Newspapers, blogs and yes newsfeeds have been full up at the start of 2018 with people wailing and gnashing their teeth about Facebook's proposed changes to their newsfeed in the wake of the Russian 'fake news' scandal - more here.
Publishers, brands and businesses have been understandably anxious about seeing a huge reduction in their (already) measly organic reach on the site. This has been particularly troublesome for the traditional media who have come to rely on Facebook as a platform to showcase their content.
The good news is that if you're a business that wants to get the most out of Facebook this isn't the end of the world. It just means you have to do the basics really well and be, well .... more social.
Using the DNAsix® model, you particularly need to think about:
* Having a decent strategy for using Facebook. What exactly are you using it for, who precisely are your customers, what is the best content to engage them with and what resources can you invest in the site.
* You should look at harnessing the creative skills and ideas of everyone you'd class as a brand ambassador for your business - staff, customers, partners, suppliers. This will enable you to create a virtual newsroom.
* With a good strategy and creative juices flowing, you are more likely to be able to create the dynamic, regular and engaging content that Facebook requires. More often than not these days, lots of this content should be image or video-based.
* Key to your success on Facebook is having a really great community manager. With the newsfeed changes, you want real interaction with your posts - not just likes or shares. The site was originally set up as a place for people to interact socially with one another and this is what they are trying to get back to - albeit as a media giant with 2 billion + users!
* With great content, you should also have greater success using Facebook Advertising. It stands to reason that if a piece of content gets good engagement and reach organically among a small audience, the same should be true if it's promoted to a larger audience.
* Finally, using your Facebook Insights, you'll be able to get a clear view of how your content creation and advertising strategy is faring by analysing the data from the site.You'll then be able to adjust accordingly.
As a postcript though, remember that the world doesn't stay the same. Facebook may not always be the perfect delivery channel for your content. Other channels and media players may emerge. As a business, you've got to innovate and adapt constantly to the changing business landscape.
This isn't the first major change that Facebook has made and it certainly won't be the last!