14 Ways to Benefit From Meta Business Suite

Want to manage your Facebook and Instagram marketing efforts more efficiently? Curious how to take advantage of Meta Business Manager?

In this article, you'll discover 14 Meta Business Suite features designed to help marketers work and collaborate more effectively. Plus, you'll learn how to use them for the best results.

#1: To-Do List

Located front and center on the Home tab, Business Suite's To-Do List feature helps you prioritize the tasks that are most important to your business. To add a task to your to-do list manually, click the down arrow and type the task. You can add optional details or instructions for colleagues.

After clicking the Save Task button, you and anyone who manages the page in Business Suite will be able to see the task. Anyone who completes it can check it off the list.

Business Suite also adds tasks to this list dynamically. For example, if you have a Facebook message or an Instagram mention that needs a reply or a draft post that you need to schedule, it will appear automatically in your to-do list. If you find that important messages and mentions tend to get lost in the shuffle, this automated feature could be a lifesaver.

#2: High-Priority Notifications

If your Facebook page or Instagram account receives a lot of notifications, it's important to separate the signal from the noise. By focusing on the most impactful interactions (like comments and messages), you can extract more value from your brand's social media engagement.

Business Suite prioritizes notifications automatically. When you open the Notifications tab, you'll see high-priority engagement at the top. That way, you can view and respond to comments, mentions, direct messages (DMs), and shares efficiently. Below, you'll see all other notifications, including reactions and likes that don't require responses.

Although the prioritized notifications are helpful in theory, take them with a grain of salt. Some of the high-priority notifications may include messages or shares that you've already responded to but Business Suite doesn't offer an option for checking them off the list.

#3: Mentions and Tags

Curiously, the Notifications tab is much better designed for identifying important mentions and tags than the Mentions & Tags section of Business Suite's Posts & Stories tab is. But the Mentions & Tags section is helpful for finding and sharing user-generated content.

This section displays all of the Facebook and Instagram posts where your brand has been tagged or mentioned. The content isn't in any discernible order. That means it isn't great for finding either your most recent mentions or tagged content that's received the most engagement.

However, you can use it to browse the various ways fans have featured your products or shared your content. You can click any item to view the full post, comment as your page, or share to your page. You can also reach out to the original creator to request permission to republish their image or video in a branded post.

#4: Inbox Automations

Business Suite consolidates all of your Facebook and Instagram messages and comments into a single inbox so you can manage engagement efficiently. Using the Inbox tab, you can either manage everything at once or view each type of engagement one at a time.

If your account receives a lot of comments and messages, you can use Business Suite's automations to streamline management. Click the Automated Responses button in the upper right to set up these helpful workflows.

Here's a rundown of your options:

• Instant reply: Respond to someone who's messaging your account for the first time.
• Away message: Let people know when you'll be back online and how to access help in the meantime.
• Frequently asked questions: Create up to four FAQs that people can ask to receive automated responses.
• Comment to message: Set up to four keywords that people can type in the comments to receive an automated message from your account.

#5: Post and Story Scheduler

Scheduling social media content in advance is critical—but historically, Meta's native tools haven't allowed comprehensive scheduling. With Business Suite, you can schedule most types of Facebook and Instagram content well ahead of time.

Click the Create Post button from the Home tab to open the new post creation tool. From there, you can write a caption or upload a photo or video. Business Suite also supports Instagram carousels, which can include up to 10 photos.

Are you feeling the pressure to produce more short-form videos, thanks to Instagram's recent shift toward Reels? Click the Create Video button to turn a still image into a video in seconds, no expert video editing skills required. You can choose one of the simple templates to add an image and a text overlay.

Although the desktop version of Business Suite technically supports story creation and scheduling, the mobile app is a much better option. Using the Business Suite mobile app, you can add mention and hashtag stickers, create polls, and insert swipe-up links. You can also schedule stories from the mobile app to make sure they post at your preferred time.

#6: Optimal Publishing Times

When you want to maximize reach and engagement, posting Facebook and Instagram content at the right time is essential. But historically, the only way to determine when to post has been checking Facebook or Instagram Insights to find out when your audience is online.

To increase your chance of posting at the right time, Business Suite provides automated recommendations for when to publish content. To access this information, click the Optimal Times button in the post creation tool. Then select one of the recommended times or manually enter another time. Click the Schedule Post button to publish it automatically.

#7: Hashtag Organizer

Hashtags on Instagram and Facebook are great for adding context to your posts and making your content more discoverable. But finding and using hashtags via native tools has always been a clunky process, at least until Business Suite launched.

To find, save, and reuse hashtags, open the post creation tool in Business Suite. In the Text box, click the hashtag symbol. Then type a keyword into the search bar. You'll see tons of recommendations, along with the total number of times it's been used to help you gauge its popularity on Facebook or Instagram.

To add any of the hashtags to the post you're creating, check the box to the left and click the Add button. To save a hashtag to use later, click the bookmark icon to the right. Any bookmarked hashtags will appear in the Saved tab of the hashtag interface. You can select any saved hashtags to add them to your content.

Theoretically, you can also find and use trending hashtags to drive discovery. However, the Trending tab currently indicates that no hashtags are available.

#8: A/B Tests

To reach your marketing goals, it's essential to create content that resonates with your audience. But there are countless ways to convey your message in the caption or creative. So how do you know what's ideal for your audience?

With Business Suite's A/B Test feature, you can run up to four versions of a single post to see what works best. Open the Posts & Stories tab and select A/B Tests. Then click Create A/B Test.

Create the first version of the post, including the caption, creative, link, and hashtags. Then scroll to the bottom of the post creation tool and click the Create A/B Test button.

Now create a second version of the post by modifying your message or switching up your creative. Click the Add New Version button to create up to four options total.

Then click to publish your test immediately or schedule it for another time. Meta will automatically run the test for 30 minutes, distributing various versions of the post to different groups of followers. After 30 minutes, the platform will automatically determine which version generated the most engagement and publish the winning version to your page.

You can check the results of your A/B tests to get a better understanding of what types of creatives get your audience's attention. You can also test different calls to action (CTAs) or prompts and then do more of what works best. Note that the A/B Test tool currently works on Facebook news feed posts only.

#9: File Manager

If you create content in collaboration with colleagues or clients, Business Suite's File Manager can save you time. With this tool, you can organize the content in folders by channel, campaign, theme, or any other element you like.

Then you can upload creative assets you plan to publish and place them in their respective folders. You and your team members can click any image or video to create a post or story directly from the File Manager.

#10: Content Planner

Want to get a bigger picture view of your social media content? Business Suite's Posts & Stories tab lists all the content you've published, scheduled, or drafted. But the Planner tab displays all of your content in a calendar view that's easier to take in.

Click the Planner tab and toggle between the weekly and monthly views. In addition to displaying posts and stories you've scheduled or published, the calendar recommends days and times to publish future content. You can click any of the recommended times to start scheduling a post.

The Planner tab also shows major holidays and themed days to help you create relevant content. You can see these days in the Moments widget to the right of the calendar as well. Click any of these holidays to start creating related content.

Note that Business Suite doesn't provide relevant prompts to guide your content creation. However, it does streamline the scheduling process and recommend optimal times to maximize the effect of your post or story.

#11: Content Inspiration

Looking for more ideas to create engaging content for your audience? Business Suite's post recommendations can inspire you and streamline sharing. For content inspiration, scroll to the bottom of the Home tab. There, you can see posts and stories from similar businesses.

Since Meta personalizes these recommendations based on your business type and the type of content you typically share, they're actually pretty helpful. The story recommendations are particularly useful, as they show you how other businesses are using interactive features and sticker types.

If you find a useful post, you can share it directly from the Home tab. Click the Share Post button to add your business' unique take on the content, and click Share to publish it to your page instantly. Note that this workflow doesn't allow you to schedule the content to share later.

On the Posts & Stories tab, you can see additional recommendations for Facebook and Instagram feed content. Note that these posts don't appear to be customized for individual businesses and may not be relevant to your page or account. They're probably safe to ignore in favor of the Home tab recommendations.

#12: Facebook and Instagram Insights

On the Insights tab, you can view analytics for your Facebook and Instagram accounts. By default, Business Suite displays both analytics for both channels so you can review metrics and growth side by side.

The Overview report gives you a quick breakdown of account reach, content performance, and audience growth. You can click to view each section in a separate report. Here's what you can learn:

• Results: Get a daily breakdown of account reach, profile visits, and new followers.
• Content: See reach, engagement, and cost per result for every post, story, and ad. You can also boost organic Facebook posts from this tab.
• Audience: View audience breakdowns by age and gender. You can also see the top cities and countries for your audience.

Business Suite reports aren't particularly easy to share with colleagues or clients. But you can click the Export button in the top-right corner of any report to save a report as a PNG, PDF, or CSV file. Then you can forward the files to colleagues or add them to a custom report for clients.

#13: Goal Setting

Whether you want to attract more followers or reach more people on Facebook and Instagram, setting and sticking to goals are often harder than they seem. With the Business Suite goal-setting feature, however, your team can work together to track progress toward goals.

On the Home tab in Business Suite, locate the Goals widget in the upper-right corner. Then click the Get Started button to set your first goal. Over the course of 28 days, you can choose to increase reach or grow followers on your Facebook page, your Instagram account, or both.

Then you can choose how aggressively you want to pursue your goal. For example, the Starter level lets you aim for a 5% improvement over the previous period. The Advanced level strives for a 50% increase over the previous period.

Once you choose a level and a start date, you can click the Set Goal button to begin. Then you can click the See Progress button at any time to see how well you're doing at achieving your goal. Note that Business Suite doesn't offer customized strategy guidance. But it does offer basic tips like prompting you to run an ad to reach more ambitious goals.

#14: Frequently Used Tools

Business Suite makes it easy to access the tools you need to market your business. In Business Suite, hover over the left-hand menu to expand the available options and then click Edit at the bottom of the list of tools.

You'll see a pop-up inviting you to choose up to six tools to appear permanently in your Business Suite menu.

Note that Home, Notifications, and All Tools always appear in the menu. In addition to these default options, you can choose tools to help you:

• Manage your inbox
• Plan content
• Publish posts
• Set up conversion events
• Sell products or services
• Analyze insights
• Run ads

You can also drag and drop the tools in the order that works best for you. Once you click Save, you can access any selected tool with a single click.

Conclusion

In addition to the many integrated features above, Business Suite gives you access to Meta's complete list of tools. You can open the All Tools menu to navigate to Ads Manager, Events Manager, and many more—essentially all of the tools you need to run your business.

Get More Advice on Facebook and Instagram Marketing

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