Facebook is at it again, taking another shot at business pages by destroying your Social DNA. In recent past, Facebook has messed around with its new algorithm to make it more difficult for business pages to build their EdgeRank or Social DNA. The latest blow comes in the form of two new rules which will take down your content development and marketing efforts. In its latest post on the changes, Facebook engineers has doubled down on two critical factors that make up your EdgeRank.
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Like-baiting
“Like-baiting” is when a post explicitly asks News Feed readers to like, comment or share the post in order to get additional distribution beyond what the post would normally receive.
People often respond to posts asking them to take an action, and this means that these posts get shown to more people, and get shown higher up in News Feed. However, when we survey people and ask them to rate the quality of these stories, they report that like-baiting stories are, on average, 15% less relevant than other stories with a comparable number of likes, comments and shares. Over time, these stories lead to a less enjoyable experience of Facebook since they drown out content from friends and Pages that people really care about.
The improvement we are making today better detects these stories and helps ensure that they are not shown more prominently in News Feed than more relevant stories from friends and other Pages. This update will not impact Pages that are genuinely trying to encourage discussion among their fans, and focuses initially on Pages that frequently post explicitly asking for Likes, Comments and Shares.
Frequently Circulated Content
People and Pages on Facebook frequently reshare great content, but people tell us there are occasionally instances where photos or videos are uploaded to Facebook over and over again. We’ve found that people tend to find these instances of repeated content less relevant, and are more likely to complain about the Pages that frequently post them. We are improving News Feed to de-emphasize these Pages, and our early testing shows that this change causes people to hide 10% fewer stories from Pages overall.
What’s clear now is that Facebook is clearly on the war path with Content Marketing Platforms such as Hootsuite, Buffer and a host of Social Media Marketing platforms which are taking away advertising dollars away from Facebook. If you post often, it doesn’t necessarily mean it will get featured. And if for some reason the same picture gets shared, chances are it won’t be shown.
Where is my Social DNA dude?
For Facebook Pages, your Social DNA or EdgeRank needs these two the most. First, let’s examine Like-baiting. This is what makes your content relevant where you can reach out to an organic audience. People who have never heard of you will hear of you from their friends who repost and comment on your content.
Your content is worth sharing, that sounds cool but Facebook doesn’t want that anymore. Instead, any form of Like-baiting will be taken down in the Newsfeed Algorithm. Regardless of what they tell you that your Pages post are safe, there is no denying that Facebook’s new newsfeed content algorithm will affect you. First, what is a genuine post and what is not? Can the new algorithm decide on such a difference? If you were a bakery making a new line of cakes and wanted your audience to like them, would that constitute like-baiting? What about a Pages contest that ask you to like and share it with your friends? Is this illegal now?
Here, your social engagement will be nullified and there is no Content Marketing platform in the world that will save you from this. Good content gets shared. Engaging content gets commented on. Now that this is out the window for you, Facebook wants you to promote your newsfeed content for a better reach with $$$!
spamming a popular post is possibly the only way you can get someone to notice
Frequently Curated Content is probably the best way to go viral. Different people who like your video will post in their own language. This localized type of sharing is what creates a bigger reach for content. Sometimes people repeat the content that you posted because Facebook has HIDDEN it from the newsfeed! Your friends never saw what you posted earlier and for that, it messes with the content newsfeed to ensure the same content won’t get seen unless of course you boost the post. This also means Facebook is demanding that you promote your post in your newsfeed by paying for it to be seen!
Facebook is all about Money
Social Media Marketing platforms are now taking a severe hit. Sad but true, you have no choice but to ante up on those Facebook credits just to stay ahead of the game. Even services like Hootsuite will be taken down a few notches. What use is your content marketing and management efforts when the Facebook Newsfeed algorithm doesn’t play nice with your content? You can share something that doesn’t show up on your fan’s timelines and even if you do, there is a good chance that it will be limited to just a handful of fans and not the broader fan base. Facebook does not tell you your organic reach per post.
Facebook has come out to say they recognize the big brand names. So if you have a smaller competing brand, chance are you don’t stand a chance. A big brand can throw a hundred thousand into a campaign and you miserly $100 isn’t going to get you a comment. The reach of an average Business Page post is in the ballpark of 8%. This means only 8 out of 100 people will see your post. The numbers go up once you ante up by paying Facebook to promote that post you made. More money means more fans will see the post.
What Brands does the Facebook Algorithm recognizes?
Based on current observations, the brands that enjoy a wider reach will be those like Musicians, bands, long dead book authors and team sports. Facebook prioritizes newsfeed items based on your hobbies and interest. As a new brand owner, you won’t enjoy these privileges.
Social engagement cost time and money. Content development cost money too. But now with Facebook jumping queue and coming to you with an outstretched hand asking for some dough, will you be able to turn them down?
What it Means for You?
Less casual posting, more money into content development. Save your ammo for the best content to post instead of just staying within eyeball reach. Create an online strategy for engagement to build and audience and , have a budget for Facebook promotions because you are going to need it! Set aside a few hundred dollars at least. US$300 is a good start and see where it goes. If that fails to make a dent, chances are you’re better off with Twitter, Pinterest, G+ and Instagram.
Remember that getting a LIKE for you Page isn’t going to generate a dime in ROI. That’s overly optimistic. You need to feed this repeatedly with each post. The budget for each content posted and the ballpark should be US$8 for those with 1,000 and up to US$50 for 5,000 fans or followers. This is the burn rate you have to live with. When you promote a post, Facebook determines this rate automatically and tells you to double down on those credit card details. There are no returns for this sort of investments except to build your fan base. A paid reach has a higher chance of success for any content that elicits a response from your followers.
Build up your EdgeRank or Social DNA from there and as you reach the optimum goal of say 10,000 fans. Having a bigger fan base is far too expensive to support unless you got plenty of money in the bank for Zuckerberg Inc. This means you need to develop loyal customers to your service quickly with each post and not carpet bomb the newsfeed with curated content. Curated content has very little room to outmaneuver the newsfeed algorithm. Once people see these and don’t react to it, your content will be wasted, this also creates bad Social DNA. You need to have reactions and comments in all your post to get a boosted EdgeRank. All this takes time and you can’t waste it on curated content. If you are going to put money into developing engaging content, do it with conviction. Those cheap stunts are not going to return any eyeballs and with the clock ticking on the time decay algorithm, chances are the post will be forgotten.
Online businesses advertising their latest wares on Facebook pages will have to pay up to get the newsfeed noticed. You can get around this by asking your followers and fans to subscribe to your Twitter or Instagram feed for updates. Reward them for following you. Facebook alone isn’t viable anymore.
What Makes up your Social DNA on Facebook, the EdgeRank
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