How many of you utilize a Facebook page to interact with your customers and gain new ones? Have you heard about the new algorithm being implemented that will change the way your pages posts show in news feeds? This is a pretty BIG deal and there are some things you can do to ensure your Facebook page does not get completely drowned out by these changes.

What’s all the fuss about?

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, recently announced a change to the social media platform’s algorithm for its users news feeds. Facebook is undergoing a year-long revamp to encourage interactions that are meaningful and personal. With this change, Facebook users will begin to see more posts from friends and family in their newsfeed and less public (unpaid) content from businesses and publishers. This change comes from feedback from Facebook’s users and recent studies that have shown that just scrolling on the social network and watching videos can make people feel worse, whereas meaningful interactions that build relationships with friends and family lead to a happier, healthier life. “We feel a responsibility to make sure our services aren’t just fun to use, but also good for people’s well-being” Zuckerberg wrote in a post announcing the new changes.

This will make it more difficult for business pages to have a large organic reach, but Zuckerberg did say that the public content that “encourage[s] meaningful interactions between people” will be shown more than the content that doesn’t.

What does this mean?

Well, you know those posts that you put up that no one comments on? Those posts are less likely to be shown organically in people’s news feeds.

Facebook wants people to interact and build relationships, not to just mindlessly scroll through without making any engagement with their news feed. If you noticed that people aren’t commenting or sharing your content, it may be time to step up your Facebook game.

What can you do?

There are plenty of minor changes you can make to ensure your business’ Facebook presence continues to grow. Here are a few suggestions:

You should try encouraging people to comment on your Facebook posts.

Ask a question like “Are you a saver or a spender?” or “If you could travel to any country for free, where would you go and why?” These types of questions prompt your fans to comment on your post and by them commenting, their friends and family are more likely to see your post.

We do want to advise you to be careful of making posts that seem like spam.

In other words, don’t say “COMMENT below if you’re having a great day.” Facebook is working to not show those types of posts as well, so it’s best to avoid it.

Don’t be afraid to ask your customers to follow you on Facebook.

It won’t hurt to send a nice email to customers that have recently visited your establishment or purchased your products/services to thank them for for their patronage and ask them to stay up to date with your business by following you on facebook (don’t forget to provide them with the link to your facebook page).

Ask those loyal fans to click the “see first” option when they follow your page.

You know those customers that come in and or order your products/services all the time? They’re your fans! When you ask them to follow you on Facebook, tell them there’s a “see first” option so that they can be sure to see your posts. They’ll be happy to stay informed.

It may be time to increase your ad budget.

Looks like these changes won’t affect the paid ads. You’ll want to spend a bit more on boosted posts and run an ad campaign. What’s going to be key with this paid advertising is that you use purposeful targeting. Targeting to everyone won’t get you too far and frankly it’s a waste of money. Show your ads to the people who want to see it and make sure the content is relevant. For example, a real estate agency should not be showing their ads to everyone. A real estate agency would be better off targeting people who are over the age of 25, likely to move, and also target the specific area the real estate does business in. When you use targeting like this, your ads will be shown more often to the people who want to see them.

Create more Facebook Live videos.

Facebook has found that these videos generate more interaction amongst users and that’s exactly what you need to be seen in the news feed. Start a Live video when something new and exciting is coming up, but be sure to make a post about it in advance to give your fans a little heads up as to when you’re going live. Make sure you keep your viewers engaged by interacting with them. Say “Hi, Jessica!” when she joins in on the video. This is also a great way for your fans to get to know your brand on a personal level.

With all that being said (well, written), Facebook is a great way to keep your fans engaged with your brand and it can continue to be as long as you continue to learn about and adapt to these changes.

Still confused about all these changes? No worries… The team at Rock Paper Simple would love to answer all of your questions. Please give us a call or contact us here!