Prepare to see more baby pics and engagement announcements on your Facebook News Feed — the social media giant is changing the way it determines what users see first when they log in.
Mark Zuckerberg recently announced a new algorithm that will prioritize updates from family and friends over posts from businesses, brands and media companies. This is great for keeping up with your great aunt’s trip to Belize, but what does it mean for your company’s social media strategy?
(Wait, you do have a social media strategy, right? If not, let’s fix that first.)
Whether you are a Fortune 500 company or a small business, the new algorithm is sure to impact how you reach and interact with consumers. Here’s what to know and how to prepare for the shift to keep audiences engaged:
Micro-influencers are even more important.
As social media as a whole has changed over the past few years, our strategies have adapted to include partnerships with micro-influencers — individuals with between 1,000 to 10,000 followers who aren’t quite celebrities or media contributors but create quality content and have significant pull with their niche audiences. Their followers trust their opinions and have a genuine investment in what they are up to day-to-day. Because many of these micro-influencers are not considered media or individual brands, they will be key to reaching consumers in coming months. The way we select and work with them may change, but they will be essential to a successful social media campaign nonetheless.
Your ad budget may need an increase.
Facebook says the new algorithm will not affect paid posts on the platform [1], but it remains to be seen how the changes will affect ad pricing and the bidding process. Posts from brands will not be completely shut out, but they will be ranked as lower priority — unless you’re prepared to pay — and we can infer that fewer chances to reach consumers likely means a higher price tag. Being strategic with your social media ad dollars is crucial. Run multiple campaigns, track results, and if at all possible, hire an expert to manage the process for you.
A traditional PR strategy is still necessary.
A well-rounded campaign should incorporate social media, not rely on it completely. If you already have a traditional PR strategy in place, it will lessen the blow from the Facebook drawbacks. Take the first few weeks of 2018 to get your PR plan in order, including a media and social media strategy, crisis communications plan, community partnerships and involvement in any local or industry events. Ensure you are reaching your audiences in multiple ways and that messaging is consistent across all platforms.
[1] Digiday: Advertisers see merits of the Facebook algorithm change