The Wizard of . . . Facebook

HOW DOES FACEBOOK WORK!

Are only 26 of my friends really seeing my posts? What is the magical algorithm!

You frequent flyers have all seen that silly post telling you how to bypass the system, and that Facebook posts are limited to 26 friends? I bet you shared it too, hoping for more content in your feed.

Well my friends (all 26 of you), that’s just not how it works.

Let’s take a look behind the curtain, shall we?

Facebook measures by defining ACTIONS as more meaningful than others. It’s that simple.

Commenting and sharing are more active than likes. Scrolling through news feed and hitting the “LIKE” button is just way too passive to be counted.

Making posts that people don’t read or comment on also gets ignored by the FACEBOOK WIZARD. But pages with prompt conversations get noticed!

So what does this mean? Users will be more likely to see your Facebook posts if their friends and family are actively commenting on it.

Make love not war . . . VERY true in the Facebook land of OZ.

Reactions matter.

Hit the “LOVE” icon vs. the “LIKE” icon and your content gets a tiny little, magical boost in the News Feed. . . . because loving is always more important than just liking something . . . just ask the Tin Man.

And on that note, the “HAHA” “WOW” “SAD” and “ANGRY” icons also get a bit more notice. So get off the fence and get emotional!

Your mom always told you to share . . . right?

Sharing content on your wall is great, but if you also send that content through messenger to friends, well then you’ve done what your mama taught you, and the FACEBOOK WIZARD will reward you.

And if you get “engagement”, (that means your friends then go on to share your post and get their own “engagement” from others) you will be prioritized in the algorithm and rewarded for your sharing soul.

Of course if your post is shared on enough the “viral” post is born.

Aside from the top 5 “meaningful interactions” listed above here are some other Facebook news feed ranking tips:

TIME SPENT: Though its still unclear how the 2018 Facebook measures this, the length of time spent engaging with or viewing a post affects the post rank.

TIME POSTED: This is a no-brainer scarecrow! if you post at a time when more users are likely to be on-line, of course you will get more interaction and hence better ranking. (For you more advanced email marketeers, think of send time optimization.)

STORY TYPE: Another mystery here, but a recent Facebook press release specifically mentioned live video as “leading to discussion among viewers” which would in-turn make this an active interaction and affect ranking.

PAGE PROFILE: Fill that puppy out! The more info on your profile the more interactions as Facebook matches you with potential followers and determines if you are legit.

POST INFORMATION: The Facebook algorithm was tweaked in 2016 to highlight “informative posts”. However informative was not clearly defined, so you have to wonder if those silly memes get ignored while Grandma's recipe for chocolate chip cookies spirals out of control . . .

So what should you do?

• Focus on video! Live video! On average live video gets six times as many interactions as regular videos.

• Don’t click bait! Don’t be tempted to ask your audience to comment on a post. It’s just plain spammy. Not real sure how Facebook polices this, but it will most definitely get you “down-ranked” if you make it a continual practice.

• Build your community! Businesses should especially look into ways to engage customers with groups.

• Create Quality Content! Put stuff out there people want to see and like magic you get interactions which lead to better ranking. Do this by researching your audience, running tests, checking analytics, asking questions, AND HIRING A PROFESSIONAL MARKETER LIKE HOLMESART CREATIVE to help you with a social media plan. :)

Most of these tips are useful for publishing content on all social media platforms—not just Facebook.

DO NOT FEAR the algorithm changes, I'm sure you are already dedicated to providing friends and customers with valuable, quality content. Facebook works hard to make sure it is showing users content that they care about from trustworthy sources—so be one of them.

Contact Holmesart Creative to Manage your Facebook presence alongside your other social media channels. We can show you how to do it all from a single dashboard: schedule posts, share video, engage your audience, and measure the impact of your efforts.

Give us a call 903-241-5771, and remember the great and powerful OZ was merely a man pushing buttons.