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Facebook’s New Algorithm Cracking Down on Clickbait

For those of you who don’t keep track, Facebook has recently updated its algorithm and this latest update was expected. The social platform has taught its newest algorithm to recognize clickbait titles. You know, the article titles that trick you into reading an article only to quickly realize that the article has nothing to do with the title. Many marketers have relied on this tactic as it usually works and its success rate is proven by all of us.

 

While many users have voiced their complaint about clickbait being used on the social media platform, it has taken Facebook quite some time to respond. By evaluating signals including time spent on a given page, Facebook has put their focus on clickbait users and taught their new algorithm to search for clickbait articles. However, “while this update helped, we’re still seeing Pages rely on clickbait headlines, and people are still telling us they would prefer to see clearly written headlines that help them decide how they want to spend their time and not waste time on what they click,” Facebook team informs.

 

Since clickbait articles follow pretty much the same title formula, Facebook’s algorithm will determine a perceived level of tackiness by considering two elements: “(1) if the headline withholds information required to understand what the content of the article is; and (2) if the headline exaggerates the article to create misleading expectations for the reader.”

 

What does this mean for users who post clickbait content as a means of marketing or advertising their business or pages? The algorithm will also learn pages and domains that publish high volumes of clickbait content and those will face some sort of punishment. Once the affected pages stop posting clickbait content, the algorithm will eventually rank their posts higher in News Feeds.

 

This change in Facebook’s algorithm just goes to show how important quality content has become. It’s not enough to post “something” and hope “someone” will read. Content marketing is important to small businesses on the social media platform and supplying consistent, quality content is the key to success.

 

Any time Facebook updates its algorithm, they receive some complaint from its users. Not this time. It is clear that this algorithm is a good one and that it will make Facebook News Feed a better place. Not only will it improve user experience, it will also allow smaller companies with truly amazing content to shine even more. There is a much larger implication of this update that is this clickbait-combating strategy is sending publishers a clear and definite message: the standards are being raised. This means content writers have to step up their game or they will be left behind.