Last week, Facebook announced it has changed the algorithms that determine how it ranks the posts, videos, photos and other content that appears in its users’ News Feed. Facebook’s significant change to how Facebook News Feed works will make marketing content, adverts and posts from businesses, brands and media less prominent, and make content that generates conversations among family and friends who use Facebook more prominent. Public content, including the live video that generates interaction among a user’s network, will also be promoted.
What’s behind the latest Facebook News Feed Update?
According to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, one of the main drivers for this change to the Facebook News Feed algorithm is to make sure that the time users spend on Facebook is meaningful and worthwhile.
In making the announcement about the Facebook News Feed change, he went on to say that, “We built Facebook to help people stay connected and bring us closer together with the people that matter to us. Research shows that strengthening our relationships improves our well-being and happiness.”
However, in recent years, Facebook has experienced an explosion in video and other public content that has ended up overwhelming content from family and friends. In fact, for many Facebook users, News Feed had become nothing more than mindless scrolling from one advert, article and auto-playing video to the next, in what had become a very passive experience – one which researchers had started to realise was even bad for users’ well-being and long-term health.
So, according to Facebook, the latest change is aimed at correcting this imbalance by putting what friends and family have to say first, i.e. a renewed focus on all the ‘meaningful relationships’ that people have on Facebook.
What does the change to Facebook News Feed mean for my business?
In a nutshell, if you’ve been relying on ‘unpaid advertising’ on Facebook for growing the organic reach of your online content you are going to have to rethink your digital strategy. Unless you’re creating content that is tailored specifically to match the interests of your audience and in such a way that it sparks meaningful interaction from them, you are simply no longer going to see that organic growth.
The latest move will, of course, not affect paid advertisements on Facebook, so the avenue of buying online ads on Facebook is still available. While this might mean an increase in your advertising costs, the decrease in the commercial clutter on Facebook Newsfeed could make paid advertising even more effective than it already is.
What type of online content should I focus on to rank in Facebook News Feed?
Any post that generates conversation and discussion among people on Facebook will make it into their News Feed. Live video (as opposed to regular, pre-recorded video) is particularly effective at sparking discussions on Facebook.
Making sure you are connecting with your community, for example by creating events, posting updates that are relevant to your community or audience, creating a Facebook Group of like-minded individuals will stand a very good chance of achieving interaction and starting conversations. For more about the benefits of including Facebook Groups in your digital strategy, see our recent article on the topic –Facebook page vs Facebook group.
5 other things you can do to beat the latest Facebook News Feed Update
1. Create high-quality content.
The recent change to the Facebook News Feed algorithm makes it even more important to create high-quality content that’s tailored specifically to match the interests of your audience.
2. Expand your social media strategy.
This update could be an opportunity to expand your social media strategy. It’s also crucial for the continued success of your business’ online presence to ensure your digital marketing strategy does not put all your online marketing efforts into only one ‘social media’ basket – so expand your social media efforts with the aim of growing your audience on social media as quickly as possible.
3. Focus on SEO.
You also need to focus on making sure that the SEO or search engine optimisation of your business website and other online efforts are top notch to ensure the search engines, particularly Google, will continue to highlight your digital content. Also, make sure your Google My Business listing is up to date and make an effort to ask your customers for Google Reviews too!
4. Grow your email marketing.
Email marketing provides a very effective way to connect with your target audience, so expand your email marketing efforts to reach out to your current and potential customers.
5. Get help from the digital marketing experts at Net Branding.
The digital marketing umbrella covers a huge spectrum of digital assets and tactics, including how to successfully get your content into Facebook News Feed. The digital marketing consultants at Auckland digital marketing company Net Branding have been successfully providing businesses throughout New Zealand with end-to-end digital marketing support for a number of years.
Our many satisfied clients can attest to how we’ve helped them achieve the success they desired from their digital marketing efforts – we can help you too. So get in touch with us today – we’re just a phone call or click away.
