How what you write on Facebook could be killing your reach

Posted on by Marie Page

Facebook’s algorithm that decides what to show you in News Feed comprises at least 100,000 factors.

It’s become pretty standard knowledge amongst Facebook pros that some words and phrases are almost guaranteed to throttle the reach of what may well have been an innocent sounding post.

Facebook are ever on the alert for Pages that try to “game” the algorithm by artificially inflating likes, comments and shares (because interaction like that  sends an instant quality signal to Facebook which interprets that level of reaction positively and instantly adds a little more juice to your posts.

So when brands use “trigger” words and phrases such as “Please like this post if you agree”, Facebook is on the warpath.

It uses shazam-like software to scan your posts for trigger words and demote them in News Feed.

Visit Peak District’s post below is going to get a double whammy of throttling due to:

a) It’s inadvertent use of the word “like” in the text, and

b) It’s deliberate request that people make a comment

What else is in the Trigger words to avoid list?

Well that would be telling!

Seriously though – we’ve just released an entire Masterclass on the topic called Avoiding the “L” word and other reach killers.

We reveal all there and also share some useful workarounds.

Marie Page

About Marie Page

Marie Page is one of the UK’s leading Facebook marketing experts. She is a founding partner of digital marketing consultancy The Digiterati and the Digiterati Academy e-learning portal for marketers and entrepreneurs. Her award-winning Master's Dissertation was the culmination of three years' academic research into Facebook that resulted in a book (and companion online course) 'Winning at Facebook Marketing with Zero Budget' that became an Amazon bestseller. Marie's work on the Facebook News Feed algorithm was featured in The Huffington Post. A recognised thought leader on social media, Marie is often approached by journalists for comment in articles such as this Telegraph article. She was also interviewed for ITV's Tonight show on Facebook privacy issues in relation to advertising. Marie is a regular guest on digital marketing blogs and podcasts including Social Media Examiner and Smart Insights. In 2018 she is speaking at Brighton SEO, Europe's biggest search and marketing conference. Marie is also author of two Smart Insights books: 'Smarter Guide to Facebook Marketing', now in its fourth edition, and 'Facebook Ads Guide', both edited by Dr Dave Chaffey. Marie is also a part time yoga teacher.

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