Your first 100 followers without ads: what works on a new page

The first hundred followers are the hardest and the most important. The hardest, because a new page has nothing to show: Facebook doesn’t display a rating until there are five recommendations, the posts have no reactions, and visitors see that. The most important, because these people — friends and first customers — give your posts their first reactions, which the feed then looks at. You don’t need ads here. You need to do things in the right order.

1 / 4Before you invite anyone

1. 01
   A complete profile

   A photo, a cover, two sentences about what you do and where, opening hours, a phone number and the Message button. An invited person looks at this first and decides afterwards.

2. 02
   Three posts in advance

   Nobody stays on an empty page. Before inviting, publish at least three posts: who you are, what you do, and one real result.

3. 03
   Turn on messages and recommendations

   Both are switched on in the page settings. Messages off means an interested person can’t write to you; recommendations off means a happy customer can’t leave a rating.

2 / 4Inviting with Facebook’s own button

1. 04
   Invite friends

   According to Facebook’s help, on a computer under the page cover, in Options, there is “Invite friends”: pick people and send. The invitation goes from your personal profile, so Facebook may ask you to switch to it.

2. 05
   People who liked a post

   On many pages, in the list of reactions to a post, an “Invite” button appears next to people who don’t follow the page yet. This is the warmest audience: they already liked your post.

3. 06
   There is a limit

   Facebook temporarily blocks sending too many invitations in a day. It doesn’t publish the exact number, so don’t trust figures from the internet: if the button stops working, wait a day or two.

4. 07
   Don’t invite everyone

   Invite people who may genuinely need what you do, or who want to root for you. A follower who never reacts grows the number, not the page.

3 / 4Outside Facebook

1. 08
   The link everywhere

   In your Instagram bio, in your WhatsApp and Telegram status, in your email signature, on your business card. At the counter — a sheet with a QR code of the page link; any free generator makes one.

2. 09
   Ask in person

   The moment of payment is the best time: “we post on Facebook when something new comes in — follow us.” One sentence, to every customer.

3. 10
   Share from your personal profile

   Share the page’s first post from your own profile too, and say why you opened the page. Friends find it easier to like a person than a logo.

4 / 4So that they stay

1. 11
   The first month’s rhythm

   Three or four posts a week and one story every day. An invited person should see in the very first week that the page is alive.

2. 12
   Reply to everyone

   Every comment and every message — the same day. On a new page every conversation is visible.

3. 13
   Five recommendations

   Facebook shows a page rating only once there are at least five recommendations. Ask your first five happy customers — after that the page looks completely different.

✓The bottom line

Your first hundred followers are your friends and first customers: they need an invitation, not an ad. Ads make sense once a stranger already finds live posts, replies and a rating on the page.

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