Facebook Changes Will Focus on a Future That’s “Private”

Expect to see emphasis on meaningful, long-form engagement inside groups and reduced investment in the general newsfeed

If there’s one thing you can count on with social media, it’s that changes are on the way—and often those changes directly affect author marketing and promotion. Facebook in particular has become more challenging to use if you depend solely on organic reach (the kind you don’t pay for). But even if you do pay, some changes ahead will affect how you use the platform.

In late June, we sat in on an online session delivered by social media marketing expert and author Holly Mortimer, speaking on changes coming to Facebook and how to ensure you’re following best practices. We’re grateful to Mortimer for giving us permission to share these high-level takeaways and to Author Support Network (a Facebook group administered by novelist Marie Force) for hosting her.

First, here’s a quick look at the changes you can expect. Mark Zuckerberg has publicly said that “the future is private” and that Facebook will be changing to make the social experience “more intimate.” According to Mortimer, that means:

• The general Facebook newsfeed will shrink. (The newsfeed is where you see updates from friends, pages, and groups, mixed with ads.) Mortimer says Facebook is no longer interested in putting money into the newsfeed product except for Stories. (Stories are the vertically oriented updates that you may be more familiar with as part of Instagram.) Expect Stories to eventually take over the newsfeed.
• Facebook Messenger is favored by Facebook because it’s private. Mortimer suggests using it for chats and for subgroups of any Facebook groups you manage. Direct selling is coming to Messenger, so expect it to play a role in your future marketing and promotion.
• Newsfeed ads will become more expensive and less effective over time. Right now, Mortimer says she believes in advertising to Instagram Stories and Messenger, not to the newsfeed.

Also, Mortimer explained a new metric Facebook uses to determine whether to show content to users: it’s called the Click-Gap signal. When people click on links in Facebook, Facebook will analyze the quality of what’s on the other end. It could reduce the reach of your post (assuming you’re linking to something) if the number of links from Facebook are greater than the popularity of that link on the internet. Or Facebook might choose to suppress reach of your post if you’re linking to something against its community standards or terms of service. 

Part of Facebook’s goal here is to reduce the spread of low-quality information and clickbait—but of course the policy can have negative repercussions for authors who rely on Facebook alone to drive traffic to their site. The Click-Gap signal could tell Facebook that people never visit your content unless it’s from a Facebook link. Our big takeaways from this: don’t rely on Facebook for your traffic, and try to get your core readers or fans onto your email newsletter list.

Since groups are a key area of engagement on Facebook—and appear set to remain so for the future—Mortimer summarized best practices. 

• First, as always, it’s imperative to create content that results in conversations. Conversation needs to be long-form or meaningful, not just one- or two-word responses. Interestingly, Mortimer mentioned that animated GIFs have the highest content ranking inside of long-form conversation rankings. If you’re at a loss for ideas, ask people to voice their opinion on something. (Humans love to give their opinion.)
• Teach your readers to leave a reaction other than a Like. Right now, according to Mortimer, when someone Likes your post, that is not considered engagement—they have to go to the next level, which is the heart or Love reaction. 
• Reduce takeovers or reframe them, as their reach is being reduced, just as giveaways and contest postings have been suppressed. (A social media takeover is when someone takes over posting for the day.) Instead, Mortimer suggests having parties—time-limited special events—and inviting guests to lead conversations inside authors’ groups. 
• Link your group to your business page. Mortimer says there’s a lot of e-commerce functionality on the way for Facebook groups, but you won’t have access to it unless the group is linked to a Facebook business page.
• Avoid engagement baiting, as such posts will be suppressed by Facebook. This is where you ask people to comment, vote, react, share, or tag.

Bottom line: Mortimer emphasized the value of having your Facebook fans/readers share something from your page or group onto their own newsfeed. “That is the ultimate in algorithm ranking,” she said. “How are you going to get readers to be your influencers and marketers? Do it by exciting them, giving them the tools to do so, empowering them to talk about your books, and understanding their interests.” That is still possible and eminently doable through Facebook, even with the changes on the way. Avoid clickbait content and track the performance of your posts; repeat what works and always in the spirit of being relevant to your readers. To learn more about Facebook marketing, you can join Mortimer’s free Facebook group, The Romance Writers Marketing Academy, or join her paid membership community, The Socialvert Society. Mortimer also offers email marketing services (and more) through her company, The Socialvert.