc. I have an assistant who now helps me with my group. She approves members and collects email addresses for me. I spend my time interacting, posting content, and keeping up with moderation alerts.
I also have moderation alerts set up for about 50 keywords – my niche tends to have a LOT of spammers, so I'm extra diligent.
How do I grow my Facebook group fast?
Here are my best tips for sustainable Facebook group growth.
Choose the right name.
Your group's name should be easily searched on Facebook. Think of this as mini search engine optimization (SEO). What would people type in to the search bar on Facebook to be able to find your group?
The name I chose for my group is Passive Income Pathways. I didn't originally plan for it to be so perfectly SEO'd but it works well. I figured, if people are searching for “passive income” on Facebook, maybe they'll find me! 🙂 And guess what? They do.
Teach something.
More specifically, teach something that will help people make money. If your topic can't – in any way – make people money, the next best thing is to save them time and/or money.
Stay on topic.
If people join a group to learn about becoming a seamstress and you start posting about how you love to dye your hair and you may go to beauty school, you may lose a lot of interaction – which can completely kill your group. Instead, stay on topic… stay in your lane. Start a different group if you have various passions, but don't muddle this one with your shiny object syndrome.
Be ahead of the curve.
From the moment you set up your Facebook group, pretend it has 10,000 people in it. This means posting consistently at least one time every single day. I recommend posting twice: once in the morning with a motivational/good morning message or a question to get people thinking, and a second post in the afternoon to increase interaction – such as a meme.
Schedule everything.
Instead of being on Facebook 24/7, schedule everything you can. Be sure to schedule it all natively in Facebook, not via third-party apps.
…Except interaction.
There's no real way to schedule or automate interacting with your Facebook group members, but you don't want it to take over your life. Trust me, as groups grow, the comments and questions get out of control rather quickly if you don't stay ahead of it.
I use my phone to interact a few times a day, and then I also schedule in time to interact via Desktop. This is usually when I'm scheduling posts out for the week or month. I usually do them in batches.
I can use my phone when standing in line at the store, or riding in the car, or waiting for the doctor to see me. These are all times I would mindlessly scroll anyway, so I use them wisely instead.
If you're growing your group without help, you'll need to be the one reacting and responding to every post and comment. If you have a partner or friend who can help you out – maybe they're interested in the topic and just want to pitch in – you can tag team as the group's demands grow. And yes, they will grow. That's just the nature of the beast, which is why I say you should make sure this is the path you want to take… because there's no half-assing it.
Can I use other groups to grow my Facebook group?
Yes and no. You can use other groups to grow your brand, but most people don't do it the right way.
If you are planning to use other groups to grow your own, there's only one way I find acceptable – and that's through authentic (not spammy/salesy) networking. It's a long game, not something that's going to help you make $10K this weekend, but the other way (reaching out via DM, spamming groups, etc) is just not okay. And, if you try that shit in my group, you'll get banned. 😉
What does this look like? Joining groups in your niche and immersing yourself as a group member – not as someone who is promoting their own group.
You will notice people naturally are gravitating towards you if you're being helpful and contributing – not as a know-it-all but as someone who is going through the same journey they are.
Optimize your personal Facebook profile so people can connect with you if they find you from other groups. This doesn't mean slapping your “BUY NOW” header up on your page – no no no, not at all. In fact, when I notice people being overly helpful in my group and I go to their profile and see they're super salesy, I have my eye on them (and my finger on the ban button). Optimizing your Facebook profile means you are posting a few things publicly about your business/offer but not like every other post.
On my personal profile, you can see my websites linked. That means if I'm helpful in other groups and people come to my profile to snoop – which they do frequently – they will come to my website and find a way to connect with me. Again, this is a long game… I'm not talking about going into groups with the sole purpose of growing your own.
I'm talking about being a genuine group member in related groups. Then, helping the admins/owner of the groups by reporting spammy content to them, interacting with members and pointing them to the group owner's resources, etc. Truly, genuinely helping people out without asking for or expecting anything in return is how I've grown my groups so quickly.
Eventually, you may even be able to reach out and suggest a collaboration with the group owner. If someone reached out to me to collaborate on my fitness/weight loss group, I'd be totally down! Same with my PIPs group. I love working with others in my niches! Unfortunately, many people who I could collaborate don't see the path the same way – and they just start spamming instead. That may get them far in other groups, but I have very tight moderation alerts for multiple keywords, phrases, etc and I have several helpful group members who help me watch for spam.
Is this the long way? Yes. Is it the best way? Also yes. Of course, these are just my experiences. I'm sure others will completely disagree with that, and that's okay – but this is what has worked well for me for years and years.
One more way to grow your group, which I mentioned briefly above, is by having Facebook recommend your group to others. On the left hand side of your group, you'll see an option that says “GROW GROUP.” When you click on that and toggle it to “ON,” Facebook will show your group to others. Make sure your group is set up and running well, or this won't do you any good.
Do's and Don'ts of Facebook groups
Everything above is a “do” and everything below is a “don't.” Avoid the growth-stunting mistakes most people make when starting Facebook groups.
Don't think of your Facebook group as a money grab, think of it as a way to serve your audience and connect with them in a way your blog does not allow you to.
Don't use third-party scheduler apps. This can kill your reach. Even if it isn't currently killing your reach, any slight algorithm update could jack it all up. Plus, it's easier to schedule natively on Facebook, and you won't have to worry about the same possible glitches that other platforms may cause.
Don't be too obscure or weird. While weird can work when done right, being too obscure or strange about things can also stunt the growth of your group. This means not being tooooo niched down. “Gardening for Beginners” is fine. “Gardening for Single Moms in Gardening Zone 5” is too niche.
I mean heck, there may be lots of single moms in gardening zone 5, but is the difference between gardening as a married mom and gardening as a single mom enough to differentiate? Not really.
Of course we want to attract the right people to our Facebook group, it's not just a catch all for everyone… but if you get too specific, you'll cut your lead pool off and won't see growth.
How to start a Facebook group
If you haven't started your group yet, you can do it right now by going to Facebook, logging in, and creating your own group. I am not going to include screenshots or specific directions because they seem to change at least twice a year and y'all know how bad I am about updating posts regularly. 😉
Decide on the topic, choose a name that is searchable, and begin scheduling posts out right away. Invite friends who may be interested, add the links to your blog posts and outgoing emails as well as any signatures you have in forums.
Tag your group on your personal Facebook profile once or twice a week, depending on how often you post. Make sure the post is public and shares a story, transformation, or something else awesome that will get strangers to want to join.
Join my Facebook group to see how I do things (join here). Take notes! You will find things you do and don't want to do in your group; that's what shadowing other successful groups is about. 🙂 You may find that going live in your group like I do is not something you're comfortable with yet; or you might find that posting 3 times a day isn't enough because you want way more interaction (quality over quantity – but you can have both).
Join other Facebook groups. Two of my VIP coaching clients have groups: one is about learning how to create on Canva and sell your digital designs. The other is about making printables and selling them on TeachersPayTeachers and Etsy.
Do Facebook Groups Make Money?
Facebook groups can make a lot of money, but don't bet the farm on it. Diversify your income and don't rely on your group too much or you could be in for a world of hurt if you get in Facebook jail, or get banned, or your group disappears for some reason. It's rare, but it happens.
Is a Facebook group worth it? Well, Facebook groups have always been worth it for me. If I put the work in, they grow. If I slack or am boring, they don't. It's a very simple concept and a process that can be used over and over again if you are ready to put the work in.
If you are on the fence or unsure, it's okay to wait – or to not create a group at all. A Facebook group is just one way to help grow your blog, email list, and income. It's a powerful way and one I definitely recommend trying!!! But still only one way nonetheless. 🙂
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