Meta now limits you to 2 external links


It was only a matter of time...

Meta is now limiting you to TWO external links per month if you are on an unpaid account.

In order to bypass this limit, you have to opt into Meta One for Business, a subscription that ranges from $15-$499 per month. Access to additional links starts at $49/month.

Guess what else you get for $49 per month? Clickable links in Instagram captions. Who would have thought we'd ever see the day?!

In my opinion, that price is a little ridiculous for your average local congregation. I could think of many ways for you to spend $600/year and Meta One doesn't make the list.

Here's the truth: posts with external links weren't performing well anyway. This forces us to think about the best way to get someone from point A to point B.

Consider these solutions next time you have a link to share:

1) If have a website you're proud of: Link your website in your bio on Instagram and profile description on Facebook.

Don't have a website you're proud of? Well you came to the right place! ;)

2) If you have an event to share: Create more Facebook events and fewer registration forms. Facebook doesn't count links that stay within the Meta ecosystem against you. Once the event exists, you can create as many posts as you'd like that link to it.

3) If you have evergreen information to share: Pin a digest post to the top of your profile. Make one post that contains an important link and feature it at the top of your profile. This works well for service times, locations, or beliefs.

4) If you're running an ad: Consider implementing a Direct Message autoresponder. If someone comments a specific term, the automation will send them a direct message. Here's a tutorial I made for how to set this up without a third-party tool.

Ex: "Comment 'info' for more information about enrolling at School Name!"

5) If your link is only relevant for a few days: Utilize link stickers in Instagram Stories. This works well for posting your newest sermon or in the final days of an event registration.

Whatever you do, remember that links in Instagram captions are not clickable unless you are on the $49/month plan. It's a major faux pas to include links in IG captions -- don't do it!

Questions about best practices with this new shift? Just reply!

Until next week,

Grace Ungemach

I offer digital marketing education written with ministry in mind. Subscribe to my free, weekly newsletter to learn something new every Friday.

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