Thursday, 21 July 2011

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7 Steps to Improve Your Facebook EdgeRank and Dominate Facebook
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7 Steps to Improve Your Facebook EdgeRank and Dominate Facebook

Guest post by Nivin. Did you know that if your Facebook content has poor Facebook Edgerank score, all your Facebook marketing efforts could be for nothing? Recently, Facebook introduced an algorithm which determines what pops up on a Facebook users' News Feed. That algorithm is called Edgerank.

Why Should You Care about Facebook Edgerank?

Quite simply, if your content's Edgerank score is low, it is essentially INVISIBLE.

Since the whole point of using Facebook from a marketing perspective is to spread your content via the News Feed, having a poor Edgerank is the difference between high quality traffic and ZERO traffic.

How does Edgerank Work?

Edgerank was introduced to provide Facebook users with content that was relevant to them based on their interest. Rather than flood their News Feed with every single update from all their "Friends", Edgerank was devised to display content that users were interested in.

So, in order for your content to appear on the News Feed of your targeted audience, your audience must be interested in you AND your content.

How Does Facebook Know What Interests Your Users?

#1 Affinity
Affinity is calculated based on how often your audience interacts with you and your historical content. If your audience frequently writes on your wall, interacts with your questions, updates and shares, your affinity score with your audience will most likely be high.

#2 Weight
Now it's not enough that they JUST interact with your content. The QUALITY of that interaction is also important. So, if person A "liked" your content while person B commented on it, your Weight score with B is higher than A. This means based on weight, your content will more likely appear on B's News Feed than A.

#3 Time
This is the simplest. No one wants to read stale news. The more recent your content, the higher your Time Score.

What Does It Matter To Your Business?

The Good
Your audience is now getting very relevant information based on their browsing habits and interests, which means they are more likely to pay attention and interact with their News Feed. So, if you create quality content, it is more likely to be interacted (viewed, shared etc.) with.

The Bad
Since quality interaction and time is now a factor, you will need to produce content which will actively engage your audience and you'll probably have to do it more often. Lame status updates and subpar content is a thing of the past. Although it may seem like more work (which it is), this will clearly differentiate you from your competitors and allow you to get up close and personal with your audience.

The Awesome
Going Viral – If you make it to your audiences News Feed, you are part of an exclusive and trusted club. Content published on the Feed will most likely generate high levels of interaction, increasing the possibility of your content going Viral.

Since audiences are more engaged, you can communicate with them at a much deeper level than ever before. This switches the perception from being just a brand to a friend. The closer you can get to your audience, the more you learn about their needs, and the better products and services you can come up with.

7 Steps to Improve Your Edgerank

Find out your Edgerank: Visit the unofficial Edgerank Checker to verify each of your pages Edgerank Score.
Post more Videos & Pictures: Not only do they grab people's attention compared to the standard text updates; they also seem to be highly favoured by the Edgerank algorithm.
Encourage Commenting: Bear in mind that when you create content, your main goal is to encourage interaction. So, make sure to ASK for comments, feedbacks and even "likes" (something is better than nothing).
Interact With Your Audience: Interact with your audience more frequently. When they see that you actually reply to their comments, they're more likely to engage. Don't forget to do a Crowd Source for content ideas. Not only will the content resonate with your audience, they'll definitely appreciate being included in the creation process.
Ask the Questions: The best way to engage with your audience is to ask them questions. You will be surprised how many of them will answer you. The key is to make sure you have a call to action. So, Ask and you shall receive.
Watch Your Timing: Now that you have a targeted, engaged audience, the last thing you want to do is blow it by posting too many updates. Unfortunately, there is no magic formula. The frequency of your updates will depend on your audience. Start smaller (3 updates per week to once a day), and work your way up to the "sweet spot".
Personality: When engaging with your audience, feel free to let your personality flow through. The last thing you want is for your audience to feel like they're talking to a machine.

Guest author Nivin Thanabalan is the creator of Secret Marketing Playbook, an online repository of the top strategies in internet marketing and content creation. Royalty-free stock image by Yanik Chauvin.

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