Remember the outcry when people realized that only about %16 of a Page’s fans were actually seeing status updates in their Facebook news feed? In a move that seems to be aimed at remedying this fact, Facebook will be introducing a dedicated “Page notification” news feed option.
As a Facebook marketer, it can be frustrating to realize that only a small percentage of your fans are actually seeing the updates you post. On a Page with less than 100 fans, it can be depressing to see that only 20 or so saw your exciting update. Many managers have claimed that the Facebook EdgeRank has made it difficult to reach fans that could potentially be interested in content, and now Facebook seems to have come up with a solution.
Jon Loomer has reported that the option to subscribe to a Page news feed by getting notifications has been introduced to Facebook. Inside Facebook shows screenshots of an option to “Get Notifications” from a particular Facebook Page by digging into the “Like” options a bit.
Then, presumably, every time a Facebook Page you’ve selected creates a status update, you should be notified on top of Facebook similar to the way you are whenever a person comments or Likes something of yours.
Facebook has confirmed that they are indeed introducing the feature:
“We are currently rolling out the ability for people to receive notifications from specific pages, friends or public figures that they are connected to. This feature will help people keep up with the people and things that they care about most.”
What does this mean for Page Managers? Whenever you see this option roll out, be sure to let your fans know! Let them know that they can “subscribe” to make sure they don’t miss any updates.
Will people actually use this new feature? Maybe. Or maybe it will just make things more difficult for pages. Jon Loomer expresses uncertainty about the new feature:
“Many brands should feel uneasy about these potential changes. If you are putting your visibility in the hands of the users, you can no longer blame EdgeRank if no one sees your content. If your Fans don’t take action to see your stuff more often, it’s pretty clear how they feel about you.”
