How to Keep Facebook Fans from Unliking Your Brand Fanpage

You know all those Facebook fans you have so carefully attracted over the past few months? Chances are they are "unliking" your fanpage in droves. Roughly half of Facebook's users have "unliked" a fanpage according to ExactTarget's "The Social Breakup" study.

What's worse, that harrowing number includes only the fans that go to the brand’s page and click on "unlike". You also have to worry about the other ways users disengage from a brand's page -- 38% remove/hide all the posts in their personal news feed from a bothersome brand, and 19% simply ignore news feed posts from brands. That doesn't leave too many fans fervently engaging with your brand.

Why Facebook Users "Unlike" a Fanpage

It shouldn't be a surprise that the same reasons people unsubscribe from an email newsletter apply to Facebook -- too much stuff, too often, too boring. Here are the top reasons why people "unlike" Facebook brand fanpages.

How to Keep Facebook Fans "Liking" Your Brand Fanpage

Here are three simple rules to keep those fickle Facebook fans fervent:

1. Post less, and with purpose. Do they really need to hear from you every day? When you post, post with a purpose. It also wouldn't hurt to ask your fans how much they want to hear from you.
2. Ask questions. Speaking of asking questions -- communication is a two-way street. Post at least half your posts as questions rather than statements.
3. Keep it interesting. Enough talk already! Add a little excitement to the mix with photos, links, and videos. In fact, posts with media attached are more likely to appear in news feeds.

What tips do you have for keeping Facebook fans happy?