Becoming better strategists and marketers is on everyone’s horizon these days; as fast as technology moves, it’s got to be.
The latest change has come in the form of Facebook’s new algorithm, which is going to twist the style of our marketing. This adjustment means big changes for brands. Now that the focus has changed from branded sites to friends and family posts, the dreaded news that companies will have to work harder and smarter is officially here.
For a sneak peek at what these changes mean for your social media marketing campaigns, here are my four main takeaways from the launch of the new algorithm that are going to change the way we play the promotion game.
The Change Will Affect Your Business
The way the new system works is by giving authority on the News Feed to your family and friends’ shares rather than publishers such as Buzzfeed, even if you subscribe to their official page. Remember that cute 30-second video that showed you how to make the greatest Super Bowl nachos? Remember the cute, viral video of a puppy playing hide and seek with her owner? You’re going to get less of that in the future.
Most publishers feel like that won’t affect them very much, since all they have to do is get family members and friends to share their initial post. Yet if that initial post came from the Facebook feed of Buzzfeed, you’ve got a problem. Fewer people are going to see that first post, resulting in diminished returns in the long run. Each piece of content has to work that much harder to get over an initial hurdle of sharing.
Bring Your Money
Facebook is wise to the ad game, and it’s taking it a step further than just ten dollars for a boost post. The social network is also going to take you to the cleaners for those ads that you’ll now have to buy to make up for lack of native traffic.
Bring out the large bills for posting ads that will reach 25,000 people, because it’s going to be the new norm. Also, do you know what all the demand will do to the supply? It’s going to make ads more expensive over a short amount of time. Facebook can already see the profits down the line.
Branded Content Has to be Tagged that Way
Since Facebook updated its rules on branded content, the sponsored posts that aren’t clearly tagged as branded content are going to be taken down without a warning. There’s also another catch: you have to share your analytics with your sponsor. It’s part of the new rules.
Before, publishers could bundle ads and content together, pay a small boost fee and get paid for the viral content without the advertiser being any wiser that the publisher was double dipping when it got paid for the viral hits. Now, publishers have to tag their advertisers, and those advertisers get the details on the same analytics, page views and the real price tag for each post, as well as how much money the traffic is creating for the publisher. Now that those numbers are available, the advertiser is going to see right through that scenario and call out native content.
Many of the other tools marketers use might also be under threat as well in the near future. Regional content is already becoming less effective with the rise of the use of Virtual Private Networks, which can be used by consumers on multiple devices to block their location from Facebook, omitting them from your regionally-targeted advertising and content.
People Are Going to Become More Narrow-Minded
The “Facebook echo chamber” is what they call the political, moral and ethical bubble you live in where you only see the posts of people who have the same opinions as you do. Since Facebook debuted the unsubscribe feature where you can stay friends but not see their updates, the world has become a more narrow-minded place where we get to see only what we want to see.
Up until now, the trending news from publishers such as CNN, The New York Times, Fox News, etc., have had a fighting chance to get on your News Feed even if you weren’t interested in them with boosted posts and branded content disguised as content, but now that’s about to change. Instead of fielding those trending posts on occasion, you’re not going to see them much unless someone in your circle thinks it’s worthy enough to post on their page. While it may seem like a good thing, it’s not. Now polarized societies will very rarely see news outside of their bubble.
While the family is taking the priority with the new Facebook algorithm, it’s glaringly obvious that the work of digital marketing teams is about to get much more complicated. There is no doubt that the industry is going to think of new ways to get their content to reach the masses.
Alternatively, you can open your wallet while we wait for the bravest among us to discover new tactics. The choice is completely up to you.
About the Author: Cassie is a digital content queen and frequent PR tech guru. She hopes the knowledge this article will help you make better decisions on how to make a difference in your digital marketing campaigns.