Since early January, social media has been abuzz with news of the latest Facebook changes coming to its algorithms. These algorithms dictate what a user will see in their Newsfeed so obviously this news is of great interest to business owners who use Facebook as a marketing platform.
Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg issued a statement earlier this month that set out where he wants to take the social media network moving forward. He has expressed a desire for the emphasis to be more on “meaningful social interactions” and personal relationships with friends and family. It would seem that users have had enough of the ubiquitous ads and news articles that can clog up their feeds.
There will be a move away from public promotional posts, with the target of 4% of visible content, down from 5% last year. These posts include news, videos and posts from brands, including public business pages. Behind this new initiative is an understandable agenda to try and limit the surge of “Fake News” sites and click-bait articles. These types of posts are irritating for everyone and are a good way of turning off potential consumers.
Bad News for Business?
Unfortunately for businesses, especially small ones and those just starting out, these new rules will also affect your business pages and a lot of the ways in which you currently interact with your followers and potential customers. This will effectively mean that fewer people will see your posts unless you have paid for advertising.
If you are making regular posts on your business page informing your followers of offers, new products or any other information, unless those followers interact regularly with you and your page, the chances are those posts will not get seen. It is important if you want to ensure your Facebook marketing remains effective, that you familiarize yourself with these changes and what they could potentially mean for your business.
As people start to see less and less public promotional posts from business pages, this will make paid Facebook advertising even more critical. It will mean that sponsored ads account for a larger percentage of the advertising that people see on a day to day basis. Especially considering that even people who follow your page will be unlikely to see most of your public posts unless there is a high level of comments and interaction. This also means that it is increasingly important for your focus to be on the quality rather than quantity of your content, which in turn will make it more effective.
Changing Your Approach on Facebook
Some of the main changes will be to drastically reduce the visibility of posts which include a Call to Action, such as competitions, giveaways or anything with the “Like, Comment, Share” demand. Even simple page posts telling people to buy your product. They are also removing the Call to Action button which is featured at the top of your page.
As more and more emphasis is put on personal interactions, it will be important for businesses to try and bring that personal touch to their marketing campaigns. It is crucial that you spend time and effort to ensure that your content is as informative and effective as possible. Click-bait and pushy promoting are consistently proven to be ineffective and unattractive to consumers. The best way to turn these new changes to your advantage is to make sure your paid content is your top priority as far as Facebook advertising is concerned.
If you have questions about how best to utilize Facebook for promoting your Cedar Park business, give us a call at Cedar Park Local. We stay on top of the continual changes in the online marketing sphere.
