Algorithms are an essential part of digital data, that can help marketers really get to grips with their consumers lifestyle and consumption habits. This year, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook would be changing its news feed algorithms to prioritise content from “friends, family and groups”. This comes as no surprise, given Facebook has long been the champion of building algorithms to recognise what kind of content we like and respond to most. Commercial pages have been able to counteract this somewhat with boosting and advertising options, however organic engagement has always been king. So with these further developments, how can brands ensure they are creating the best content to feed Facebook’s algorithms and their social media pr strategy?
PROMPT ENGAGEMENT & COMMENTS
According to Zuckerberg, “meaningful interaction” means comments, comments, and more comments. “Pages making posts that people generally don’t react to or comment on could see the biggest decreases in distribution. Pages whose posts prompt conversations between friends will see less of an effect.”
Users will be more likely to see your Facebook posts if their friends and family are commenting on it, so create content that sparks reaction and debate!
INCREASE YOUR VIDEO & LIVE CONTENT
Videos are still favoured under the new algorithm, but live videos will be even more important. In his announcement, Zuckerberg wrote that “live videos often lead to discussion among viewers on Facebook—in fact, live videos on average get six times as many interactions as regular videos.”
This means if you haven’t already invested time and energy into posting live videos on Facebook, now is the time! This is one of the few concrete examples of content that will perform well under the new algorithm included in the announcement, so all brands would do well to pay attention to it.
AVOID ENGAGEMENT “BAIT”
Don’t be tempted to ask your audience to “COMMENT” on your post! Generally users see this as spam, and Facebook does not deem this a “meaningful interaction”. With the new algorithms, these type of posts will continue to be demoted in users News Feed.
BE SMART WITH ADVERTSISING BUDGETS
With organic reach in gradual decline, using Facebook Ads is a must to ensure your page continues to pick up new fans and sustains a good level of engagement. With the new changes however, it will be more important than ever to know how to target the right audience. Try a mix of methods and content, across boosting and ads, to see what works best for your audience. Ultimately, you want the likes, comments and shares, and if your content is not delivering these, it’s time to rethink what you’re posting!
SEE FIRST OPTION
Facebook certainly doesn’t see anything wrong with encouraging customers to follow your Facebook Page. There will be no change to the ability for users to make sure they always see posts from their favourite Pages by choosing “See First” in their news feed preferences, so why not remind your loyal followers? By encouraging them to make this simple setting change, it will ensure your posts will always appear high in their newsfeed.
Our consumer lifestyle PR team specialise in connecting everyday brands with everyday people across four core sectors; Consumer Lifestyle PR, Food & Drink PR, Consumer Technology PR and Sport, Health & Wellbeing PR. More information on these areas of knowledge can be found at www.escapadepr.com/about-us.
