Facebook is changing!
The newsfeed is DISAPPEARING!
In the next few months, the newsfeed will go, and instead, you’ll see a focus on 4 key areas:
1. MESSAGING
Facebook is changing and is going private, and encrypting messaging. That means that you can’t be hacked, and similar to WhatsApp you know your data is private. Within the messaging service, there will be a push on bots and AI messaging services for businesses. And within months you will be able to send messages to people on all platforms whether they’re on WhatsApp, Instagram, or Messenger.
2. GROUPS
Facebook believes that building communities is a cornerstone of the platform. They love the fact that communities are being built on the back of real-life communities for football, or mental health or growing a business. However, with the algorithms the way they are, it’s likely you’ll have to pay to boost a post. Sponsored posts in groups are now being trialed in the US and are coming. Also, I’m also beta testing a paid subscription group if you’d like to know more, click here.
3. VIDEO
Facebook has been following a video first policy for a few years, and Facebook Watch is at the heart of this strategy. If you upload content on a regular basis, you will be rewarded for it.
4. STORIES
Like Instagram Stories, Facebook is changing and is moving to short bursts of info that last 24 hours. Why are they doing this? It means that there are fewer opportunities to brag about your life and affect mental health. And there’s less chance of you losing your job if you’ve got a spurious post from 5 years ago.
Events and What’s Happening in Your Local Area will play a significant role in the platform.
And AI – Artificial Intelligence will increasingly play a role… BOTS are just the beginning when it comes to talking to robots!
Why are these changes happening now?
New here? I write about video marketing, confidence on camera and YouTube. Here’s some more blog posts that might help you as Facebook is changing:
How to be More Effective with Video
Make your business more effective with video
How to Use Video to Grow Your Business
How Facebook Live can help you scale your business
Why Facebook Ads Work for your Business
Mark Zuckerberg has been hinting at changes for months, and when I was at Facebook in Dublin they talked about these key areas.
Facebook has been under pressure from the Russian scandals, from Cambridge Analytica, and also from mental health groups. Removing the timeline removes a lot of these issues.
There are currently 2.3 billion people using Facebook every single month. However, much of the growth of Facebook is coming from Africa and the developing world.
Millions of people in the US and Europe are turning away from Facebook in the wake of the hacking scandals.
Facebook is changing and is recognising that there are other social media stars in the social media galaxy, and Facebook’s star is waning….
What’s the next big thing? We’ll just have to wait and see how this plays out.