Welcome to 2018! With the new year brings new Facebook algorithm updates. As you probably already know, Facebook has an algorithm they use that affects how many people see your posts. We touch on it on this article about previous updates here if you want to learn more. This time, they have some updates you should know about in order to keep your post engagement up!
Intent & Viewership Matters for Videos
Videos that people are searching out are given more relevance on the News Feed. So if people are going directly to your page to watch your video, it will perform better. On top of that, if people are watching your videos frequently, your videos will get preference in the News Feed. What this means for you is to make sure all of your videos are quality videos that people WANT to watch. Don’t just do a video for the sake of it.
Engagement Bait is a No No
What is engagement bait? I’m sure you’ve seen it (and maybe even used it) before! Engagement bait is when someone puts copy in their post such as, “Like this if you…” or “Tag a friend who…” These kinds of comments are actually being filtered out by Facebook now to be given less preference on the News Feed. Here are some examples we borrowed from Social Media Today of phrases to avoid.
Tag Baiting – Asking people to tag their friends
Comment Baiting – Asking people to comment with specific answers (like a number or emoji)
Vote Baiting – Asking people to vote using reactions, comments, sharing, etc.
React Baiting – Asking people to “react” to the post
Share Baiting – Asking people to share the post
Only Post Quality Links
It’s a great idea to share a link to post or article you really like. Just make sure that the website you’re linking to is a quality, reputable site. This means it shouldn’t have any malicious or shocking content or ads, pages load quickly, content is substantive and the source is reputable. Does your link meet these guidelines? If so, go ahead and post away, otherwise it will be given less preference in the News Feed.
What are the takeaways here? Create quality video content, post appropriate, high-value links and don’t ask people for reactions to your posts. Keep creating authentic and engaging content and you’ll show up higher in the News Feed preferences! Learn even more here at Social Media Today.