Posts on a WordPress blog can be shared on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter etc. You can do the reverse too and share Facebook page posts in a WordPress blog post which will include the Facebook comments, likes and shares. The Facebook page timeline has to be public.

So you first post something on your blog. Then you share it on Facebook. Then you again share the Facebook post back to your blog! Why would someone do this kind of cross posting?! The answer is, to promote your Facebook page with your blog readers and vice-a-versa. Even if you are not promoting a page (because it is not YOUR page), Facebook posts from others’ pages can still be useful to your blog readers or relevant to what you already write about.

Now, why Facebook? A Facebook user is most likely just browsing, not actively looking for solutions to any technical issue. But they sure love to share and read interesting stuff. So by posting to a Facebook page, there is a higher chance of someone liking or sharing it with their friends and as a result catch the attention of another casual browser. Oh yes, there are social-sharing buttons on a WordPress post too. But those buttons will be used by a reader who is already on your blog. Also, in some situations the sharing buttons may not even work due to restrictions like work network, device issues etc. The point here is to engage a casual reader on Facebook who is not actively looking for content on a search engine or a forum.

On the other hand, most of blog readers are looking actively for a solution to an issue. There is a high chance that they have been directed to the blog via a search engine result or a technical forum thread about a specific issue. (Check your stats, duh!) Very few are here for general reading. As a blogger, I would like to capture the interest of this “accidental” reader and hope that they return. One way for me to stay connected with them is to have them subscribed to or follow my blog through (at least one or preferably) various channels like email, RSS, WordPress, Twitter, Facebook etc. Some people may be reluctant to share their email address but may be willing to Like the Facebook page. Sending a new reader to your Facebook page and getting them to Like your Facebook page is equivalent to getting a new subscriber. Of course the restrictions mentioned above will come into play here too but the opportunity can still be used to make the reader aware of a Facebook page. With its huge active user count, Facebook is a good medium for outreach and engagement. Major websites report that bulk of their views are driven by social media sites. Consider the Facebook cross-post as a banner ad for yourself!

To promote your blog, you can either use your personal Facebook profile page or create a new page for the blog. I would suggest the latter so that you don’t spam your non-tech friends with technical rants.

I plan to experiment with various blog promotion strategies, especially in the technical niche, and write in more detail about them. I have started a Facebook page for this blog and will share my adventures periodically. If you are interested in following my learning path, you can subscribe to this blog or like my Facebook page. (Notice what I did right there?!)

For now, here is an embedded Facebook post –