Oh Facebook went and done it again. I'm talking about changing up its algorithm.

WHY?!?

Facebook says they want the newsfeed to focus on what people care about, so friends and family will show up first. You can get their complete announcement here.

Posts that people are engaging with the most in your community will show up in your feed.

For businesses, that means you'll still want to create engaging posts, just don't use engagement baiting.

Facebook cracked down on these “engagement baiting” posts that tell people to comment, like or share. The posts are not genuine engagement (plus they are are kind of irritating). If a business is caught using the tactic, they will be buried even more in the Facebook Newsfeed.

“Publishers and other businesses that use engagement bait tactics in their posts should expect their reach on these posts to decrease. Meanwhile, Pages that repeatedly share engagement bait posts will see more significant drops in reach. Page Admins should continue to focus on posting relevant and meaningful stories that do not use engagement bait tactics.

Basically businesses will be buried even more on the Facebook feed. This is troubling for brands who have spent a lot of time, energy and money to be seen on Facebook

It may sound like the end of the 🌎 world for small businesses, but don’t 😫 freak out. There are ways you’re amazing content can still get the attention it deserves.

Three Ways to Still be Seen on the Feed:

1. 🌟Post things that bring value to your community. I know, this is easier said than done. You are going to have to put your thinking hat on and get creative with this one. Find out what your customers care about and share it. Do you have a solution to their problem? Do you have an employee everyone knows and loves, utilize them! The possibilities are endless.

2.🌟 Go Live if You Want Your Brand to Live. Facebook says it will favor live video over a mere photo or video in the newsfeed. But the first tip still applies, make sure the content of your live is meaningful and brings value to your audience. The live video will be your way to actively engage with your followers in a meaningful way, which is what Facebook wants. Facebook Live is also mentioned in Facebook's announcement on what will be favored in feeds, so it's best to pay attention and play the game the way they say to.

3. 🌟Pay Up I hate to break it to you, but now more than ever you will need to pay to play. More businesses will be vying to have their posts seen, which means they will be paying to boost their posts, which means ad prices could go up on Facebook.

Businesses can expect to see a drop in engagement on Facebook in 2018. But you can still get noticed on other channels. Be sure to get active on Instagram and Pinterest to engage with your community and reach more customers.