In Facebook’s bid to reduce spam and ‘engagement bait’ across its platform, Facebook has introduced new code which will now punish posts that ask for ‘likes’ or ‘shares’ across the site.
In a post in its newsroom , Facebook wrote:
People have told us that they dislike spammy [sic] posts on Facebook that goad them into interacting with likes, shares, comments, and other actions. For example, “LIKE this if you’re an Aries!” This tactic, known as “engagement bait,” seeks to take advantage of our News Feed algorithm by boosting engagement in order to get greater reach. So, starting this week, we will begin demoting individual posts from people and Pages that use engagement bait.
The guidelines on what kinds of language will be accepted (or not), are at this stage, still somewhat loose, but what it does mean is that Company Pages will certainly be affected, particularly those that encourage competitions or increased audiences using the methodology.
The general rule of thumb is that if you don’t want to be caught out and penalized for just trying to encourage more reach – then, stick to content which engages users and provide interesting posts, rather than playing the click more game!
** Are you looking for assistance to develop your Facebook presence and want to stay within the guidelines of Facebook for maximum output? Contact our professional and friendly team today for a free initial consultation on 01246 586330 **
