You’ve made a Facebook business page for your TpT Store – as you should. And now you’re wondering what to post.
You might be thinking that you should be posting links to your TpT products. And you’re right… kinda!
The TpT algorithm does NOT like you posting external links
Research on Facebook posts shows that when you post a link to an external website, like your blog, Teachers Pay Teachers, or even YouTube, it effectively kills your reach.
The worst performing posts on Facebook (meaning they reach the fewest people) are link posts.
Below are two posts I shared on my Facebook page just a few days apart. The one on the left is nothing special, it’s one color, with some words, and a graphic. Took two minutes to make. The one on the right is a link post where I copied and pasted a link to a FREE TpT product. It also took almost no time to post (just copied and pasted a URL)
The link post (on the right) reached 250 people and had 3 link clicks. The image post reached 3,100 people and had 53 engagements (though it had no link clicks because there isn’t a link to click on).
Why Facebook Doesn’t Like Link Posts
If you think about Facebook’s business model, you will easily understand why it doesn’t like link posts.
In my Facebook Organic Reach Starter Pack I have a video on the Facebook Algorithm. It’s a free download here. I explain this concept in greater detail, but here’s a quick summation.
Facebook makes most of it’s money by showing its users Advertisements. The more ads you see, the more money it makes. This means if you and I are on Facebook, clicking on link posts, which take us off the platform, we will stop seeing ads. This is why Facebook doesn’t like link posts.
The Problem
So now that we know that link clicks don’t perform well, we have to address the fundamental problem. The whole reason you have a business page for your TpT store is to get people to your TpT store and make more sales. And if you can’t post a link post, what are you going to do?
Some Solutions
Relax. Hope is not lost. And your Facebook business page is still valuable, and worth spending time on.
Here are some strategies to implement.
First. You can still post link posts. Just not as often as you think. I recommend once every four or five posts to share a link. It doesn’t have to be to your TpT product, it can be to a blog, YouTube video, email optin, etc. In fact, you should be sharing your email opt-in, so make sure that’s part of your strategy as well. Because a large email list will perform better than a large Facebook group.
Here are a few more ideas:
1) Post images of your products with no links.
And tell them they can find it on your TpT store (which is linked to from your bio or using the SHOP button on your FB profile page). You can also put the link in the comments
2) Talk about your products’ benefits. No links. Just make it a post.
For example, I sell Learning Stations Packs. I often post about why my students love learning stations.
This post, below, reached 1,000 people and resulted in 20 people clicking on the link (this link takes them to my website).
3) Make an Image post with a Link in the Description
I have not yet found data that convinces me one way or the other on this topic.. So this information is my speculation.
But there is a difference between a link post and an image post with a link in the description (like the one above).
The big difference between the two is that in an image post, when you click on the image, nothing happens, and in a link post, when you click on the image, it takes you to the link.
I think Facebook treats a link in the description more generously than a straight link post. So if you post an image of your TpT product, or related to your TpT product, and put a link in the description, I am under the impression that it will perform better than a link post.
4) Post an image and put the link in the comment section
You have probably seen a lot of people using this strategy. It will definitely perform better (in terms of reach) than a link post will. Just keep in mind, if you (or anyone) share the post, the comments don’t go with it. So the link in the comment section will be lost in the location that it’s shared.
5) Work on growing your FB page by posting engaging and helpful content
Think about it. If you have 100 followers, and you post a link to your TpT store every day, your page won’t grow and those posts will result in no new TpT store visits. But if you grow that page to 1,000 followers, who are engaging with your other great FB content. Then, when you post a TpT link, it will be seen by more people – thus you’ll get more traffic.
So grow your page. Or your group. Or both.
You do this by posting engaging, helpful, or entertaining content. Things that people comment on, like, share, or interact with in other ways. For more help on this, you can check out my course on Organic Facebook Growth.
6) Grow your Email list
Email marketing is highly profitable. And your reach won’t be diminished by sharing a link (or any future algorithm changes). So work on posting content to your FB page that gets people onto your email list.
If you haven’t started your email marketing journey yet, you can download my email starter kit,
