On 1st July, I came across an interesting topic on Social Media Today on Facebook’s new news feed update that aims to combat link spammers. I personally feel that this comes in timely (with the pressure of ‘Fake News’ if you get what I mean). After all, what we users hope is to get the right news at the right time. And link spammers are just annoying to say the very least!
Here’s the official news from Facebook:
“Our research shows that there is a tiny group of people on Facebook who routinely share vast amounts of public posts per day, effectively spamming people’s feeds. Our research further shows that the links they share tend to include low quality content such as clickbait, sensationalism, and misinformation. As a result, we want to reduce the influence of these spammers and deprioritize the links they share more frequently than regular sharers.”
So in this post, you are going to find some effective ways to keep yourself clear from being targetted by the Facebook algorithm (for the better or for the worst).
How Facebook News Feed Update Will Combat Link Spammers
1. Be real
Being real is the best way to distinguish yourself from others. Social media influencers have long used their own unique ‘voices’ to distinguish themselves from the public.
And it makes all the sense. We engage with people who are real. We always engage with our friends who we know and often time ignore the friendship request from those who don’t resonate with us. At some point, we might even consider to unfriend/unfollow them too!
When you are being real (like a real person, no pun intended), you will be more likable and more importantly keep yourself away from the havoc Facebook new algorithm can make to you.
2. Share content that matters the most (only)
We share a lot of things daily and let’s face it, we are all guilty of such. However, the next time you are planning to share a post on Facebook, share content that matters most to the readers.
In other words, relevancy is the key. There is no point sharing a post that resonates to no one. It doesn’t only affect the Facebook experience of others, it also affects your own experience using Facebook.
Do you know that this is also why some people keep saying that Twitter gives more engagement than Facebook? Yup, go figure on that one!
3. Avoid spamming
Spamming is a big no-no and even if you certainly got to, avoid spamming at all cost. It is going to affect the way the algorithm works and it will actually make it really bad for you.
Now, what to do if you have the same content to be shared?
I use the same content all the time but make sure we change the text. Make it more engaging, recycle every 2-3 times of using the same post and you will notice a higher engagement rate (overall) for your marketing strategy.
Plus, spamming will just increase the ‘report’ level of your account which is never a good thing!
4. Ask for engagement
Reverse psychology. Do you notice how many people asking you to comment on their post?
When people comment on your post, you are going to get a lot more engagement level. For Facebook, this is a sign that you are not a spammer and you are constantly sharing content that interests others.
How to ask for engagement?
- Politely ask your friends to leave a comment
- Ask them to leave an emotion to share their feelings
- Ask them to comment using GIF only
You see, there are many ways you can ask for engagement. Most importantly, be really polite to do so!
Scrolling down the Facebook feed and you will see many people doing many things to get attention. This is exactly what they are doing! They are pushing for engagement as engagement is going to rock your marketing strategy!
5. Sharing contents to the right group of audience
We all share a lot of contents to various groups and it makes all the sense. We are all businessmen/women, right?
Here’s the thing. Sharing the right content to the right group is going to affect your engagement rate. For example, sharing topic related to search engine optimization in gardening groups isn’t going to give you a lot of engagement because they are not related in any way.
The next time you are sending sharing content to Facebook groups, always consider the type of content you are going to share with the audience. Sharing content that is high in value will bring you more engagement and in a long run, it is going to help your content in front of a wider range of audience!
6. Engaging with others also helps
Do you know that you should always take the opportunity to engage with others? Social media marketing is not a one-man show or even a one-way traffic. It always takes two hands to clap. In this case, make it a point to engage with others as this will also show that you are a real person.
It often takes a lot more for you to engage with others first before they can engage back with you. Plus, if you want to be successful, this is the only way to do so. There isn’t any easier way than this!
There are many ways you can engage on Facebook. You can choose to engage with others by leaving comments and just being interactive with one another. After all, others will be more tempted to engage back with you if you take the first step!
Summary
The Facebook news feed update is meant to combat news that is unreal and spam. From a user point of view, I certainly hope this is a good move as there is just too much spam in the space.
Are you doing what it takes to be more visible on Facebook? Share your marketing strategy below and let’s discuss further.
Do you think that this new Facebook News Feed update is going to have a lasting impact?
See also: Clever Ways To Use Facebook Groups For Marketing Your Brand
