A change is sure to come to Facebook in 2015, as the company starts cracking down on overly promotional page posts. A new algorithm shift will penalize any posts that are conveyed like a sales pitch or urging people to take an action.
The Change in the Facebook News Feed
The Facebook News Feed is where your Facebook page is seen the most through the posts you share on your page. This is where Facebook users take actions on your posts, and depending on how the post is constructed, it can either appeal or appall an audience.
Recently, Facebook conducted a study that concluded with many Facebook users preferring Facebook Ads over intrusive overly promotional page posts that are shared organically and displayed within news feeds.
Facebook Survey Says…
What they discovered from the survey is that Facebook users do not like the following:
1. Posts that solely push people to buy a product or install an app
2. Posts that push people to enter promotions and sweepstakes with no real context
3. Posts that reuse the exact same content from ads
Although the emphasis is on organic posts as opposed to Facebook Ads, it is recommended that you apply the same practice when creating Facebook Ads.
Say Goodbye to Traditional Writing for Advertising
What many would consider traditional writing for advertisements is exactly what will get your posts penalized within the Facebook Algorithm. Here are some examples straight from Facebook of what overly promotional page posts look like:
And
Many marketers have been taught that urgency is essential in providing actions from potential customers. This is clearly going to require a strategy shift when using Facebook as a social marketing platform.
You will need to get creative in sharing promotions, sweepstakes, and giveaways instead of stopping them altogether.
Get New Ideas to Promote
Use images to inspire a creative post that is clever, for example, the tiger image above could be sharing his thoughts on being on the show that night and bring some personality to the posts instead of coming across as pushy.
Another example is with the bunny puzzle action example above. Why not explain how much fun it is and what joy it can bring rather than putting urgency on the sale itself.
Turning promotions into fun, creative and clever posts will appeal to a wider audience and will allow them to make their own choice to take a social action or to click. People prefer this more so than a pushy sales pitch and Facebook is going to apply a decrease in posts being seen within News Feed if pages don’t apply.
Now is the time to begin strategizing and preparing your team to ensure that your posts continue to be seen within news feeds by practicing before the first of the year.
In the “Get Your Social On” Episode on “Facebook will Roast Overly Promotional Page Posts!” Amanda and Erin Ryan discuss more ideas about how you can avoid overly promotional page posts.