Mari Smith’s Social Scoop Email Newsletter – Web Version
November 16, 2021 Issue
Greetings Mari,
There’s a sea change happening in the social media world.
It’s been gradual for many years, but it’s becoming more noticeable.
Can you feel it?
People are tired of the drama and the shenanigans. And the algorithms, the low reach, the lack of customer support. Yes, most all of that is Meta (a.k.a. Facebook!).
But there’s also the constant push to ‘keep up.’ To do more. To create more and more content (read: Reels!) … and, if you don’t, you’ll be ‘left behind.’ It’s utterly exhausting, for a large number of small business owners!
I posed this question on my Facebook Page today and am appreciating the mix of answers: Which social platforms do you think you’ll use LESS of in 2022? And, which will you use MORE?
Lots of folks saying they’ll use Facebook LESS and TikTok MORE.
Uhoh, don’t tell Zuck. Lol.
Many marketers plan to use Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube more. Some plan to use those less.
It all boils down to what’s right for you and what’s right for your audience.
Back to that sea change. The more TikTok gains a stronger and stronger foothold on the younger demographic – and, it seems, pretty much all demographics – the more Meta will try to double down on competing by pushing similar features into Facebook and Instagram.
Personally, I’m not on TikTok and have no plans to be.
What I believe people from all walks of life around the world are craving is honest connections in smaller, niche communities.
Many of us strive to create just that in Facebook Groups with decent success. Others are migrating to other platforms entirely.
Here’s a comment I made to one of my community members and course participants, Terri Walsh:
What is Facebook’s future?
Rest assured, Meta’s future is solid. Zuck is too shrewd after all these years to let anything happen to his empire.
So long as Facebook and Instagram can keep the majority of users happy and coming back for more, (that is, more connecting with loved ones and consuming more entertaining content), and keep businesses and advertisers happy with the right mix of features, then we’ll all just carry on.
Meta continues to double down on monetization and commerce features: building out Shops (adding them to Groups for selling merch), rolling out paid subgroups in Groups, updating the Fan Subscriptions feature (where you get to keep all the money and download the email addresses of subscribers), to name a few. (Read more and join the discussion on these topics here and here in my Social Scoop group).
Of course, Meta has to stay nimble and competitive and in 2022 we can expect a myriad of new features in the basic products: Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp.
Now, about the metaverse? Sheesh, seriously, that’s like 3, 5, even 10 years away. I get that there are plenty of early adopters and it’s super exciting. And, there will be a plethora of opportunities.
Still, I found this Inc article (link below) particularly eye-opening… and sad, tbh. (Two next-door neighbors who can’t stand one another, but they’re totally connected and having a blast playing games together so long as they have their Oculus headsets on?! Jeez. This is what we’re supposed to look forward to?!)
Alrighty, that’s all for today. Any questions at all, just let my team and me know. You can hit reply to this email. And/or, meet us in my Social Scoop Facebook Group for tons of helpful support from myself, my team, and over 18k of your fellow marketers.Cheers, ’til the next time!
Mari
CEO, Mari Smith International, Inc.
Premier Facebook Marketing Expert
Top Social Media Thought Leader
Author, The New Relationship Marketing
Coauthor, Facebook Marketing: An Hour A Day
P.S. Let’s finish the year STRONG!! I just opened the doors to a very exciting Marketing Masterclass Miniseries! It’s two short classes – held on Nov 30th to Dec 2nd + Dec 7th to 9th. I’ll help you generate more leads on Facebook and Instagram using organic and paid methods. And, write more compelling copy for your ads that get approved and convert to more sales! Yeah, I’m super pumped!!! Find out more and come join us here: marismith.com/masterclasses
November 2, 2021 Issue
Greetings!
Woa, that was sure a lot of buzz with Facebook’s name change last week. Typical of Facebook, they did not communicate the change very clearly in their PR comms.
If you don’t already, make sure you follow my Facebook Page @marismith – and set to Favorites (under Follow Settings) – so you can stay on top of all things Facebook (and Meta!).
I published a post on my Facebook Page about the Meta name change right away on Thursday as Mark Zuckerberg made the announcement. That post garnered 724 shares and 745 comments.
Then, within the next 24 hours, there was an enormous amount of confusion across the internet. People asked if Facebook was going away, if their DMs were safe, how the change would impact their business Pages and groups, etc. etc.
So, I wrote up a clear and simple explanation with this image:
This post ended up with 2,400 shares and 200% organic reach. Woa – I haven’t seen those numbers in a while. I guess I was doing Facebook’s PR comms for them. LOL!
So, hopefully you know by now that Facebook’s name change was simply the holding/parent company. Much like Google created Alphabet.Facebook, Inc. morphed into Meta Platforms, Inc. And, starting December 1st, the stock symbol will change from $FB to $MVRS. (Short for ‘metaverse.’)
ALL the apps/platforms/services that the company creates will remain the same. The only one that is changing is Oculus – the AR/VR division. Meta decided to let go of the Oculus name and branding. Oculus products like the Quest headset will be known as Meta Quest going forward.
Why did Zuck change the holding company’s name?
Well, we can surmise a number of reasons, such as:
- Internal and external semantic confusion around ‘Facebook the company’ vs. ‘Facebook the app.’
- An attempt to put a ‘fresh coat of paint’ on the brand. (Hmm!) Especially with all the negative press lately.
- Possibly related to Zuck and team baking the company and its apps tighter together to avoid any possible structural separation (antitrust lawsuits) in the future.
- Mostly, it’s Zuck staking a claim on the ‘metaverse,’ a.k.a. ‘the next generation internet’ which will be an immersive, AR/VR experience creating ‘presence,’ as he likes to say.
BUT, is Zuck the right person to be the name and face of the metaverse as it seems he’s trying to be? Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is skeptical. Andrew Hutchison at Social Media Today is optimistic: Meta is Facebook’s Push to Own the Metaverse – and it Might Just Work
And, Denise Lee Yohn writing for Harvard Business Review had this to say in her article, Facebook’s Rebrand Has A Fundamental Problem:“Many people refer to a brand as a promise; but a brand must be a promise delivered. With its rebranding effort, Facebook is making promises that it doesn’t seem able to deliver right now. Until it shows that it’s making real changes, Meta will just be the same old Facebook by another name.”
Indeed.
Does the new Meta impact your business?
Specifically, how does Facebook, Inc.’s change to Meta Platforms, Inc. impact your business?
Bottom line? It doesn’t. Not one iota. Carry on, business as usual.
BUT. Hold on a minute… *if* you are one to be really focused waaaay in the future (like 5-10 years?!), and you envision embracing AR/VR and fully immersive experiences for your business and your clients/customers… or at least marketing snd advertising in this space! Then, yes. Pay close attention to what Meta Platforms, Inc. builds over the coming years. 🙂
As for the Facebook app, their BIG focus right now is on Reels. It remains to be seen whether the uptake among businesses and brands will be strong. Reels are great for Creators, for sure, and Facebook has money to pay you for views. Reels are certainly doing very well on Instagram, and are the largest contributor to engagement growth on the platform.
Facebook to Shut Down Facial Recognition in Photos & Videos!
Facebook just announced: “We’re shutting down the Face Recognition system on Facebook. People who’ve opted in will no longer be automatically recognized in photos and videos and we will delete more than a billion people’s individual facial recognition templates.”
What precipitated this sudden change? Most likely concerns over privacy of how this tool was being used. (Personally, I’m rather spooked by the eye tracking and facial expression monitoring in VR headsets. Hm! More data points, no?!)
Catch this news and more in my latest Facebook Live (with a wee cameo from Deli, my adorable kitty cat!).
Facebook Account or Business Manager Hacked? How To Get Help
Just a reminder in case you missed this the other week, definitely bookmark my newest blog post chock full of helpful tips on how to retrieve a hacked Facebook account or Business Manager. Plus, how to properly secure your personal account – which impacts your business account! (Thank you to everyone who has shared this post widely – I appreciate your support, as it’s such important information to get out!)
By the way, quick update: even though I regained access to my Facebook Business Manager within 48 hours of the hacking incident in early October, just a few weeks later my FBM and Ad Account were suddenly deactivated due to ‘suspicious activity.’ Aaaargh. I was utterly astonished. Unreal. Crazy, crazy AI. Facebook is reeeeeally trying my patience!!! And now I definitely deeply empathize even more for anyone going through this experience!
It took a week of pushing to get support and I got back in today, thankfully. Sadly, I know it’s not the norm for so many businesses and agencies to get accounts back relatively quickly, and it truly breaks my heart. I’ve heard from so many people in my community and I’m determined to impact the powers that be at FB/Meta to fix this!!!
Any questions at all, just let my team and me know. You can hit reply to this email. And/or, meet us in my Social Scoop Facebook Group for tons of helpful support from myself, my team, and 18k of your fellow marketers.Cheers, ’til the next time!
Mari
CEO, Mari Smith International, Inc.
Premier Facebook Marketing Expert
Top Social Media Thought Leader
Author, The New Relationship Marketing
Coauthor, Facebook Marketing: An Hour A Day
P.S. You matter to me!