On a platform with over three billion active monthly users, it can be challenging to stand out from the crowd, to say the least.
Just uploading stunning visuals or compelling offers will no longer do the trick; you’ll also need to support these posts with hook-worthy captions that’ll make your audience pause and think about your offer.
How do you create these gripping captions, you ask? The answer’s simple: You use the same formulas as expert copywriters, of course!
So, without further ado, let’s dive in to find some of the top copywriting techniques pro writers use that you, too, can leverage to your own advantage.
Top caption copywriting techniques
Use these tried-and-true Facebook caption copywriting techniques to boost engagement tenfold.
Technique #1: PAS (Problem, Agitation, and Solution)
The PAS is a popular writing technique among copywriters.
With this technique, they first address the problem (aka your audience’s pain points), then agitate the issues (aka rub salt on the wounds, so to speak), and finally, showcase their product as the solution that’ll end their problem.
For example, a caption like “Can’t find the time to work out? Loss of exercise in your lifestyle can cause poor sleep and an increased risk of illnesses. Join our micro-fitness sessions wherein we help you reach your exercise goals within 15 minutes every day!” follows the tenets of the PAS technique.
In some cases, copywriters even provide social proof, personal anecdotes, or more context into the problem you’re facing as part of “agitation.” For reference, here’s an example that uses personal anecdotes to agitate the problem.
Technique #2: 4Cs (Clear, Concise, Compelling, and Credible)
The 4Cs technique emphasizes that your writing has to be clear over clever, concise over wordy, and credible over vague. It asks you to consider:
- Has the audience clearly understood your offer?
- Is your post concise enough that it doesn’t take away their attention for too long?
- Is it compelling enough that they’d want to read your post and consider your offer?
- Is it credible enough that they don’t have any hesitations about buying your product?
For example, a caption like “Achieve glowing skin with our dermatologist-approved serum. Clinically tested and loved by thousands of satisfied customers. Start your journey to radiant skin today. 30% off on your first purchase!” ticks all the boxes of 4Cs.
Technique #3: FAB (Features, Advantages, and Benefits)
If you’re operating in a niche industry, a caption that uses the FAB copywriting technique would just be fab, excuse the pun.
This is mainly because your audience already knows and understands what they want from a product and are wondering if you could offer it to them.
For example, consider if you were selling specialty knives to a chef or a laptop to a computer engineer.
Through this copywriting technique, you should:
- Highlight your product features (e.g., if you’re selling a laptop, you can share information about its speed, display size, memory, reliability, etc.)
- Share the advantages the product could offer (e.g., enhanced performance, betterment of your professional image, increased productivity, etc.)
- Talk about the benefits your customers will experience if they use your product (e.g., the offer can be customized depending on if you’re selling the laptop to an engineer, a gamer, a graphic designer, etc.)
Technique #4: Effective Storytelling (e.g., Pixar)
Another way to connect with your audience and boost your engagement rates is to tell personal stories and anecdotes about how your product/service impacted your customers and/or your community. Think positive energy, picture-perfect moments, and amazing memories.
For this technique, you can write about your own experiences or partner with influencers and customers to obtain UGC content. (If given the option to choose between the two, we recommend using UGC content as prospects often trust customers over businesses.)
As for what formula you should use for this technique, there’s no one way to tell a story — feel free to engage in your creativity to share your experiences. Having said that, Pixar’s storytelling framework is quite popular if you might choose to draw inspiration from it.
Technique #5: Curiosity Gap
The curiosity gap often relies on techniques like fear of missing out (FOMO) to get audiences to engage with your posts. For example, captions like the ones below usually create enough curiosity to click on them:
- “I earned a million dollars in my agency with this one simple trick. Find out how!”
- “Shocking truth about [X] industry will affect multiple businesses by 2026. Can you handle the truth?”
- “Here’s how celebs achieve the Korean glass skin. Uncover their secret!”
Experts recommend sharing partial information, using questions like “Did you know?” And writing attention-grabbing CTAs to use the curiosity gap to its full potential.
For reference, here’s a real-life Facebook caption from The Beaches of Normandy Tours that poses questions like “Did You Know?” to encourage readers to find out more about historical information like the liberation of Paris or how Hawaiians used money during WW2.
This technique demonstrates the power of leveraging curiosity and clarity to foster an interactive and informed community. Use a similar method to pique curiosity and drive a higher volume of comments, likes, and shares.
Technique #6: Scarcity and Urgency
Scarcity and urgency also play on human emotions and encourage us to take swift actions. For example, you may have seen Facebook captions like
- “Sale ends today—get your items at flat 50% off!”
- “Exclusive offer for the first 10 customers. Secure your spot now!”
- “Final call for entries! Submit your applications today if you wish to be considered for the exclusive dean’s list.”
These captions often result in impulsive actions, which gains businesses a quick and easy sale.
Technique #7: (BAB) Before After Bridge
The BAB copywriting technique is particularly useful when you want your customers to imagine the ideal life that comes with using your products.
For real-life examples, just think about the medicine commercials you see on TV. They begin by showing a person suffering from an illness (e.g., the flu), and in the next frame, they show the same person dancing and playing around in a lovely garden — and all of this was only possible because of a medicine they had.
In this scenario, the before is the sickness, the after is the good health, and the bridge is taking the medicine. If you were to use the same technique for a caption, an example could be, “Stuck in your job? Better opportunities are waiting for you. Unlock your career potential with us!”
Best practices for writing Facebook captions
Now that we’ve covered the techniques, use these best practices to get the most out of your results.
1. Incorporate relevant hashtags
A good caption requires good hashtags — this helps customers find you (and ergo, buy from you). For example, second-hand car dealerships might often look for used cars on Facebook with the hashtag #CarForSale or #UsedCar.
Take StudioSuits, for instance, a men’s clothing brand renowned for its diverse attire showcases. Whether it’s spotlighting men’s cocktail attire or semi-casual ensembles, they strategically utilize pertinent hashtags.
This savvy approach amplifies their posts’ visibility and ensures they resonate with their intended audience, ultimately driving higher engagement rates.
2. Make your posts accessible
Ensuring your posts are accessible for all is just good business practice. To create accessible posts:
- Avoid using overly bright colors in visuals
- Insert alt-texts to visuals and videos
- Use descriptive and easy language
- Add color contrast to your posts
- Add subtitles to videos
3. A/B test your Facebook captions
To optimize your Facebook posts, test out different content lengths, formats, tones, use of emojis, and other stylistic choices to see what works for you and your audience. While you’re at it, you can also try testing different posting schedules, timings, and cadence.
4. Don’t be afraid to repurpose content
Lastly, we know interesting and valuable ideas are difficult to find. So, once you create something you’re really proud of putting out into the world, don’t only post it once. Try going through your archives and repost/repurpose content you’re really proud of!
Next steps
Truth be told: If you don’t have the right insights by your side, there’s only so much you can do with your Facebook posts to increase engagement.
Because until and unless you take a look at the data, you’re really just throwing arrows in the dark.
To ensure your arrow results in a bullseye, consider investing in a social media analytics tool that can show you exactly how your audience is engaging with you and what overarching patterns they are showing.
Author
Experienced in writing SaaS and marketing content, Vergine helps customers to easily perform web scrapings, automate time-consuming tasks, and be informed about the latest tech trends with step-by-step tutorials and insider articles.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the 40-40-20 rule in copywriting?
The 40-40-20 rule states that the success of any post depends 40% on the audience, 40% on your offer, and 20% on the creatives/caption.
2. How long should a Facebook caption be?
There’s no hard and fast rule regarding how long or short your Facebook captions should be. However, Keyhole recommends:
• Using up to 80 characters for organic content — and
• Sticking between 5–19 words for paid posts.
3. How do you create highly targeted Facebook ad copy?
To create highly targeted ad copies, research all the need-to-know details about your audience (including their pain points, likes, dislikes, wants, etc.) and then create an offer they can’t resist.
