Facebook to Slowly Rollout Updated News Feed with Rich Features

Facebook’s March 7, ’13 Live Event at their Menlo Park headquarters outlined the new features of the revamped News Feed.

BIGGEST NEWS

Facebook Users will be able to use a “Following” filter where they can see ALL of the posts from Pages they have Liked and public figures they follow.

No more questions about whether Facebook is limiting what you see so that they can earn Ad dollars. Facebook is letting you see it all. Feel free to share the news!

 

 

 

THE NEWS FEED REDESIGN

 

 

The NEW in This News Feed

Mobile Inspired: Facebook was first a web tool, built for desktops and PC’s.  Then mobile was added and yet was different and independent.  As mobile gained in users, Facebook began to look at bringing the mobile and web experience closer.  Now, the role has reversed as mobile takes the lead as the foundation and the web version grows out of that.  Mobile rules the Facebook future!

Design will be consistent across all devices.

Facebook used the simplicity necessary at the mobile level to guide the view on the tablet and web versions.

 

Multiple Feeds: Previously, the most active of Facebook users could exhaust the content presented to them quickly. If you were on constantly, there was little difference between Top Stories and Most Recent.

But now, users will be presented with separate feed options that include Most Recent, All Friends, Photos, Music, Following, Games, Groups and more.  Lots of options, lots of control.

Big and Rich Images: This is the biggest change users will notice immediately. Images are bigger, richer and amazing. Facebook clearly took note of the growth of Pinterest, Instagram and even the changes in Google+.

Clean: Facebook got rid of every unnecessary item. This means no more Ticker. It means the important stuff — News Feed — takes up a greater percentage of the screen. This is where users spend the majority of their time, so it makes perfects sense to focus on this as they have.

 

How it Impacts Users

Personal Control:  The News Feed is still filtered based on the EdgeRank algorithm. However, as we noted at the start above, if users want to see all posts by friends or all posts by brands and public figures they follow, they can do that.

What’s nice is that users will be able to have dozens of lists and feeds available, but Facebook will sort them in order of usage. So if you never use a certain feed, it will drop to the bottom.

As noted, this is HUGE in that Facebook has given users ability to control what they see and no longer can anyone complain that their posts cannot be seen!

Visually Engaging: The consistency across devices is a welcome change. It should improve the overall experience and cause less friction when switching devices.

Inviting: With feed control and more in-feed features to learn more, see more, and do more, Facebook is giving more power to the user to personalize their Facebook experience and to engage with friends and brands. There will be a richer experience in the News Feed overall.  For instance if a user uses Facebook’s Check-in tool at a location and adds a photo, friends of that user will see the large view of the image as well as the ability to easily see more information on that location.

 

What does it Mean for Brands and Facebook Marketers?

 

Images Matter Even More!

Ever since Facebook rolled out Timeline it’s been a necessity to get visual. Images and visual storytelling will continue to rule!  Capture your product, brand, and events with imagery to share, and make it easy for users to share your images!

Photos are bigger. And when users like your Page, the story generated will be focused on the imagery around your Page.

Following Filter:

Users can now view all posts by brands and personalities they follow with the new Following Feed. Brands will be thrilled to know that all posts will be available in chronological order. If fans care about the brands they follow, they won’t miss their content.  Facebook has responded to the cry for a way to access all the content they want on Facebook.  Brands will continue to need to regularly share quality content.

So that’s a quick wrap on Facebook latest innovation!

What are your thoughts on the new Facebook News Feed that is coming?