Facebook has been a major source of frustration lately for many jewelry retailers. The social media giant has adjusted its algorithms in such a way as to significantly limit the organic reach of posts being shared on business pages. Companies that had been consistently reaching hundreds or even thousands of people with their content now see those numbers reduced to a few dozen.

Facebook says these changes are occurring to enhance the user experience; a more accurate, albeit cynical, analysis would include the fact that Facebook wants business owners to purchase advertising in order to expand the reach of their messaging. That is certainly one tool available to the business owner. Another option is to leverage your local connections in order to get your content in front of more potential customers.

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As a jewelry store, you’re far from being the only business in your town. There are other enterprises all around you: restaurants, flower shops, hotels and convention centers, apparel stores, art galleries and so on. Chances are that the majority of these businesses also have a Facebook presence. It is a good idea to start exploring which local businesses you’d like to be aligned with on social media.

Start this process by talking with your customers. Ask them where they like to eat, hang out, shop and so on. The more frequently a business is mentioned, the more important it is to your marketing plan. At a minimum, you’ll want to like these pages on Facebook, and periodically share their content on your page. You can’t assume that the other company will reciprocate automatically, so plan on doing a little personal outreach: in some instances, jewelers and affiliated businesses (particularly restaurants, florists, and clothing boutiques) wind up doing joint promotional events, while in other instances, the engagement is much simpler: you share their posts once or twice a week, and they do the same for you.

This technique is fairly simple and straightforward, and it can benefit both businesses in multiple ways. Having a post shared will automatically expand its reach; having a post shared with a targeted group of local customers who are likely to be interested in the messaging can result in greater brand visibility and sales. Additionally, promoting nearby businesses and other groups will be very appealing to that portion of your customer base that values local community. The time commitment is a little intense in the beginning, particularly if you need to do a lot of in person connecting, but it does bear rewards fairly quickly and is effective at expanding your content’s reach.