Tops fans: they want to champion your brand.
Top Fans are an emerging group of Facebook users who drown out trolls. They are on your side. In the ‘not all heroes wear capes’ manner, they counteract misinformation, engage with other users, help direct other users in wider Facebook Community Groups to your account and share your key messages.
Remember:
What is a Top Fan?
Top Fans are found on Facebook. The platform defines Top Fans as:
“People can become eligible for a top fan badge on your Page by being one of the most active people on your Page, which can include watching your Page’s videos, liking or reacting to content, and commenting on or sharing posts. People who qualify for and turn on top fan badges will have a badge next to their name when interacting with your Page’s content. They’ll also be publicly visible on a top fans list on your Page’s Community tab.”
It’s worth noting that users that ‘troll’ or consistently post negative comments can also (and unfortunately) be classed as Top Fans. This is because Facebook’s Algorithm’s determine Top Fans as those that engage the most – regardless of sentiment.
Solution: follow the timeless advice of not feeding trolls – only answer their ‘genuine’ queries in a straight-forward ‘question and answer’ format. There’s no point giving them attention.
How Top Fans can help
The ‘nicer’ Top Fans are ones that have your back on social media. When creating content, use the below as a checklist. They have the ability to:
They have the power to shape opinions and perceptions within Facebook Community Groups – among hundreds or thousands of users.
Facebook has even capitalised on this trend and has enabled Business Pages to publish updates specifically to Top Fans.
Local authorities should value their Top Fans because they represent your target demographic, or at least a cross-section of them.
Remember, not everyone wants their Facebook friends to know that they have ‘liked’ their local council’s Facebook page so Top Fans automatically become the beacon of spreading your key messages further and wider whilst elevating their own purpose and online reputation on social media. They are the key link between connecting councils with communities.
@DigitalVinGill 