What is Fan-Gating?

Fan-gating is accomplished by creating two versions of a tab on your page—one that’s shown to users who already Like your page and one to those who have not Liked the page.

The non-fans are encouraged to Like in order to “unlock” the content behind the tab. Because information about whether a user has Liked your page is easily accessible through Facebook’s Graph API, it is relatively easy to implement a gate, or “reveal tab” as it is sometimes called.

The reason to fan-gate is fairly obvious: to increase the number of Likes by making it a requirement to access something that is presumably desirable to your fans. This could mean access to download a white paper, receive a coupon or participate in a contest.

However, this begs the question of the value of a required Like. Should this individual be considered a true fan? Is he or she likely to remain engaged with your brand after accessing whatever content you have gated?

All Likes May Not Be Created Equal

Various sources have put forth estimates for the value of a Like, ranging from $3.60 (Vitrue) to $136.38 (Syncapse). But I think most people would agree that just as in the offline world, different customers have different lifetime values.

Common sense would dictate that people who choose to Like your page on their own rather than being required to do so may have a greater affinity toward your brand. That isn’t to say that someone who Likes your page for the purpose of receiving a promotional offer won’t become a valuable fan.

The key is what you do to build a relationship with new fans after they have Liked your page. If you have provided access to something truly valuable, that person very well may stay engaged. But as soon as your posts begin appearing in the user’s news feed, if you aren’t continuing to share something relevant, he or she may quickly tune you out, hide your posts or even un-Like your page.