Facebook changes again. Now what?

Facebook has made some changes, again. This is nothing new as Facebook always seems to be rolling out modifications to their design and privacy policy. The most recent changes have made some people upset, which is clear from the updates that I’ve seen in my newsfeed and Ticker. Mashable featured a comic that nicely sums up reactions now, and what they will be down the line.

Aside from what this means for personal profiles, these updates will likely impact business pages as well.  In a recent article posted by Mashable, managers of business pages definitely have reasons to be upset. Industry analysts say “likes” will play a much smaller role in marketing, which will pressure business page administrators to come up with compelling content that will allow them to further enhance their relationship with their connections. Another impact of these changes is the ability for Facebook users to unmark a top story.

“Since users now have more control over their news feeds, brands with boring or irrelevant updates will have lower visibility,” says Ian Schafer, CEO of Deep Focus, a digital marketing firm. While the page updates will still show up in the Ticker, they will not have as much prominence as when they showed up on a connections wall.

So what’s a brand to do? In the new age of Facebook, page administrators will need to stop talking at their connections and start talking with them. One brand that appears to be doing it right is Zappos.com. The page not only give updates, but sparks discussion that is related to their brand offerings, such as “what color are your rainboots?” This question got Zappos 102 likes and 146 comments on a Sunday afternoon. PlattForm clients may have the same audience as Zappos and will have to work a little harder to get connections to interact. 

The bottom line on Facebook’s recent changes? Pages have always had to present compelling content. It’s just more important than it was previously.

What's your opinion of Facebook's changes? How will they impact education marketers? Share your comment below.