Want to reach your fans? Pay Facebook first.
Man, the hits keep on coming!
Just over a month ago I left my personal Facebook page behind. I cannot tell you how freeing that has been and how that has radically changed my perspective about social networking, social media, and it’s impact and effect on community and relationships as well as human-computer interaction. Heck, I could probably write a book about it.
But, I kept the TentBlogger Fan Page up thinking that I’d continue using that (even though I wasn’t really engaging heavily there at all). I knew that the Fan Page was incredibly weak in terms of engagement and the metrics surrounding the traffic numbers have been historically paltry.
Well, no !@#$ sherlock. What I had thought was just a result of the broken medium turns out to be an actual “feature” planned by Facebook.
You see, the fact is that Facebook limits the distribution of your content on your fan page unless you pay them money to distribute it fully to your fans:
It’s no conspiracy. Facebook acknowledged it as recently as last week: messages now reach, on average, just 15 percent of an account’s fans. In a wonderful coincidence, Facebook has rolled out a solution for this problem: Pay them for better access.
As their advertising head, Gokul Rajaram, explained, if you want to speak to the other 80 to 85 percent of people who signed up to hear from you, “sponsoring posts is important.”
In other words, through “Sponsored Stories,” brands, agencies and artists are now charged to reach their own fans—the whole reason for having a page—because those pages have suddenly stopped working.
This is a clear conflict of interest. The worse the platform performs, the more advertisers need to use Sponsored Stories. In a way, it means that Facebook is broken, on purpose, in order to extract more money from users. In the case of Sponsored Stories, it has meant raking in nearly $1M a day.
This… is… ridiculous.
As a result, this has made my decision to shut down the TentBlogger Fan Page a very easy one. From this moment going further I will no longer be updating that page and giving Facebook any more of my attention via our great community here.
It doesn’t matter if I’ve got over 1k fans there since only a fraction of them get the updates and I don’t mind the loss of a once-supposed signal for social proof.
We’ll continue to build the community here, just like we started a few years back. Facebook, you’re evil.
[via Boing Boing, Observer]
Wow, I had no idea this was going on! I am considering ending my relationship with Facebook as well.
This is why you need your own platform or home base. Third parties can always change the rules. Now you mention it, I have actually noticed I was getting few messages from the pages I’ve liked.
Exactly!
That is evil. Smart move, John.
People don’t see your content if they aren’t interacting with the page (liking/sharing posts). You don’t HAVE to pay money to get your stuff seen. You need engaged fans. I looked at your page. Honest assessment: it’s not interesting. Facebook is about sharing content with friends. Why would anyone share those posts with friends? You may not like it, but if you want likes and shares, you need to post pictures – funny, inspirational, cute, aesthetically pleasing, whatever. Post your stuff, but ALSO post funny cat pics (or whatever) to get eyes on your page.
If this doesn’t interest you, Facebook isn’t going to work for you – not with that niche content you have. People who read that content regularly aren’t looking to FB to find it.
And btw, you can pay for Sponsored Stories to show up, but people aren’t going to click them if they aren’t interesting. You are wasting your money. They’re going to tell you that you NEED to buy that stuff because it’s their job to take your money. You don’t need to waste your money!
Yes, this has been in place for a while now.
Actually, all the cat photos are part of the problem. You are right in that those are the types of posts that get the most eyeballs. But they don’t get authentic interaction. And you are right in that a true fan wouldn’t be looking for Johns stuff on FB, however, I would be loving the updates as a de facto RSS reader, if that makes sense. I use Feedly now, so it’s a non-issue.
It’s shallow at best. I can post meaty WordPress items all day long on my fan page, which is all about *wait for it* WordPress tips, with fans who signed up to hear about those things, and yet posting teh funneh is what gets the most traffic.
That takes up too much of my day to deal with it.
This issue goes for personal profiles as well; you can’t sponsor your status updates, but you can pay for more exposure in the form of being on Facebook all !@#$ day so you can see (and click on) their Facebook ads in the sidebar, served up oh so conveniently based on all the status updates and comments you make.
It’s sick.
I’ll keep the page if for no other reason than to keep the vanity url, but it won’t be long before I use the Sponsored Stories to let my fans know where to start finding me outside of Facebook.
Sounds to me like Gokul Rajaram was merely explaining how most updates reach an average of 15% of followers before they drift out of view in the stream of content from countless other sources and how Facebook provides a solution.
It’s not Facebook’s fault our content isn’t attracting the engagement needed to surpass that average 15% reach.
It’s ours.
I don’t think it’s evil of Facebook to treat more popular posts differently than stale post.
They want people to hang on Facebook.
I respect John’s decision to leave Facebook because of his unique perspective and experimental process.
But you’re not John.
Take the time to decide whether or not Facebook is right for you based on your metrics and what you want to try in the future.
PS … This wasn’t meant to sound like it’s directed at anyone on this thread in particular.
+1! Great point
It’s true, page posts will only show to ~15% of users, not because FB is evil, but because that’s just the way it is! For people with 100-300 friends and liking 100 companies, how on earth could one company’s post show to more than 15% when there is all that other content to show too? It’s crazy how people interpret things to be evil when they’re really not.
Thanks Heather —
I’m just surprised so many readers are so quick to jump ship because John did.
“strong with the force he is.”
I use buffer and timely.is to optimize when I share content I want people to see, which seems to be helping improve that low reach … but I also noticed merely attracting comments will drastically increase reach. I was managing the page for a yellow pages company and found that comments increased reach up to 80% in some cases. It might have included friends checking out what other friends were doing, but hey, that might even be better in terms of growing your following.
Here’s an article I happened to find on the topic this morning http://www.jonloomer.com/2012/06/15/facebook-posts-reach-16-percent-of-fans/
I’m finding this change really frustrating. The reason I became a fan of the pages I am is because I want their updates. I don’t have time to manually go check each individual page for what Facebook refused to show me
FB doesn’t “refuse” to show you. Do you want a 300-post feed to sift through every day? People on FB have so many friends and “like” so many companies that they COULDN’T possibly show you every update.
Actually I don’t think it’s that bad. 15% is due to the fact that new posts scroll down for the average user so they won’t see all posts from a particular page or person. On kijiji.ca, a classified ad site, ads get lost in the feed, but you can pay for a bump to the top if you want.
BUT.. 15% is only for smaller pages.. the more fans you get the less Facebook shows your updates.. even if you get good interaction it is harder to get over 10%. Most of my updates only get seen by less than 5% of my fanbase.. even with decent engagement..
Now I too have to think about this, but how to reach your readers in best possible way. Read some article that feedburner shall be terminating soon
link?
well though i agree with you totally on the “ridiculous” part, for me, i think if i am interested in a specific page i would access it anyway, which leads to better content from the side of publishers and more challenging to them to keep the attention of their readers without relying on the “updates”.
in any case i think it is quiet unfair to do this kind of strategy so bluntly. Without mentioning that every person has a lot of fan pages which he needs to access manually which lead to more competition not only in the same category.. (entertainment pages, gossips, informational, news, design, politics etc…). but between each others.
This is ridiculous. I’ll be deleting all my fan pages within the next week. One more reason to invest more into my Google+ pages.
This is the first step towards G+
I’ve been considering this for a while and I think this may be the tipping point!
This makes more sense now. I’ve had more luck reaching people on my personal page than I have my fan page. I’ve been debating for a while to get rid of facebook all together. This might be the pebble that pushed the boulder over the edge!
I don’t totally disagree with what Facebook is doing. Brands and fan page owners have the responsibility to engage their fans enough that keeps them engaging with their content – if they are engaging with it (viewing, liking and commenting), the more likely that brand content is showing up in a specific fan’s news feed. If they are choosing not to view, like, or comment on content, then over time Facebook is determining that they no longer care.
Great social media strategy is about engagement…not necessarily views.
I basically disagree with Facebook’s move – well, a lot of them actually – but – there is logic in your statement! If Facebook did this openly and transparent AND without the need to pay your way into being visible again, then this might actually be a social filter worth taking a look at.
Problem is that in this case it just doesn’t seem as it was intended to be for the good of their users but to please stake holders with a new income stream.
But facebook admits that only 15% even SEE it. How can the other 85% decide if they want to engage? It doesn’t matter if I have 100% success with the 15% who see my posts. It’s still only 15%
Furthermore, I’m pretty sick of liking someone’s page and never seeing their post because the almighty facebook decided I didn’t want to see them. If I hit “like” it’s because I want to see their post. I shouldn’t have to reconfirm that by interacting with everything they say.
That’s a great point Beth.
Do you honestly think that FB could really show you all the posts from every single one of your friends AND the pages you’ve liked? Do you want to sift through a 300-post feed every day?
I believe NO ONE uses Facebook with the main interest of keeping up with brands or fan pages. Their are really no pages that have strong enough content that would makes anyone care to engage and Interact with brands on Facebook. Likes were a fad. Facebook will shift and change. I wouldn’t advise anyone to place a strong effort into building a community on Facebook especially business related efforts.
I do. Most of the value I get from Facebook is updates from independent musicians and small artisanal food producers, who I want to keep up with but who don’t have news often enough or large enough to keep a blog or other news feed of their own. Twitter is better for this but a lot of them don’t have Twitters.
You are right.. we do.. but Facebook is closing down more and more. I do get good interaction and I used to be rewarded with around an average of 10% of my fans seeing my posts (larger fan pages automatically get seen by less fans than smaller pages). In the past month most of my updates are seen by less than 5%.. even with good engagement.
+1
I have noticed my numbers go way down in the last few months. I tried a sponsored post and immediately saw the difference and I knew what they were up too! I understand the need for them to make money (I totally get that). I don’t understand that you have an account and you sign up for updates on facebook on someones fan page then you don’t get them. It makes no business sense overall. I would think at some point people would get tired of that option of asking for some content and not getting it. I have no idea if it breaks any laws but it certainly wouldn’t surprise to see them get sued over some time of issue for it but I guess only time will tell. Just my two cents….
Aaron
Please write a book about it. And include the dangers posed by phone-in-front-of-face parenting, while you’re at it. I need to read it!
Facebook is like a refrigerator when you’re bored. You keep opening the door every 5 minutes to see if a new snack magically appeared, but no matter how many times you go back, it’s still the same old ish.
I’ve lost interest in keeping up with the generic things people I know do. Most interesting people do not focus on fan pages so no point in seeking information or updates there. In fact most of my close friends don’t even bother to login anymore because no one is addicted to sharing every move they make.
Your statement is exactly what happens before people begin to realize and retreat.
Congrats, hope this works out for you. For new(ish) or developing blogs, I’m not sure giving up facebook is a viable solution, sadly.
We’ve always explained to clients, it’s better to focus on your website rather than on 3rd party platforms, where you can’t control what they will do.
I like Facebook for my personal connections and I’ve received more business from simply sharing my day to day on my personal page, versus my business FB fan pages. I have not updated any FB fan pages in ages, will be closing them down.
I’ve also stopped investing time on Twitter and LinkedIn. Never started on G+. Anything can change but I control my website(s).
Thanks for the posts, I’ve advised our clients…
RAS
I believe Twitter allows so many many more people who may not know you to easily come across you than Facebook. Especially if your main interest is using it for business purposes. Facebook is not the strongest in bringing “brand new” people who you have no link to via another person at all … in my opinion.
Wow. I had no idea. Makes my miniscule Facebook fan page seem superfluous at best.
Thanks for sharing. I’m closing mine blog’s fan page as well.
Although, I’ll be keeping my personal Facebook profile as it’s the best medium to stay connected with friends and family. Especially those on the opposite coast.
I just noticed this Mashable article which basically says they are doing the same thing for peoples PERSONAL accounts!
The only logic I can see is paying for a “sticky” status or something but there is such a fine border with Spam there.
Bravo! Very inspiring- I had to share with our team and especially retweet! If you do want to consider a new platform with integrity, please do check out Sgrouples.
I’m guessing Facebook is going to run themselves right out of business. I don’t hear of many people who are happy with them. This would be a good time for someone to start something new!
People don’t use Facebook to obtain information or updates or brands. Most people have no interest in using Facebook for that.
I deleted my Facebook account after trialling it for a while by unfriending people and unsubscribing from stories.
Oh well, I now feel a lot more free!
6 words: look out for the new myspace!
Interesting! I had no idea about the percentages although I’d seen it’s effects.
How much of these changes are necessary for development and how much of this is from desperation from their “going public” experience?
I was under the impression that promoted posts ensure that posts feature in a user’s feed even if their feed has been filled since with other posts? As in usually a user who is logged in and on their feed would see it when the brand made a post compared to when a user logs in hours later and obviously wouldn’t see the post unless they scrolled through their feed for a few minutes.
Are you sure what you’re saying here is accurate? I thought paying for a promoted post would help the user who logged in hours after the post was made see it higher in their feed. Correct me if I’m wrong.
If FB didn’t throttle the amount of posts from pages to make it onto personal news feeds, the feeds would quickly be overrun by them. People are “like”-happy – I’ve only got 100ish page likes, but if they all posted stuff once or twice a day and that made it to my news feed, I’d never see posts from my friends and family.
As a business, FB has a responsibility to protect the quality of it’s core product (the personal news feeds) and also generate revenue from their service (promoted news items) that 1/6th of the planet uses *for free* every day.
Does anyone know about Google+ and its practices? Would that be a viable alternative?
Thanks for this, John. I understood you had to have a personal account in order to manage a FB page. I want to delete my account, but I manage a page for someone else, so can’t unplug completely for the time being. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
well, you can still unfollow your friend or unfriend them and maintain your account. the challenge is really a personal one of whether you’ll be able to just be there professionally and not personally.
I’ve considered doing this as well. It’s definitely a conflict of interest.
Where does everyone plan on focusing after leaving Facebook?
Umm, excuse me, but FB isn’t doing this to be malicious. If the average FB user has 100-300 friends AND likes 100 company pages, how on earth could they see all the updates from ALL of their friends AND company pages?? It’s not possible!! So obviously FB has to choose some things to show & some not to show. They could never show your stuff to 100% of people.
The “Sponsored” area, however, is reserved specifically for FB ads, which is why using the FB ads you can reach so many more people.
For all of you who didn’t’ know about this secrete world of social media..now you know. This is the #1 reason why i don’t put any effort into it is becasue you don’t own it. Its best to put all that hard wk into your site which is the safest way to go.
Sorry about what happen to you John..just another sad story of many I hear everyday month.
“Black Seo Guy “Signing Off”
I’m glad to see people who are educated on the subject are receiving similar results as I am. Content that used to generate lots of likes and comments now fall flat on Facebook. I like to think I try and stay up on my pop culture so I know what will get a laugh or give value. I appreciate the conversation going on her because for a while I thought it was me.
Although I won’t be getting rid of my page because I dunno how easy it would be to get my likers’ back. I’ll just let it lay there updating occasionally. I really need to be focusing on my awesome blog anyway. My style, my terms ♥ Thanks John & Everyone.
G+ is the way. Much better control and no bullcrap.
Smaller audience for now, but the smart people are moving or doing both.