Like most small business owners, I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook. We might all moan about whatever new development they implement next, but it is still, by far, the social media channel that brings the most traffic to my blog, and the one where the most reader engagement happens. Although the reach of your page may be decreasing due to whatever it is Facebook is up to at the moment, it is still a vital tool for any small business owner.

Here are 20 easy ways to keep your page active. The key with Facebook, or any social media outlet really, is to post things that your fans will want to engage with. Don’t just use it as a place to spam your latest business updates or blog links. Using a mixture of these ideas will help to naturally engage your fans, and over time, up your overall reach.

1. Update it regularly (at least daily)

2. Post funny, shareable memes

3. Ask questions

4. Run a contest

5. Share sneak peeks

6. Post funny, real life, stories that your audience will relate to

7. Post inspiring quotes

9. Engage with other people’s pages

10. Start conversations

11. Vary the lengths of your updates

12. Share trivia

13. Re-post old blog content

14. Run opinion polls

15. Share news stories

16. Give your fans special offers/discounts

17. Post infographics

18. Include videos

19. Remember who your audience are

20. Use Facebook Insights to post when your fans are online

Your Facebook business page can provide you with so many amazing opportunities if you know how to manage it properly. Cultivating a community is not just about sharing links to things that help you, it’s about posting things that will engage them. Creating a lively online community is a lot of hard work, but without one, building your business will be a whole lot harder.