Brian Meert's Blog, page 113

Does Facebook Advertising Work?

July 9, 2018
Anna Hubbel

Does Facebook Advertising Work? #digitaladvertising #facebookads #business
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The sad truth we’re all burdened with is marketing costs money. That’s why we’re so careful about how we advertise. We want to be sure it’ll work before we invest both our budget and our time.

It’s understandable that you’re skeptical about Facebook advertising (if you are). There are a lot of components to it that can make or break your campaign. But when you know about all these components, as well as the best practices to employ, the results can be all you had hoped for and then some.

Looking at the success stories of other businesses is the best way to know whether including Facebook in your advertising strategy works. Not only do these stories offer reassurance, but they also provide inspiration.

Many Businesses Find Success in Facebook Advertising

The numbers don’t lie. Numerous businesses have boasted their success after using Facebook advertising. Both big and small businesses alike are seeing positive results from their campaigns.

MailChimp

MailChimp, a leading email marketing platform, used video ads across Facebook and Instagram to boost and measure awareness for its automated email marketing and integration services. With fun creative in which a woman listens to a giant brain, the campaign had a simple message: “Remind shoppers they left things in their carts, automatically.”

The company targeted US men and women in the 18 to 64 age range. The company also used a Lookalike Audience, which it created from an existing customer list (called a Custom Audience), to target people similar to MailChimp’s current customers.

Here are the results of the campaign:

An 18-point lift in ad recall
A 10-point lift in brand awareness
A 26-point lift in association of MailChimp with marketing automation

FabFitFun

Another company that found success in Facebook advertising is FabFitFun, a women’s lifestyle brand that sells subscription boxes filled with products pertaining to beauty, health, and fashion. FabFitFun used Facebook Marketplace to expand its customer base. The company used photo, video, and Carousel ad formats to reach US women in the 25 to 44 age range. The ads offered promotional codes for its Spring Editor’s Box, including a “Shop Now” call-to-action.

The results were impressive:

A 2.2X return on ad spend
16 percent lower cost per acquisition than goal

Olivers Apparel

If you need more reassurance, here’s another company whose ad campaigns flourished on Facebook. Olivers Apparel, a men’s athletic wear company, used video and Facebook’s conversion ad objective to reach new customers. Targeting men in the 18 to 54 age range, Olivers promoted its athleisure apparel in a series of videos that delivered the brand and primary message within the first three seconds. The ads also contained a “Shop Now” call-to-action.

Take a look at the results:

A 2.1X return on ad spend
A number one sales month in March 2018

Facebook Advertising Best Practices

Of course, to succeed in Facebook advertising, you must implement a few best practices. These practices may vary from business to business or goal to goal, but there are several you should always implement.

A/B test–Test different creative or ad elements to see which perform better for your campaign. For example, you can take two versions of the same ad then use different images or text in each. You might find that the slightest difference helps an ad perform better in one version than another. The best way to find out is to A/B test.
Ad refresh-Duplicate a top-performing ad and refresh it with a new image or add a slight change so users don’t get bored with the same ad. When you find an element that works, don’t let it get stale by keeping the ad the same and redelivering it over and over. Keep the overall message and the best performing elements, but make a small alteration (e.g. different image) to keep things fresh.
Turn off underperforming ads-If an ad isn’t working, hit the brakes. It’s only hurting your campaign if it isn’t delivering desired results. If you keep an underperforming ad running, you’re wasting your resources. Users won’t care to look at anything else you put out there going forward.
Use Facebook’s audience targeting options-Location, demographics, Custom Audiences, and Lookalike Audiences are a few options for ensuring your ads reach the right audience. If your ad isn’t reaching the audience most likely to buy your product or service, what’s the point? This best practice is essential if you’re going to have any success with your Facebook campaign.
Be familiar with various ad formats-There are a lot of formats to experiment with, such as video, Canvas Ads, Carousel Ads, and Dynamic Product Ads. Some audiences respond better to certain formats. For example, a Millennial audience may respond better to short, fast-paced videos than an older audience, who may prefer to browse through products at a leisurely pace in a Carousel format. The format may depend on the detailed specifics of your targeted audience. It helps to experiment.
Run best performing ads-When your A/B tests reveal ads with optimal performance, continue running them. Don’t settle for ads that are mediocre. Only put out the best because that’s what your campaign deserves. It’s worth the extra time and effort. Your audience will associate your ads with great quality.

Is Facebook Advertising Right for You?

Now you may be thinking, Well, just because it worked for all of those other guys doesn’t mean it will work for me. And you’d be right. Because every Facebook advertising success story is unique. But it’s up to you whether it’s time to discover what yours will be.

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Facebook Launches Codeless Events Setup for Apps

July 6, 2018
Bret Wallace

Facebook Launches Codeless Events Setup for Apps. #facebookads #facebookadvertising #news
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In a move that one user called “truly game changing,” Facebook launched Codeless Events Setup for Apps that allows you to create events on your apps without involving programmers.

Facebook announced the enhancement to its app creation service at the F8 Developers Conference in May and launched the program in late June, according to the Facebook for Business page.

You will gain new control over your company’s mobile app and will have immediate results on how your customers are interacting with your app.

The latest version of Facebook SDK (v4.34.0) includes a Marketing Kit that allows you to add, update and remove events with a click-and-point tool, no technical skills needed. You no longer need to wait for months for your programmers to code the additional information, relaunch the app, and wait again until customers upgrade the app.

In minutes, you can place the new event directly into the app and see the results in real time about how your app users are interacting with the change.

“Our developers no longer need to waste time getting trained in marketing terminology, and a single marketer can make changes in minutes and do their job seamlessly. … This is truly game changing,” said K. Opal, marketing manager of TrueID, an early tester of the service

The reporting features of the service will also allow you to react quickly to the effectiveness of campaigns, tweaking and adjusting events to ensure users are staying engaged, and even re-engaging lapsed users. And with developers not wasting time on coding for marketing functions, they can focus on new features that will entice users to stay involved with your mobile app.

To get started with Codeless Events Setup for Apps, you need to download the latest version of Facebook SDK and make sure it is integrated with the new Marketing Kit.

With app usage now surpassing more than half the time individuals spend on digital media, if your app is not attracting and keeping customers, you are falling behind the competition. Facebook has just offered a new tool to keep your app relevant and effective.

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Google AdWords Rebranded as Google Ads

July 6, 2018
Anna Hubbel

Google AdWords Rebranded as Google Ads. #googleads #googleadwords #news
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Photo courtesy of Recode.com

Even Google needs a makeover now and then. Google recently announced that it has rebranded its ad products. Google AdWords will now be known as Google Ads. This rebrand includes all of the same advertising capabilities as Google AdWords, such as Search ads, Display ads, Video, Apps, Google Maps placements, Google Play placements, and more. Google is also adding a new campaign type for small businesses that makes it easier to get started. Expect the new Google Ads to go live after July 24, 2018.

To top it off, Google also announced new brands and solutions for two other advertising products: Google Marketing Platform and Google Ad Manager.

Google Marketing Platform

This platform for marketing team collaborations combines Google’s DoubleClick advertising products with Google Analytics 360 Suite. Google says this juxtaposition of products makes it possible for marketers to manage digital media and customer experiences all in one location.

“We’ve heard from marketers that there are real benefits to using ads and analytics technology together, including a better understanding of customers and better business results,” Google’s Senior Vice President of Ad & Commerce Sridhar Ramaswamy said in the official rebrand announcement. “Google Marketing Platform helps marketers achieve their goals by building on existing integrations between the Google Analytics 360 Suite and DoubleClick Digital Marketing.”

As part of the Google Marketing Platform, Google also announced Display & Video 360, a product that includes features from DoubleClick Bid Manager, Campaign Manager, Studio, and Audience Center. This new all-inclusive product is intended to make it easier for teams to work together when making ad campaigns.

Google Ad Manager

Google Ad Manager brings together the capabilities of DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick Ad Exchange. Google says it has been working on making this product for the last three years to make ads management overall more simple and efficient for marketers.

“We recognize that the way publishers monetize their content has changed,” said Ramaswamy. “With people accessing content on multiple screens, and with advertisers’ growing demand for programmatic access, publishers need to be able to manage their businesses more simply and efficiently.”

Once active, the new Google Ads brand will span across the product interface, Help Center, billing documents, and more. It’s also important to note that the URL for account access will change from adwords.google.com to ads.google.com.

While these changes are meant to make digital advertising easier for marketers, it’s Google’s ultimate goal to ensure that people have good experiences. Ad transparency and trust are essential to creating those experiences, which Google recognized by launching its new Ad Settings and expanding Why this Ad?. And in January, Google released a new feature that allows users to mute ads for 90 days.

“As always, our commitment is to ensure that all of our products and platforms set the industry’s highest standard in giving people transparency and choice in the ads they see,” said Ramaswamy.

To prepare for the new Google Ads brand, advertisers are asked to review Google’s new visual guidelines.

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Facebook Announces API Restrictions for Privacy Protection

July 5, 2018
Anna Hubbel

Facebook Announces API Restrictions for Privacy Protection. #apps #facebookfordevelopers #facebook
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Through an information gathering app, Cambridge Analytica harvested personal details from over 80 million Facebook users. To improve the relationship between users and app developers, Facebook has been investigating all the possible ways to protect users’ personal information. Vice President of Product Partnerships Ime Archibong explained several new API restrictions Facebook is implementing to instill safer and more secure experiences for users when they use apps connected to the platform.

The new restrictions apply to six specific API products:

Graph API Explorer
Profile Expression Kit
Media Solutions
Pages API
Marketing API
Lead Ads Retrieval and Live Video APIs

Some restrictions involve a change in process or access while others involve the elimination of certain product offerings altogether. All changes were made to improve the user experience while also allowing developers to continue their working relationship with Facebook.

Graph API Explorer

Going forward, developers are still able to use the Graph API Explorer App to run test queries, but they must use their own apps’ access tokens to do so.

Profile Expression Kit

Approved developers currently can use the Profile Expression Kit to allow users to share any photos or videos created within the app on Facebook. For example, users could take a photo made in the app and use it as their Facebook profile picture. Since this feature hasn’t been used much, Facebook says it’s removing it come October 1.

Media Solutions

Media Solutions, a family of APIs for developers to use in constructing tools for Facebook’s media partners, will see three major changes. First, public content discovery APIs will be restricted to page content and public posts on profiles that have been verified. Second, developers will now no longer be able to use the Trending API, the Signal tool, Trending Topics, and Hashtag Voting for interactive TV experiences. And finally, Facebook will remove Topic Search, Topic Insights and Topic Feed, and Public Figure APIs on August 1 in response to minimal usage of these products.

Pages API

If developers receive feature permissions to Page Public Content Access after going through the app review process, they’ll once again be able to use the Pages API to search for Facebook pages. With this capability, developers can find similar pages, mention other pages in posts and comments, and tag pages in Facebook ads.

Marketing API

From now on, in order to use the Marketing API, which allows businesses to automate and scale their ads and easily manage their campaigns, developers must go through an app review. Additionally, Facebook has simplified the API’s structure to make it two-tier instead of three.

Lead Ads Retrieval and Live Video APIs

Facebook announced new app review permissions for its Lead Ads Retrieval and Live Video APIs. The latter allows apps to post live videos to pages, groups, and users’ timelines. This restriction means users will be asked to review and grant (or deny) new permissions before accessing an app through Facebook.

Developers will need to abide by these new restrictions to continue offering apps through Facebook.

Facebook isn’t alone in its changes to API. Twitter announced new API rules to prevent platform misuse back in March.

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3 Instagram Features You Need to Try

July 5, 2018
Anna Hubbel
Instagram’s new categories feature

Amidst the turmoil of Facebook privacy scandals, Instagram emerges as a saving grace. In addition to recently announcing its milestone of 1 billion monthly active users and introducing IGTV, Instagram also just rolled out three new features first previewed at the Facebook F8 Conference back in May. The three features—video chat, topic channels, and more camera effects—enhance the already-popular app and give you some exciting new toys to play with.

Video Chat
The video chat icon is located on the upper-right corner.

You can now set up a video chat with another user or a group in Instagram Direct. For a group, you can video chat with up to four people.

To access the video chat, go to Direct, click on a conversation, and click the camera icon on the top right corner. You can even minimize the chat window during a session so you can browse your feed, engage with other users’ posts, and even share Stories while video chatting with someone without interruption.

When an active video chat is occuring, the camera icon will turn blue. You can click the blue camera icon to join a group chat (the camera icon will turn red when you join) and click it again to leave.

You can also block and mute users. When you block them, they are unable to video chat with you. When you mute them, you will not receive video chat notifications from them. You can manage notifications by tapping your profile’s gear icon and going to “Push Notifications.”

Topic Channels
Instagram’s new categories feature

The topic channels feature organizes your Discover content according to categories. For example, if you click on the category “Fashion” your Discover feed will show content related to fashion. Previously, Discover was cluttered with posts related to random categories that may or may not be interesting to you. Now, your Discover experience will be a more organized and efficient experience according to what you want to see.

Topic channels will adapt according to what your activity indicates you like. The feature contains a mix of posts personalized for your interests. If Instagram knows you’re interested in animals, fashion, and food, your Discover feed will contain content about animals, fashion, and food.

Camera Effects

Have some fun with Instagram’s new camera effects by Ariana Grande, Baby Ariel, Liza Koshy, Buzzfeed, and the NBA. These effects only appear to those who follow those accounts. However, if you don’t follow them, you can still use the effect if you tap on the “try it” button of the post of the person who’s using the effect.

This filter is by Baby Ariel.

The Ariana Grande effect layers your face on top of each other in a retro style that you can find in her new music video “No Tears Left to Cry.” The Buzzfeed effect adds the text layer “Oh yes!” from its series Worth It. The Baby Ariel filter adds a star-shaped light layers on the image along with soft colors. Liza Koshy effects add a funny looking mustache and large eyebrows to your face.

It’s no surprise that parent company Facebook highlights Instagram during its time of instability. Not only has Instagram withstood the negative headlines about Facebook and user privacy, but it also continues to be popular among younger users, a demographic Facebook is struggling to attract. For those of us who love Instagram, we get to enjoy the fun features the platform rolls out to maintain its popularity.

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Facebook Says Weapon Accessory Ads Must Only Target Audiences 18+

July 3, 2018
Anna Hubbel

Facebook Says Weapon Accessory Ads Must Only Target Audiences 18+. #facebookads #facebookadvertising #guns
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Advertising weapon accessories on Facebook is a sensitive topic for some. To ensure the platform remains a safe space for children and teens between the ages 13 and 18, Facebook recently enacted a new age restriction to its advertising policy for weapon accessory ads. Advertisers delivering such ads must now only target audiences 18 and older. The network introduced the new restriction in a Facebook Business article.

“Unlike posts from friends or pages, ads receive paid distribution,” Facebook says in the article. “This means we have an even higher standard for what is allowed and why we have chosen to limit weapons accessories to an adults-only audience.”

To be clear, the promotion of weapons and modifications, including explosives and ammunition, is and will continue to be prohibited. However, Facebook does allow ads for weapon accessories. This updated policy restricts the promotion of such accessories to underage users.

What Are “Weapon Accessories”?

Facebook defines weapon accessories as products that help illuminate, magnify, or focus on a target, such as optics and flashlights. Holsters and belts are also considered weapon accessories.

To get a clear picture of what Facebook allows and prohibits, here are some examples Facebook provides under the Weapons, Ammunition, or Explosives category of its advertising policies.

Weapon Accessory Activity Facebook Allows

Blogs or groups connecting people with weapon-related interests, as long as the service doesn’t lead to the sale of these products
Safety courses for firearm training or licenses and books and videos about firearm safety
Plastic guns, swords, and toy weapons
Mounted flashlights for firearms (as long as the audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)
Scopes and sights for firearms (as long as ad audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)
Hunting, self-defense, and military clothing and gear such as shooting targets and clay throwers (as long as ad audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)
Holsters and belt accessories (as long as ad audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)
Gun safes, mounts (including bipods), gun cases, and slings (as long as ad audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)
Equipment and protective clothing (including vests) (as long as ad audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)
Paint, coatings, or wraps for weapons and magazines (as long as ad audience minimum age is set to 18 years old or over)

Weapon Accessory Activity Facebook Prohibits

Firearms, including firearms parts, ammunition, paintball guns, and bb guns
Firearm silencers or suppressors
Weapons of any kind, including pepper spray, non-culinary knives/blades/spears, tasers, nunchucks, batons, or weapons intended for self-defense
Fireworks and explosives
Ads promoting the brandishing of firearms

Since audiences under 18 years old are not yet allowed to own weapons anyway, delivering ads to them regarding any weapon accessory is both unnecessary and intrusive. Parents already face the challenge of knowing what their children are exposed to on social media. The new age restriction helps relieve some of that burden.

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12 Facts You Didn’t Know about Gen Zs

July 3, 2018
Anna Hubbel
Photo Courtesy of Paste Magazine

Things are about to get real, bruh. In a three-part series, Snapchat dives into statistical insights about Gen Zs, the largest and most influential generation in the US. Gen Zs are teenagers in the 13 to 17 age range. They’re significantly influential in regards to social norms and brand-consumer relationships. They’re very friend-focused, and they prefer spontaneity and authenticity to flashy advertising messages.

In the three-part series, Snapchat highlights the behaviors, personality traits, and “slanguage” of this demographic to help advertisers market to this GOAT (“greatest of all time”) generation. Here are the 12 facts about Gen Zs that will help you successfully reach them in your next campaign.

1. They Influence Family Buying

According to Snapchat, Gen Zs influence $600 billion in household spending. Statistics show that 96 percent of Gen Z parents agree their teenagers influence household money.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
2. They Influence Their Circle of Friends

Gen Zs place high value on their close circles of friends. Since they consider these friends to be like family (70 percent say so, according to Snapchat), it makes sense that they’d influence each other.

When marketing to these circles of friends, you should also realize that 85 percent of Gen Zs prefer to have just a few friends they’re really close with as opposed to having a large circle of friends that isn’t as close-knit. In other words, if you want to get on the Gen Z level, you want to incorporate messages that recognize those close networks.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
3. They’re Diverse

According to Snapchat, by the year 2020, 50 percent of Gen Zs will be part of a minority race or ethnic group. With such a diverse makeup, this generation expects the brands they buy from to be diverse and inclusive.

4. They Have Unique Me Time

Gen Zs like their me time, and they make sure they get it, even when they’re around other people. Snapchat says the average Gen Z spends seven hours on me time per weekday. If that doesn’t sound like a lot, they spend more than 11 hours on weekends.

The way Gen Zs spend their me time makes their behavior particularly important. Nineteen percent spends it on social media, 19 percent spends it listening to music, and 18 percent spends it streaming shows or movies. This behavior remains relatively consistent even when Gen Zs are around their friends.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
5. They Value Brains over Beauty

The idea that glamour and beauty sell is outdated, at least where Gen Zs are concerned. This generation, according to Snapchat, values smarts, authenticity, and spontaneity over the superficial. In fact, 65 percent of Gen Zs would rather have a great mind than a great body. Additionally, 65 percent would rather be real and authentic on apps and websites than portray their ideal selves.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
6. They Look For Similar Qualities in Influencers

If you want to work with influencers, look for ones that demonstrate qualities similar to those of your Gen Z audience. Gen Zs follow influencers who are genuine, unique, and innovative, so don’t go the glamorous route if it means being superficial. Identify which influencers Gen Zs are drawn to and consider the traits they exhibit. Those are the traits that will reach your Gen Z audience.

7. They Have Their Own Slanguage

That’s right, bruh. Gen Zs, like past generations, have their own slanguage (slang language). If you can do it without being extra (a.k.a., over the top), you can use some of their slanguage to craft marketing messages they can relate to.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business

 

8. They Use Technology Every Day

Most US Gen Zs (96 percent) have smartphones. Although that’s no surprise, it’s surprising to know that most of them got their first phone at age 10. As a result, technology is now rooted in their everyday behaviors. For instance, 68 percent of Gen Zs sleep with their phones right next to them, with 46 percent unable to exceed one hour away from their phone during the day. If you think this is unhealthy behavior, 85 percent of Gen Zs argue that technology improves their lives.

Fifty-nine percent of Gen Zs use technology to multitask, indicating that they believe it helps them accomplish more. Additionally, 61 percent choose to use tech to save their photo or video memories rather than have a physical souvenir. This preference supports the high teen usage of platforms like Snapchat and Instagram. Snapchat says Gen Zs are using Snapchat increasingly compared to last year.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
9. They Use Snapchat to Connect with Friends

Since Gen Zs place high value on their close friendships, staying connected through social platforms is very important to them. Snapchat has become the most popular social app for Gen Zs for this very reason: it allows them to share present and spontaneous moments throughout the day with best friends. It very much resembles real life in that moments disappear shortly after they occur.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
10. They Have Favorite Brands

Gen Zs have top brands they are loyal to and recommend to their network of friends (or “fam”). These include Nike, American Eagle Outfitters, Adidas, Amazon, Tarte, and others.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business

There are even some brands, according to Snapchat, that Gen Zs will remain loyal to for life. Unsurprisingly, Nike, Apple, and Amazon are among the top brands on that list of expected lifelong loyalty.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
11. They Look For Ethical Standards and Digital Presence

Snapchat says Gen Zs choose brands that meet certain qualities. Specifically, Gen Zs look for high ethical standards and a consistent digital presence, as both these qualities suggest commitment and trustworthiness. Additionally, when it comes to digital ads, 65 percent of Gen Zs like humorous ads while 64 percent like entertaining ads. Interestingly, 59 percent of Gen Zs don’t mind watching ads as long as they’re well made.

Whenever ads meet the Gen Z standards, they remain memorable to this generation. That should be the ultimate goal when you’re making ads: to be memorable. Among the most memorable ads to Gen Zs, according to Snapchat, are ones by Amazon, Doritos/Mountain Dew, and Nike.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business
12. They Turn to Their Parents For Approval

Like all teenagers before them, most Gen Zs ultimately need approval from their parents before making a purchase. Forty-two percent of Gen Zs, to be exact, say they need parental approval.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business

With this in mind, you should think about how parents prefer to make their purchases. For example, for online purchases, parents typically use credit cards, debit cards, or gift cards. For in-store purchases, however, they prefer cash.

Image Courtesy of Snapchat For Business

As you construct your next digital campaign, keep this key understanding in mind: Gen Zs are a unique and powerful generation. If you want success for your brand, get to know everything you can about this generation and appeal to their personality traits, behaviors, and standards. It’s the only way to go from gucci to GOAT.

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How to Advertise Your App on Amazon

June 29, 2018
Anna Hubbel

How to Advertise Your App on @Amazon. #amazon #amazonsellers #business
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It takes only 90 seconds or less. That’s how quickly Amazon says you can create an advertising campaign for your mobile app.

Amazon offers a self-managed app advertising solution called Advertise Your App, exclusively designed for Amazon mobile app developers. With the booming growth of Amazon advertising, as well as the broad user base of Amazon and its mobile devices, this solution is well worth your time, especially since it takes no time at all! You’ve already done all the hard work in constructing your app. Amazon recognizes that and makes the promotional step a lot easier so you can either sit back and relax or get back to developing more apps.

By advertising your app on Amazon, you get the benefits of

Reaching millions of US users
Placing on Fire tablet wake screens
Placing on the Amazon Mobile Ad Network

Boost awareness and drive installs by advertising your app on Amazon. It’s both simple and scalable.

How to Get Started

Step 1: Go to the Developer Portal and create an account or log in.

Step 2: Go to the “Promotions” tab in “Apps and Services.”

Step 3: Select “Advertise Your App.”

Step 4: Choose the app you want to promote. (Amazon automatically creates the ads for you.)

Step 5: Set a campaign budget (as low as $100).

Step 6: Enter how long you want your campaign to run.

Step 7: Enter your cost-per-click information.

Step 8: If desired, choose interest-based targeting options. You can also choose to let Amazon automatically choose targeting for you.

Step 9: If desired, enable the Google Play Support feature to allow users who don’t have the Amazon Store app to download your app from the Google Play Store.

Step 10: Submit your campaign.

Whenever users click on your ad, they’ll be directed to where they can download your app. To track your campaign’s performance, use Amazon’s campaign performance metrics, which allow you to see the number of clicks, conversions, and estimated cost per acquisition.

Your 90 seconds are up and your campaign is done. Now you have all the time in the world to be productive! (Or take a nap—you decide.)

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How to Create Irresistibly Shareable Content on Facebook

June 28, 2018
Anna Hubbel

How to Create Irresistibly Shareable Content on Facebook. #facebook #socialmedia #socialmediamarketing
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Nothing. Not even the Cambridge Analytica scandal or Russian troll accounts can keep users away from Facebook. Even the Q1 2018 earnings report indicated that both users and advertisers continue to use the platform without wavering.

However, although users are not changing how much they use Facebook, they are changing some of their behaviors on the platform. According to marketing analyst Emarketer, 47 percent of Facebook users are sharing less content because they are concerned about how Facebook is using their personal data. A study conducted by Raymond James in March 2018 found more than 8 in 10 US Internet users expressed at least some concern about the security of personal data on Facebook. An April 2018 study by Gallup revealed that 43 percent of users have a high level of concern about Facebook invading their privacy.

How can you get users to share your content at a time when shares are declining? The answer is creating irresistibly shareable content. To make users feel secure enough to share your content, you have to make it impossible to resist. There are several ways to make that happen.

Be Honest

The more honest your content, the more trustworthy users will perceive it, and the more likely they are to share it. Health and beauty company Dove, for example, gets honest about bullying. You may think it’s a topic astray from the company’s brand, but the company promotes all health and beauty, including mental health and inner beauty. The post on this topic is honest about how things are in the world while still remaining relevant to the brand.

Make Funny Posts

Humor is seeping into more and more posts, even in ads. Users like to laugh (who doesn’t?) and share content they know will make others crack a smile. Nectar Sleep, for example, used humor in a fun animation of Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un to raise awareness for its mattress brand. The post contained text that read, “Setting a sleep schedule is important to maximize your potential. Here’s to hoping our world leaders get a good night’s sleep before Tuesday’s big meeting.”

Connect with Real People

Users share content that’s relatable, and what’s more relatable than other people? For example, Dollar Shave Club recently announced its first #DSCYourThing grant winner, an honor that recognizes members of the club who have unique passions. Dollar Shave Club then helps members share their passions with the rest of the world. This type of content doesn’t have the typical promotional angle, as it highlights a relatable person without focusing as much on the company or product.

Offer Practical Advice

Giving users something useful and actionable is more likely to generate shares. Noom, a nutrition and exercise coaching app, for example, posts content that gives users advice on fitness, eating habits, motivation, and self-care.

If you’re struggling to get users to share your content on Facebook, give them something they can’t resist sharing with their friends. Experiment with what works best for your brand, whether it be blunt honesty, humor, relatable connections, or practical advice. When you find what works, run with it. And don’t waver because Facebook is still going strong!

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Facebook’s Snooze Update Will Hide Spoilers and Annoying Topics

June 29, 2018
Anne Felicitas

Facebook’s Snooze Update Will Hide Spoilers and Annoying Topics. #facebook #socialmedia
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With the advent of social media, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to avoid spoilers. Miss one episode of Game of Thrones, and you’re destined to find fans gushing about the show’s shocking reveal online. But with Facebook’s Snooze update, those days will be no more.

Facebook is testing a new version of Snooze that allows you to mute posts by keywords for 30 days. Don’t want to hear about the season finale of Westworld? Simply snooze posts containing the keyword “Westworld.” Located on the upper right-hand menu in News Feed posts, Snooze temporarily hides status updates from friends, groups, and pages.

With this update, Facebook provides a more precise blocking tool for News Feed. Currently, you can’t mute posts about specific topics. Rather, you can only mute users, which may pose a problem. You may, for example, detest all of Mary Sue’s posts about Fortnite, but you don’t want to mute all of her posts from your feed because her hilarious rants about LA traffic delight you.

Once Facebook officially rolls out the Snooze update, you can temporarily mute all unwanted topics without blocking specific users from your News Feed—everyone wins.

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