Facebook Updates – here’s a selection of updates from my recent roundup post on my Facebook Page (embedded below). News about Facebook Stories, the Groups mobile app, video re-shares, mobile site loading time, and more.
Facebook Tests Live Stories On Mobile
Stories do not seem to be catching on among Facebook users by the same gusto as Instagram Stories users. (Instagram Stories just turned 1 year old and boats 250M daily users). However, by adding Live Stories to Facebook, perhaps more users will get into Stories on Facebook?! Hm. We shall see. Facebook confirmed to TechCrunch: “this is a test for the time being, and the feature hasn’t been fully rolled out to Facebook users.”
Facebook Begins Testing Stories On Desktop
Facebook has confirmed: “the Stories launch on desktop is still considered a test” … and that “a wider rollout is expected soon.” Source: TechCrunch
Facebook Stories can be shared to friends only, or to public.
Note: At the moment, Stories is only available on personal profiles. At some point, Facebook will likely roll out the feature to business Pages, given the feature’s popularity on Instagram… and another potential source of advertising revenue down the road!
Facebook Will Soon Give Priority in News Feed to Sites That Load Quickly On Mobile
Facebook states, “During the coming months we’re making an update to News Feed to show people more stories that will load quickly on mobile and fewer stories that might take longer to load, so they can spend more time reading the stories they find relevant.”
See Facebook’s announcement here.
Facebook Changes Metrics for Re-Shared Videos
Facebook just introduced a change to re-shared video metrics. The Pages that re-share videos will no longer see stats like retention graph, average watch time, and a detailed breakdown of views. Re-sharers will see daily views and a few other stats. On the other hand, Pages that create and upload videos will see additional video metrics such as which Pages are re-sharing their videos and related metrics. (By the way, I read somewhere not long ago that some 40% of video views on Facebook come from SHARES. Amazing. I must find the source of that stat…)
See Facebook’s official announcement.
Here’s my Facebook roundup post with additional detail and links if you’d like to view and share inside Facebook! 🙂
NEW! Facebook Television Is Here
PLUS: BIG NEWS just in right now – FACEBOOK TELEVISION is here! Mark Zuckerberg just posted this announcement on his profile (August 9th, 2017):
“Today we’re launching the Watch tab in Facebook — a place where you can discover shows your friends are watching and follow your favorite shows and creators so you don’t miss any episodes. You’ll be able to chat and connect with people during an episode, and join groups with people who like the same shows afterwards to build community.”
How exciting!
It’s time to get your Facebook Live game on!
If you haven’t already, please let me know if you’re interested in my upcoming Facebook Live + Facebook Ads courses here. (More info coming asap… we’re a tad delayed now due to my healing!)
This Week’s Top 3 Articles
1. How to Make A Facebook Cover Video That Wows Visitors to Your Business Page via Andrew Macarthy
Adding a video for your Facebook page cover is a fabulous new way to attract attention and welcome visitors to your page. You can use this new prominent video feature to promote an event, feature a product, or showcase your latest work. Now that the feature is being rolled out to all pages, it’s a good time to learn how to add a video cover. For more inspiration, see these additional three resources on creating compelling Facebook video covers by Wave app, Flixel and Animoto.
2. 5 New Facebook Ad Types You Should Be Using (But Probably Aren’t) via Neil Patel
Page engagement audiences, Canvas ads, Lead ads — Facebook offers a variety of different ways to target potential customers… but so many options can be a little intimidating! This post contains detailed explanations and screenshots to walk you through the process for five different Facebook (and Instagram) ad types.
3. Facebook Messenger Just Made Itself a Whole Lot More Attractive for Brands via BusinessInsider.com
The improvements keep coming on Facebook Messenger and it’s becoming an easy way for brands to engage with their audiences. The additions include natural language processing (NLP) that can detect the context of a message, a new handover protocol, and different call-to-action buttons. Each new feature is intended to help companies improve their customer care. Love that!
On a personal note…
I’ve been MIA lately as I’m recovering from a virus… somehow, I managed to get hepatitis A on my travels. Ugh! It’s really knocked me out and I had to take last week and this off work.
Fortunately, the symptoms are subsiding each day with TONS of rest and I’m taking EPIC self-care with a deep green cleanse and detox program. Phew! Sometimes in life a wake up call comes along — it could be in any number of forms. This has certainly been one for me, even though I’ve always been very healthy.
I am counting my blessings for sure and am certainly grateful for so many wonderfully supportive and understanding friends, clients and colleagues out there!! Y’all rock! See more details on my Facebook post. I expect to ease back into the saddle starting next week.
Often referred to as “the Queen of Facebook,” Mari Smith is widely known as the Premier Facebook Marketing Expert and a top Social Media Thought Leader. Forbes describes Mari as, “… the preeminent Facebook expert. Even Facebook asks for her help.” IBM named Mari as one of seven women that are shaping digital marketing. Mari is an in-demand keynote speaker, corporate social media strategist, dynamic live webcast host, and popular brand ambassador. She is coauthor of Facebook Marketing: An Hour A Day, and author of The New Relationship Marketing.
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