Yes, there is a way to make sure your Fans see just about everything you post to Facebook. It’s not a trick or a hack. It’s a simple setting Facebook created for users who want to choose what they see in their own News Feeds…instead of letting Facebook’s algorithm decide that for them. If you could convince a large enough segment of your Facebook Fans to do this, it would most likely result in a lot more people seeing a lot more of your posts. But – easier said than done.
How Does It Work?
Facebook users have the option to set ANY Facebook Page or Profile to “See First”, “Default” or “UnFollow.” By setting a Page as “See First,” a user is more likely to see posts by that Page in their News Feed. It’s essentially an override of the “Default” algorithm – or at the very least, an extremely strong signal.
Making Your Page “See First”
So this is a little like running for Prom King… it’s a very grass-roots popularity contest which requires a great deal of campaigning. And there seem to be as many strategies as there are newsrooms… We’ve seen everything from promotional-style videos (Example from WSAW-TV in Wausau, WI) to story links with step-by-step instructions (Example from KSAT-TV in San Antonio, TX). The video below, and accompanying story from the Woodford Times in Peoria, IL, is one of the more thorough:
[Video from GateHouse Media | Source: YouTube]
What’s the Bad News?
You can run all the commercials in the world and only a small segment of your Facebook audience is ever going to follow through with this. Plus, Facebook allows users to select up to 30 “See First” options… so the competition doesn’t end once you make the list. As with anything on Facebook, there is no silver bullet. Your best bet is always to focus on great content and audience engagement. But if you can pick up a few of these “See First” subscribers – that’s icing on the cake.
PS: No, you can’t find out how many users have chosen your Page to “See First”. Nice try.
If you’d like to set up a Custom Webinar for your team to talk about the latest Facebook changes and take a closer look at best practices and strategy, please contact your #TeamSND Client Strategy Specialist!
