As well as this website, Forres Local operates a Facebook page to provide links to our articles and local resources. You can follow this page using the link below.
We also have a Facebook Group which supports local businesses, organisations and events. This group is for long-term support of our shop local initiative, community building and local events. See link below:
Forres Loves Local (12k members)
Between these pages, we have the largest local presence on Facebook with a monthly reach of 250,000-500,000. This platform is dedicated to the Forres area, and remains 100% free to access without charge and without subscription. You can subscribe if you wish, but it just means we’ll email you our news, it won’t be a gateway to accessing the website.
Why two pages?
The first is a standard business Facebook Page that allows us to post news and information relevant to our audience. The second is a group, which also allows individuals and other pages to post. This is moderated, so each post needs our approval.
We built this page to support the local business and third sector community. It’s not for lost cats, babysitter ads or the like, it’s specifically to drive positivity in our local community by making people aware of things happening in local businesses and community organisations.
We will also use it show details of local events that have been posted on Moray.Events.
In order to answer some of the questions we get asked, we’ve put together this FAQ.
Why isn’t my post getting published?
Due to the nature of this group, people should be aware that not every post is published automatically. We literally get 100s of posts a day, so we have a set of rules that people should follow in order to get seen.
What are the rules?
Basic rules exists, as in most groups: no hate, no spam.
It must be local: your business or organisation must be have a base or branch within the IV36 postcode area. To say you have customers in Forres isn’t a way around the rules. Any business could say that. This rule is to further the principle of using local services. Other towns may have their own groups with similar or different rules, but ours is there to support the Forres area only.
It must be unique: If we see your posts duplicated on other groups, it will unlikely to be approved. The Facebook algorithm penalises duplication and rewards fresh unique content. Facebook will try not to show the same content to its users, so posting to multiple groups will water down your message and stifle your reach. If your post does well on our group, Facebook will reward you by increasing the audience.
It is not a billboard, and it’s not a free-for-all. It’s carefully curated page that we’ve grown to let people know about what’s in the local area.
Don’t be anonymous: If you’re asking a question that doesn’t require you to be anonymous, then please don’t use conceal your identity. People will be more likely to respond if they know whose posting.
Accept our decision: We run this group for the overall benefit of the town. Maintaining a group that has quality content, healthy discussion and local relevance is important to us.
My post meets the rules and has still not appeared?
If you are a new member, Facebook will decline your post until you have continued to the group. Join the group, read te posts and react to them before posting your own.
And… sometimes, we are just overwhelmed with posts and we have to choose.
Alternatively, if you have genuine business news, you can contact us and we may prefer to write about your news in a native post, which will get posted on our main page.
Who can I contact?
Our Facebook team are volunteers and do not have the time to repeatedly explain why posts are not appearing. Please do not contact admins directly, as personal messages will be ignored. All queries should be directed to editor@forreslocal.com.