Facebook has issued a report corroborating trends in organic post reach that many marketers have been seeing since late summer: Organic reach is on the decline and brands are no longer able to achieve the same results on Facebook with the same investment.
The biggest takeaway is that publishing compelling and relevant content on Facebook no longer guarantees that the right people, or a significant volume of total fans, will actually see it. Moving forward, having an integrated content and paid media plan is the only way to effectively reach your current and potential customers and drive business objectives via Facebook.
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Marketer Implications:
- Brands should pursue a comprehensive approach to social content creation and amplification, baking paid social budget into the content creation plan and strategy from the start. In addition to amplifying high performing content to extend beyond the Facebook page, marketers should also proactively use paid social to target content to specific users based on their interests.
- Changes in the News Feed underscore the need for marketers to tailor their approach to the medium and their business objectives, keeping in mind their brand’s larger digitial infrastructure. Creating social content that’s ripe for engagement continues to be critical as amassing Likes, shares, comments and link clicks correlates with better reach.
- A test-and-learn approach is critical to success. Similar to the search engines, Facebook’s News Feed algorithm is ever-evolving. Best practices will continue to shift and will vary by brand and audience.
- Beyond Facebook, consider diversification through testing other social networks and platforms with better organic opportunities. As it becomes increasingly difficult to reach people on Facebook without paid media support, marketers might want to explore smaller networks and engage with highly relevant communities in those spaces.
Read our full report to learn more about the current state of the Facebook News Feed and how marketers can adapt their approach in three key areas (Creation, Amplification and Optimization) to reach their audiences.
Cover photo via LA Times
