Of course, there is a small fee for each update you want to promote. For OurChurch.Com and LiveIntentionally, the cost is $5 to promote an update to “likers” and $15-$20 to promote an update to “likers” and their friends.

Last week tech billionaire and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban rocked the social media world when he blasted Facebook for charging organizations thousands of dollars to make status updates visible to people who already “like” their Facebook Page, saying his companies would be “reducing any and all emphasis on Facebook.”

At its inception, Facebook users were able to view in their newsfeed ALL the updates from their friends and the Facebook Pages they “liked.” But more and more Facebook has been filtering the newsfeed causing users to see fewer and fewer status updates from their friends and organizations.

Inside the Numbers

Facebook does not show individuals how many people have seen their status updates, but it does provide that info to organizations that have a Facebook page. I’m an admin for 3 Facebook pages: OurChurch.Com, Cypress Meadows Community Church (my church), and Live Intentionally (my blog/ministry). Here what the numbers reveal…

• 2,079 people “like” the OurChurch.Com Facebook page. The updates posted this month have each been seen between 460 and 1264. That means between 22% and 61% of “likers” are seeing our updates.
• 290 people “like” the Cypress Meadows Facebook page. Between 30 and 105 people have seen the updates posted this month. That’s only 10% to 36%.
• 1700 people “like” the Live Intentionally Facebook page. Between 112 and 304 have seen the updates posted there this month. That’s a mere 7% to 18%.

Promote Feature

Oh, but do not despair, my friends. While only a small percentage of people who like your Facebook page may see your updates naturally, Facebook has introduced the “Promote” feature to address that problem. Using the Promote feature, you can ensure an update will be displayed in the newsfeed of everyone who likes your page or even everyone who likes your page and their friends.

Read More