Facebook has announced a host of changes set to revolutionise the manner in which brands utilise social media for marketing campaigns.
On Thursday 22nd September, at the F8 conference, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook announced a number of significant changes that are due to be rolled out across the platform. Below I have assessed the impact of just some of the changes for consumers and brands alike and will continue with further evaluations over the coming weeks.
Whilst the digital, marketing and technology press has understandably focussed on the launch of Google+ over the last three months, and the impact that the social network will have on the previous almost monopoly-like rule of Facebook in the sector, there has been much talk and speculation about how Facebook will respond. And now, following the announcements at the F8 conference this month, Facebook has responded in bold terms.
The most eye-catching change announced by Zuckerberg was the replacement of users’ feeds with a new “Timeline”, which is set to transform the existing format of user feeds into a chronological “scrapbook”. The visual examples of this are very impressive and demonstrate Facebook’s commitment to raising the bar for users sharing more about themselves, which has been the cornerstone of social media success over the last few years. The new timeline feature allows users not only to share more about themselves, but tell others a much more personal story, which despite the all too familiar grumbles whenever there is any change to Facebook user functionality, looks set to be an unquestioned success.
From a brand perspective however, in the immediate term, the changes will force a reassessment of outreach strategies. For example, the changes to the user news feed means the weighting of content is now even more important. The more relevant or important the content (as deemed by Facebook engagement algorithms), the greater its chance of appearing centre stage within the top/recent news feature. However, content that is deemed less relevant will now be featured in a rolling “ticker” located on the top right hand corner of each users’ home page. The message to brands (and consumers for that matter) could not be clearer: be relevant.
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