Social Media
Social media can be an important engagement tool and a significant traffic source.
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Collectively, we have over several million Facebook followers, who contribute significantly to our traffic. Most Patch Facebook pages are set to auto-post unless requested otherwise.
What does that mean?
Everything you publish to the site will hit Facebook within 15-30 mins.
The dek of the article will post as the social caption
Top pins will go to social; Breaking News Alerts will not.
Though AutoPost is convenient, having a manual or hands-on approach to Facebook can be beneficial in several ways. When you manually curate a Facebook page, you have more control, allowing you to drive up engagement and draw in new followers, which will increase referral traffic.
More engagement = more people see your posts = more traffic
The Social Media Tools We Use
Patch uses two posting platforms to get content on Facebook and X.
SocialFlow: a third-party posting platform that gives editors access to Facebook pages, and enables editors to post to more than one Facebook page at once. Editors can send stories immediately or schedule posts, as well.
Business Manager: Facebook's page administration option, allows scheduling and posting immediately, but to a single Facebook page at a time.
How to Use SocialFlow
How do I log into SocialFlow?
Go to socialflow.com. Your email is your Patch email. Every user has their own individual password. An invite to Social Flow was sent to your Patch email as part of onboarding.
I don’t have an account.
If you need an account, reach out to Kara Seymour.
What if I forgot my password?
Try the forgot password page. If that doesn’t work, reach out to Kara Seymour.
Autopost
What is autopost?
Most Patch Facebook Pages are set to automatically post content published to the site through RSS feeds. (Editors may request to manually curate their Facebook Page(s) and turn off autopost upon request.)
How quickly will my story autopost to Facebook after I publish it?
Once you publish a story to the site, it will hit the respective Patch Facebook within 30 minutes.
If I pin a story, will it automatically hit my Patch social pages?
If you pin as Top News, it will hit the respective social pages. BNAs will not.
The left column shows the autopost or scheduled queue. These posts
have not yet been published. The right column shows published posts.
Posting on SocialFlow
How do I send a manual post or blast on SocialFlow?
Click on the pencil icon in the upper right corner
Select the accounts you want to post to:
To send to a regional or statewide group
Choose a group from the list by clicking the down arrow next to ‘Publish to group’ and selecting a group.
To send to one page or to select multiple pages
Select the accounts by scrolling on the list to the left. (Use Command+F to find a specific page)
Write a captivating social caption
Copy & paste the link. (Remember, you can delete the URL once you see the link preview appear. It looks a little prettier that way.)
Select “publish” to post immediately or “schedule” to schedule the post for later.
Choosing how to post
Publish → Publishes immediately
Schedule → Select a specific date and time to post
Optimize → (not recommended)
SocialFlow will send at the “optimal time” based on its algorithm.
Can I edit the headline or dek on SocialFlow?
Yes! You can edit the headline or dek without changing it on the CMS. With social, you don’t need to be as SEO-friendly, so feel free to tweak your headline. Simply click into the headline or dek field to edit.
SocialFlow Features
How do I tag other pages?
You can tag in a social headline by typing the @ symbol and the page’s direct URL. A dropdown will appear and then select the correct page.
For instance, Patch’s URL is facebook.com/patch so the tag would be @patch
What is the call-to-action button and should I use it?
You can add a call to action button to your post, when appropriate. (see screenshot)
Options include:
Open Link
Sign Up → good for promoting the email newsletter!
Learn More
Error Emails
What happens if I get an error email that a post failed to publish?
This happens sometimes. Don’t worry! If one item doesn’t post, it won’t be the end of the world.
If you want to repost it:
Log into SocialFlow
Find the page of the post that failed by clicking the Facebook icon (upper right) and scrolling through the list (or you can also use command+F to search for the Patch in the list).
Click on the Patch page. Now, you’ll see the page’s queue in the left column.
The post that failed will be in red. Click “Send Now” to re-send this post to the Facebook page. Click yes to confirm. (Once the post successfully sends, you will see it move from the left column, to the right published column.)
Get to Know the Basics of SocialFlow
How To Use Facebook Business Manager
What is Facebook Business Manager?
Facebook Business Manager is Facebook’s internal page management system. It keeps your business activities separate from your personal Facebook profile. This is also the system that allows us to give Facebook posting access to editors for their Patch pages.
Logging In
1) Go to business.facebook.com and login. It will connect using your personal Facebook login information, but your personal profile is not shared.
Need an account? Email Kara.Seymour@patch.com to request an invite to Business Manager.
2) Your dashboard will load for all the Facebook pages you have access to. From here you can click out to any Facebook page to manage it.
Posting to Facebook via Business Manager
1) Click on your Facebook page through the Business Manager dashboard or simply go to your Patch Facebook page URL and add “business.” to the beginning of it.
Example:
Public URL: facebook.com/TomsRiverPatch/
Business Manager URL: business.facebook.com/TomsRiverPatch/
2) You’ll know you’re on Facebook Business Manager, instead of your personal account, when you see the gray bar at the top of your window.
3) Now you can post and interact as the page. Publish a new post or react/reply to a comment from the Patch page.
Get to Know the Basics of Business Manager
Patch Social Media Policy For Editors
Presented here are the guidelines that govern social media use for Patch journalists. Please read and abide by this policy.
Next: "Social Best Practices"
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