Facebook Zero – Everything you need to know!
Social Media
Written by Jennifer
29th January 2018
Facebook’s changing (again!) and it could be bad news for business owners and marketers.
What’s Facebook Zero?
In a statement released earlier this month, Adam Mosseri, Facebook’s Head of Newsfeed, stated:
“Over the next few months, we’ll be making updates to ranking so people have more opportunities to interact with the people they care about.”
Facebook’s Founder, Mark Zuckerberg, has also said of the changes:
“As we roll this out, you’ll see less public content like posts from businesses, brands, and media. And the public content you see more will be held to the same standard – it should encourage meaningful interactions between people.”
In short, Facebook are altering their algorithm in order to boost the amount of “meaningful interactions” on their network. Posts that receive very little interaction (E.g. business content) will, therefore, be ranked much lower, resulting in a lack of reach and reduced website traffic. Even video content, which has previously outperformed all other content, will be affected by the changes, as it doesn’t typically spark ongoing conversations.
So, how can marketers fight these changes?
-
Post content that stimulates conversation:
No matter how basic it sounds, creating stimulating content is effectively the key to unlocking Facebook’s algorithm. Facebook are on the lookout for “meaningful content,” and posts that are being highly engaged with are going to be seen as so.
One great way to encourage engagement is simply to post more personal photos from within your business – After all, potential customers don’t want to see continuous stock photos, they want to see real images of you, your staff and the services you provide.
-
Live Streaming
Facebook Zero hasn’t even hit full throttle and Live Video is already soaring to new heights, with Facebook even stating that it now leads to 6x more interaction than all other content. Why? Because Facebook Live completely bypasses Facebook’s usual algorithm and is even promoted by the site in order to boost usage. Going live with Facebook couldn’t be easier, and businesses that do so will create the desired “meaningful interactions” with their audience, helping to keep them engaged for future content.
-
Avoid Engagement Bait
Engagement bait refers to businesses outright asking for comments on their posts. Said tactics won’t be considered “meaningful interaction” so pages that rely on them will be further demoted in the newsfeed.
-
Make the most of Facebook Ads
The Facebook newsfeed is effectively the high street of your business’ online presence, and no business wants to be hidden away in the back! Facebook Ads are the only sure-fire way to maintain your business’ place on the newsfeed, and need to be used effectively in order to promote solid content and drive traffic to your website. One great way to do so is to spend more time focusing on the quality of Facebook content, rather than the quantity, and we would suggest limiting your daily Facebook posts to just one.
-
Messenger
Messenger was already set to be huge in 2018, but Facebook’s ever-changing algorithm has made it more important than ever. Even before the announcement of Facebook Zero, we had fantastic success when using messenger as part of a recruitment drive for one of our clients.
Businesses that master Facebook Messenger now will be able to step away from posting when Facebook Zero does kick off and, instead, focus on nurturing leads and sales by contacting consumers direct.
As with any social network update, marketers looking to reap the benefits of Facebook Zero need to be ahead of the game. Whether it be publishing quality content, investing in live video or simply using Facebook Ads, now is the perfect time for brands to update their marketing strategy and learn more about certain features that they are currently lacking in. Brands that do so are destined to reap the rewards.
You can read Mark Zuckerberg’s personal comment on this dated 12th January 2018, click here to read.
Need help or a strategy creating for Facebook?
Give us a buzz on Leeds: 0113 3206266 or Harrogate: 01423 297009 or click here to contact us.
