As you have probably heard by now, Facebook will be making significant changes to the way the News Feed works in January 2015. These changes will affect the way that marketers will be able to reach users that like their brand’s page. But that doesn’t mean you should abandon your Facebook all together! In this week’s post, I will explain what this algorithm update means, what you should avoid in your future posts and what you can do to stay on Facebook’s good side and maintain your reach.
What will change in the Facebook News Feed?
“Our goal with News Feed has always been to show people
the things they want to see. When people see content that’s
relevant to them, they’re more likely to be engaged with
News Feed, including stories from businesses.”
Facebook is constantly trying to create a high-quality experience for its users, and because more and more companies have created Facebook pages, the platform has had to adjust so its users are not bombarded with promotional post after promotion post from different brands. According to an evaluation that Facebook recently conducted, it found that users are often annoyed by promotional content.
Facebook is now tweaking its algorithm to “punish” News Feed brand posts that it deems too promotional. There were some “consistent traits” of these promotional posts mentioned by Facebook. The traits were:
- Posts that solely push people to buy a product or install an app
- Posts that push people to enter promotions and sweepstakes with no real context
- Posts that reuse the exact same content from ads
Essentially, this new algorithm is going to give large favor to organic posts that receive high engagement, as well as promoted posts (paid ads).
How do I avoid getting penalized by this update?
DON’T: Use overly pushy or salesy language in your posts. Cut back on words such as “Buy”, “Comment”, “Like”, “Share”, “Download”, “Click here” and “Purchase” in your posts.
DO: Continue linking to quality content, just use more specific calls-to-action. Try using phrases like “don’t miss our new whitepaper <link>” or “find more resources here.”
———-
DON’T: Use a bait and hook technique to drive people to a sales landing page. Have you ever see an intriguing picture in a company’s post (organic or promoted), and when you click on it you are taken to a page that is something completely different? Well this is exactly what Facebook is trying to eliminate.
DO: Drive traffic to your blog articles, useful resources on your website or landing pages, but make sure you are honest about the content when writing catchy headlines and teasers.
———-
DON’T: Push people to join contests or sweepstakes. This includes click-baiting for likes on your page. These types of posts will eventually decrease your page’s reach.
DO: Keep your updates interesting. Ask questions or create posts that are relevant to timely / trending events. If you really want to do a contest or sweepstake, do so via a landing page and not directly on Facebook.
———-
DON’T: Post text-only status updates from your page. Facebook notices when you post this type of content, and because it typically does not receive high engagement, pages will start being penalized.
DO: Publish the type of post that users seem to prefer more than others (e.g., photo, video, or status update). Hint: Go into your Facebook Insights and see what type of content receives the highest engagement from your fans.
**Note: Penalized = Facebook decreasing the number of your followers that will see each of your brand’s Facebook posts.
What else can I do to increase reach?
Share ONLY Valuable Content
If you have been reading the Financial Social Media blog for a while, you’ve heard us say it so many times… the success of digital marketing is largely dependent on your brand’s ability to create and share content that your target audience will find interesting, valuable and/or helpful. Now, more than ever, it is important to use the content quality filter. Before posting something, ask yourself, “will my fans find this interesting and valuable?”
So, if you are thinking to yourself, “I already do all this,” then you’re on the right track! Have you been creating and sharing high quality content that you followers want to see and that receive likes, shares and comments to show their appreciation? If so, then this change shouldn’t affect you dramatically right away. Facebook does admit that, “Pages that post promotional creative should expect their organic distribution to fall significantly over time.” This means it will be necessary to use paid ads.
Use Paid Facebook Advertising
Because Facebook has been slowly decreasing the reach of brand’s organic posts, no matter how spammy or promotional, they expect brands to turn to paid advertising to reach their audience. So now, with this new algorithm change coming in January, it is time to accept it and get on board. Facebook advertising does has its many benefits, because you can pinpoint your audience so specifically. But remember, the same content rules apply! Keep your ad content intriguing and relevant to that niche audience and you will see success. For more on Facebook advertising, check out our post, “Social Media Advertising: A Necessary Tool for Your Firm.”
Facebook ended this announcement saying,
“Pages still matter — a lot. They offer a free, easy-to-maintain online presence for people to
discover and learn about a business. They work across desktop, mobile and tablets without requiring
any extra configuration, and contain complete information about a business. They also offer
tools to create videos, photos and events that bring a business’ story to life.”
So don’t give up! Not yet!
If you have additional questions, FSM’s social experts can help! Contact us today or check out additional tips by following our LinkedIn Page.
Amy McIlwain
@amymcilwain
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