by Fronetics | Apr 30, 2019 | Blog, Current Events, Marketing, Social Media, Video Marketing
Also, this month in social media news: LinkedIn adds a “Teammates” option to facilitate connections among colleagues, and Facebook is testing a Stories-like newsfeed.
Highlights:
- Facebook is giving users increased access to what information advertisers have on them.
- Instagram is considering joining Facebook in promoting communal video experiences.
- LinkedIn’s “Teammates” feature helps users prioritize content from close connections.
This month in social media news, Facebook is continuing to combat user privacy concerns by introducing a tool to provide greater transparency about the content they see on their Newsfeeds, both from connections and from advertisers. The platform is also continuing to explore the Stories trend, as it conducts early-stage testing of a layout that resembles the Stories feature more than it does the existing Newsfeed.
Both Instagram and LinkedIn are promoting greater community among users. Instagram is testing a group video viewing option, joining Facebook’s Watch Party, introduced last year. LinkedIn is rolling out a feature which allows users to prioritize content from their closest connections. Read on for a round-up of social media news.
Facebook Introduces a Feature to Assist Users in Understanding the Context of Content Appearing on the Newsfeed
Having been embroiled in ongoing privacy-related scandals, Facebookis making users’ safety and comfort using the platform a priority. To that end, the company has announced that it will be giving users greater control over the content that appears on their Newsfeeds, through the “Why am I seeing this post?” feature.
[bctt tweet=”Facebook has announced that it will be giving users greater control over the content that appears on their Newsfeeds, through the “Why am I seeing this post?” feature.” username=”Fronetics”]
In 2014, the social media giant launched its similar feature, “Why am I seeing this ad?” which was geared toward projecting transparency in the company’s embattled relationship with users and their advertising content. Facebook announced simultaneously that it will be “making improvements” to the older feature. The new “Why am I seeing this post?” feature aims to help users understand the context for what shows up in their Newsfeeds, and it also allows them to control and manage content.
Marketers should be aware that users will now be able to find out when their profile information matches with the information on an advertiser’s list, as well as when an advertiser “saves their personal information in their database and other details such as if they (the users) were targeted by the advertiser through another marketing partner of theirs (advertisers).”
Instagram Tests a Communal Video Viewing Option
Social media platforms are continuing to push the boundaries of social experiences that are possible for users not in physical proximity. Back in 2018, Facebook rolled out its “Watch Party” option, and now Instagram is exploring jumping on the bandwagon, testing a similar function in its app.
The feature would allow users to view video content on Instagram with a friend, while simultaneously seeing their reactions on screen, using the phone’s camera, in a split-screen view. Users can also apply face filters and other visual tools to the personal feed. Instagram and Facebook’s features are part of a larger trend toward “multi-participatory consumption.”
LinkedIn Adds a New “Teammates” Option to Maintain Connections Among Colleagues
In an ongoing attempt to boost on-platform engagement, LinkedIn has introduced a new feature called “Teammates.” It enables users to put a priority on updates from immediate connections, content with which LinkedIn has found that its users are 60% more likely to engage than more distant connections. As users place a priority on updates from teammates, it will appear higher in their feeds.
The network is pushing the feature as promoting community within the workplace: “95% of working professionals think it’s a good idea to have friends at work, and 63% say they have relationships with their co-workers outside the office. Based on a recent study we shared last month, having friends at work can also help you advance your career.”
Marketers should take note, since it’s not immediately clear what the impact of this feature will be on branded content. Nonetheless, it emphasizes the value of cultivating meaningful connections on the platform, as potential clients will be more likely to mark these types of connections as “teammates,” placing a higher priority on their content.
Facebook is Testing a Stories-Like Swipeable Newsfeed
Stories features across the social media landscape continue to grow in popularity. In keeping with the trend, Facebook is experimenting with a Newsfeed layout which allows users to side-scroll or swipe between posts in their feed, rather than scrolling down. This is a potential significant re-design for the platform, and points to the fact that the Stories trend is here to stay.
If Facebook adopts the design, it would merge Stories and Newsfeed content into a single stream. The network emphasized to TechCrunchthat it is “in the very early stages of development,” and “still needs to conduct a lot more user research before any public experimentation can take place.”
Therefore, while it’s unlikely that a new Newsfeed is coming soon, what is clear is that social media platforms are experimenting with increasingly integrating Stories-style content into every aspect of the user experience.
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by Fronetics | Mar 6, 2018 | Blog, Content Marketing, Logistics, Marketing, Social Media, Supply Chain
Facebook is making a lot of changes that will affect businesses’ organic reach. This video discusses these changes and what your business needs to do to stay ahead of them.
We have talked a lot about Facebook’s updates on our blog. Users are already seeing less content from businesses, brands, and media, so you need to be paying attention. Adjusting your strategy to appear on your followers’ Facebook News Feed should be a top priority.
Facebook updates
On January 11, Mark Zuckerberg announced Facebook’s new algorithm will favor posts from friends and family (over public posts) and posts that “spark conversations and meaningful interactions between people.” But the changes didn’t stop there. Less than a month after Zuckerberg’s original announcement, Facebook reported that News Feed will now prioritize local news stories and events, along with posts from family and friends. “Starting today, we’re going to show more stories from news sources in your local town or city. If you follow a local publisher or if someone shares a local story, it may show up higher in News Feed,” writes Zuckerberg.
The social media platform claims it is trying to create the best possible user experience and encourage civic involvement. But will it come at a high cost to businesses trying to reach new audiences? Could this be the end of organic reach for businesses on Facebook? Here’s what we think.
Video: How Facebook’s changes are affecting your business and what your business can do to stay on top of them
Have there been a lot of changes from Facebook? Yes. Have they impacted your business’ reach? For sure. These changes have created challenges for businesses, but not ones that are impossible to overcome.
Remember, that Facebook is working to improve user engagement, so the posts users see are informative, trustworthy and relevant. Seek to understand what your target audience is spending their time reading, and produce high-quality, original content that focuses around those topics.
If you are producing content that engages with your target audience (and hopefully some new readers), you’ll start working your way back up to the top of the News Feed.
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by Fronetics | Feb 26, 2018 | Blog, Content Marketing, Current Events, Logistics, Marketing, Social Media, Supply Chain
The second phase of Facebook News Feed changes boosts local news to strengthen community engagement.
Facebook has been busy making lots of changes to its algorithm and prioritizing what users want from the social media platform. Our recent blog post discussed the first phase of Facebook News Feed changes early this year. The second phase was just released January 29.
Mark Zuckerberg posted, “Starting today, we’re going to show more stories from news sources in your local town or city. If you follow a local publisher or if someone shares a local story, it may show up higher in News Feed.” The new emphasis on local news will begin in the U.S. and will expand to users in other countries later this year.
Civic engagement is key.
All of recent Facebook News Feed changes have centered around user engagement. Zuckerberg’s post talks a lot about the research his company has done to provide the best possible user experience and, in turn, to push for increased involvement.
“There’s a lot of research that suggests that people who read local news are more engaged in their community and they’re more likely to engage in civic improvements. The more informed you are about issues in your community, the more empowered you are to get involved and make a change,” writes Zuckerberg.
Back in January 2017, Zuckerberg went on the “Great American Road Trip,” where the CEO traveled to 23 U.S. states to spend time with everyday people and to gain insight into how Facebook might help local communities. The result? Zuckerberg has unveiled many changes that directly reflect an emphasis on civic engagement and using the power of Facebook to improve connection with local communities.
Trustworthy news.
Zuckerberg says he has directed his product teams to prioritize news that is “trustworthy, informative, and local.” Facebook will begin to survey users on the trustworthiness of media outlets and rank news sources accordingly. These changes continue to promote what Zuckerberg refers to as “meaningful” posts.
All of these changes are a part of a broader strategy for the News Feed and Facebook community. Facebook has declared that it will be prioritizing of content from friends and family and with this new phase, local news will also top that list.
What do Facebook News Feed changes mean for your business?
Businesses have been clamoring to keep up with the decline in organic reach from the first phase of Facebook News Feed changes. With the local news now taking priority behind more personal content, business pages are falling further down the Facebook News Feed. With more of an emphasis on person-to-person interactions, there’s less room overall for Page content.
But don’t give up on Facebook just yet. For smaller businesses, these changes could potentially boost user reach because of their concentrated reader population. Stories that are opened or shared in a tight geographic area will be ranked higher in the News Feed. So, if you’re looking to increase Page visits, make sure your newer content incorporates local news and events. This will (hopefully) catch the eye of local residents and users and push your content higher up in the News Feed.
Has your business been affected the Facebook news feed changes? We’re all working to keep up with the new algorithms and how they impact our business pages. Let us know in the comments.
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by Fronetics | Jan 31, 2018 | Blog, Content Marketing, Current Events, Marketing, Social Media
Also in social media news January 2018: SnapChat is considering 3-second unskippable ads; Twitter will now display a video count on all video tweets; and Facebook is rolling out custom audiences for users that linger on ads.
The new year has brought lots of new changes, especially to the Facebook community. I’m sure by now you have heard about the updates to Facebook’s News Feed that are having major impacts on business page’s organic reach. But the changes don’t stop there. Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram are trying to follow Facebook’s lead and enhance their user experience. Through updates that include video counts, enhanced data collection, and recommended posts, social media is working overtime to make sure it’s active users are staying active.
Here’s your social media news for January 2018.
Facebook’s News Feed tweak penalizes pages soliciting likes and shares.
Facebook continues to make changes to News Feed — including limiting the amount of content users will see from Pages. See our full update here. Facebook also is tightening the reigns on Pages and individuals that use engagement bait to attract new followers. The site will now penalize posts that ask people to like, share, comment on, or otherwise engage with the post to boost engagement. Posts “that systematically and repeatedly use engagement bait to artificially gain reach in News Feed … will now be shown less,” the company announced in early January.
Twitter rolls out account activity API for powering customer service and chatbots
Twitter introduced a new API that will offer developers access to real-time activities, like tweets, mentions and replies, to help update their customer service tools and chatbots. The latest version of Twitter’s data collecting software is designed for those who need data for a large number of accounts, multiple URLs, or managed support.
Instagram allows users to send live video in direct messages
Instagram announced that users can now send live videos through direct messaging. By tapping on the Direct icon, users can send live video to a friend or group to encourage them to view the content. “Today’s change makes it easy to invite people to watch your live videos and send exciting live videos you’re viewing to your friends in real time,” says the announcement.
SnapChat contemplating 3-second unskippable ads
AdAge reports that Snap Inc. is giving “serious consideration” to adding 3 seconds of commercial breaks before offering a skip option on ads on SnapChat. This new ad format was created to attract more ad dollars from brands. “Advertisers are not spending as much as they have previously with SnapChat,” says the top advertiser from a brand that works closely with the messaging service. “They have to do something that draws more interest from advertisers, and they are getting more aggressive to address the market’s needs.” If implemented, the postponed skip option would be similar to YouTube’s ad experience.
Facebook testing custom audiences for users lingering on ads
Matt Navarra, director of social media for @TheNextWeb, reported a new option for targeting a list of people who have “spent more time than usual viewing your display ads on Facebook and Instagram.” The new custom audience option, called Dwell, is an expanded version of Dwell Time, which targeted people who spent any time viewing an ad. In theory, this new custom-audience option will give advertisers the ability to re-target users who viewed your ads but didn’t take any action.
Twitter displays video count on all video tweets
Twitter is adding a video count to all organic and video ads. In compliance with the Media Rating Council’s video viewability standard, Twitter will count a view once the video has been played for at least 2 seconds and with at least 50% of the video in view. This new update is a minor change to support the company’s mission to make the platform more attractive to users. “View counts are a subtle way to encourage people to share more video to the service if they feel their content is being widely seen,” writes Garrett Sloane for Adage.
Instagram rolls out recommended pages
Instagram has officially started recommending posts to users based on posts that have been liked by other accounts the user follows. The new feature is being compared to Facebook’s Explore Feed, where users can view content from a wider network, not just people and pages they follow directly. But don’t worry, the update isn’t meant to replace a user’s preferred content. The section will appear after a user has viewed all the posts in their feed, an Instagram spokesperson explains, while confirming the feature’s public launch to TechCrunch.
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by Fronetics | Jan 17, 2018 | Blog, Content Marketing, Current Events, Marketing, Social Media
Users will see less content from businesses, brands, and media, so you need to adjust your strategy to appear on your followers’ Facebook News Feed.
Mark Zuckerberg once again rocked the world on January 11 — at least for businesses — when he announced that Facebook News Feed was evolving to include less public content, meaning content from Pages of businesses, brands, and media. The algorithm will now prioritize posts from friends and family (over public posts) and those that “spark conversations and meaningful interactions between people.”
Cue businesses around the world freaking out. They’re about to see their organic reach, video watch time, and referral traffic take a nose dive.
The fact is, this is really not a huge surprise. Facebook has been taking steps in this direction for a while, including the testing of Explore Feed last year. Even though you may have anticipated that some changes to Facebook for businesses were coming, you may be tempted to suddenly stop maintaining your Facebook Page. Is it worth posting content to Facebook if it is not going to reach your followers after these new changes?
Our stance at Fronetics is that Facebook is still worthwhile for businesses. But Zuck’s recent announcement does merit your close attention to — and perhaps a revisiting of — your Facebook strategy. We’ve compiled a list of things you need to know/do in light of the new changes to Facebook News Feed. Here they are.
4 steps to adjust your strategy for Facebook News Feed changes
1) Focus on news-worthy content that drives engagement.
Zuckerberg says, “I’m changing the goal I give our product teams from focusing on helping you find relevant content to helping you have more meaningful social interactions.” That means that engagement will now mean more than ever before for content visibility.
In other words, posting your blog content to Facebook is no longer going to cut it. If your posts don’t garner comments or reactions, it’s time to go back to the drawing board. You’ll need to start thinking of Facebook as a place to post and discuss active news items, hot-button issues, and highly shareable content (content that is educational or entertaining, for example).
Scheduling multiple posts ahead of time, though convenient, will probably land your content further into the depths of oblivion. You’re going to have to pay attention, actively seek to generate conversation between users with your posts, and fight to win space on your followers’ feeds.
2) Tell your community to access the See First feature.
Users who still want to see posts from certain Pages they follow can choose “See First” in News Feed Preferences. So, quite simply, we suggest asking your followers to choose to see your content.
While some proactive followers may do this on their own, we want to encourage you to explicitly remind your community to do this. Remember that people are most likely to do what you want them to when you make it easy, exact, and clear. So send them an email with directions. Or put it in your newsletter or a blog post. Just tell them to do it.
One thing you don’t want to do: goad people into commenting on your posts as a means to increase your content visibility. Facebook has explicitly stated that it will demote “engagement bait,” or posts that ask for comments or reactions. So you’ll actually hurt your content by doing this.
3) Get your executives on social media.
I’ve written before about getting your executives on social media as themselves — they act as brand ambassadors for your business. Facebook’s latest announcement underscores the importance of this directive.
Your company’s executives are the most visible people in your business. For many of your industry peers and customers, they are the face of your brand. Get them active on Facebook to add meaningful thoughts to your company’s posted content, to engage in discussions, and to share newsworthy content of their own.
It’s important to note that I don’t mean that they should do this in a superficial way. They should actively seek to add value to your Facebook content and that which is relevant to happenings within your industry. By being engaging on Facebook, your executives emerge as thought leaders, which boosts your brand’s visibility and reputation.
4) Consider your Ad budget.
In the past, we have recommended adding some social media advertising to a traditional content marketing strategy as a way for clients to add gasoline to a fire, so to speak. It speeds things up. But those companies who are just starting out or who rely heavily on referral traffic might want to consider reallocating budget to sponsored ads.
Final thoughts on the new Facebook News Feed
This is a shift, yes. A challenge, for sure. But not one that’s insurmountable — or even contrary to the basic principles of good, data-driven content marketing.
Remember, Facebook is not eliminating Page content from News Feed altogether — just limiting it. The most relevant, engaging Page content will win that space. So seek to understand your target audience and produce high-quality, original content that engages those people, and you’ll come out on top of the new Facebook News Feed.
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