Back in 2019, we made the difficult decision to close our Facebook Group as part of our content strategy.
At face value, it was a ridiculous decision. Facebook groups were on the rise for small business owners as a reliable source of new leads. But after some consideration, we ultimately decided shutting it down was best for our business.
If you’re reading this post, we’re willing to bet you’re also wondering whether Facebook Groups are worth the time and energy they take.
Well, rest assured that leaving Facebook Groups did not destroy our business. Years later, we still hold fast to our decision. In fact, we’d argue that closing our Facebook group helped our overall content strategy and, by extension, our business.
So let’s take a look at our reasons for closing the group and shifting our content strategy.
But before we dive in, one HUGE caveat: What’s right for our business is NOT necessarily right for yours.
In truth, this post isn’t about Facebook Groups at all. Not really.
Facebook Groups continue to be wildly successful for lots of different businesses. It can be a great space for both attracting and nurturing your audience with community, support, and exclusive content.
If that’s the case for you, we’re 100% behind you!
It just wasn’t the case for us.
This post is about helping you figure out when to call it quits, whether it’s with Facebook Groups, blogging, or that 7am networking group.
Sometimes, quitting is necessary. To help you understand why, and figure out if it’s time for you to quit, let’s look at our decision to close our Facebook Group. Here are the top reasons we pulled the plug:
Reason #1: Audience always comes first
We talk a lot about how businesses evolve over time, and ours is no exception. Since our earliest days writing resumes and cover letters, we’ve grown and changed quite a bit, while still staying true to our roots.
Back in 2015, our Facebook Group was our primary means of connecting with new entrepreneurs looking to create their very first website.
At that time, our Facebook Group was the perfect place to forge relationships, provide copywriting tips and tricks, and host challenges that gave business owners tools to DIY their content. For the better part of two years most of our clients came from our Facebook Group or other groups we participated in.
Butover the years, we realized that we serve our clients best when we provide results-oriented content strategy. This means we spend a lot of time with our clients upfront—getting to know their business, pinpointing their unique gaps and opportunities, and creating data-driven plans to help them reach their goals.
Our audience shifted, and it wasn’t filled with new business owners—it was filled with busy business owners.
Quite honestly, Facebook isn’t where our current audience members spend most of their time. Instead, we meet them at conferences, in group programs, and through referrals. They find us through blog posts, word of mouth, or a trusted friend.
Our current audience is too busy, too tired, and too overwhelmed by running their businesses to spend a ton of time on Facebook. It made sense to adjust our content strategy and shut down our Facebook Group.
We talk a lot about building a bridge between your brand and your audience. Part of that process is choosing to show up in the right rooms. Our bridge needs to connect us to the people we’re targeting.
Ask Yourself:
- Does my Facebook Group (or other community) actively cultivate relationships?
- When did I last make a sale either directly through my community group or through a lead that originated there? Was it with the right kind of person, for the right kind of services?
- How frequently do I make these kinds of sales through my Facebook Group or similar community?
Reason #2: Social (media) energy is finite
There’s no doubt that social media platforms can be hugely beneficial to business owners. But they also take time and energy. We firmly believe in showing up for our community as much as possible—and we simply haven’t been able to maintain the level of presence we wanted to in our Facebook Group.
As we allowed our own presence to slip, we saw engagement slip. The group itself became less of a community and more of a billboard. That’s not the environment we want to create, but it’s also not the space we have the energy to curate, and so we decided it was best to close our Facebook Group down.
Instead, we’ve spent the last few years focusing our attention on the channels that {for now} make the most sense for us—namely, our blog and email list {join when you take the Copywriting Character Quiz}.
We’re introverted business owners and even social media energy is social energy, so when it comes to showing up, we want to put our best foot forward. This means being intentional about where we spend our time.
Ask Yourself:
- Does creating content for my Facebook Group or similar community fire me up or burn me out?
- Do I get excited about checking group activity? Or do I feel constantly behind, struggling to catch up?
- Am I invigorated by the idea of hosting events in this space, or do I dread the next one?
- What words would I use to associate with the time I spend in my Facebook Group or similar community?
Reason #3: The ROI wasn’t there
At the end of the day, you’re running a business. Your time, energy, and money are dedicated toward hitting certain goals, and that means that your decisions and actions need to have ROI.
A combination of Reasons #1 and #2 meant that our Facebook Group wasn’t serving our business. The ROI dipped and we had a choice: Revive the group with a new focus, or shift our focus. After some audience research and introspection, we decided that shifting our focus made the most sense, and so we closed our Facebook Group.
Ask Yourself:
- How much time do I spend in my community each day? Each week? Each month?
- How many dollars in revenue can be directly attributed to the space?
- How often has my Facebook Group or similar community directly helped me hit my business goals?
- Does the amount of revenue brought in offset the time and energy costs?
How to transition where you share your message
Alright, now that we’ve gone over why we closed our Facebook Group, we want to help you with the how in case you need to do the same. Odds are, at some point in your business, you may have to transition from one platform to another, or from one medium (like blogs) to another (like podcasts).
So, how do you transition where your message is shared without losing everyone?
This is the process we followed three years ago when we closed our Facebook Group. It’s also the process we followed when we transitioned away from our podcast, took a hiatus from Instagram, and made other strategic decisions about our content strategy that needed broadcasting.
1. Take it slow
We took months to fully transition out of our Facebook Group. We conducted audience research to make sure we built up our presence in a place that would reach the right people, we took stock of our energy levels, and we looked at our business goals.
Then, we started building up our presence elsewhere while slowly shifting away from our Facebook Group. If you’re making a shift, we recommend doing the same. Test the waters elsewhere before diving in and committing!
2. Remain transparent
Your audience is here to learn and grow with you. Often we feel the urge to hide the shifts in our messaging or offers until everything is “perfect”, but that actually might do more harm than good. First, nothing is ever perfect. Second, your audience is more likely to follow you if you share your journey and your reasoning behind it. This blog post is an example of that!
3. Let your audience know how to remain connected with you
This is particularly true if you’re changing platforms. Your people may not be accustomed to following you in your new home. Just like with a real life physical move, you want to give your audience your new address. Make sure they know where to find you.
Refine Your Content Strategy With the Help of an Expert
If you’re considering shifting platforms, it may also be a good time to re-examine your overall content strategy. Through our personalized content strategy support services, we can help you dig into the details of your current strategy, figure out what’s working and what’s not, and provide you with actionable recommendations for how to move forward.