Facebookpage owners have long yearned for more insight than PTAT — Facebook’s people talking about this metric — offers. Starting today, they’re getting their wish.
Facebookannounced today that the statistics and numbers that make up PTAT are now going to be available, by default, in their individual elements, along with other metrics on page owners’ Insights overviews. That includes:
Page likes
People engaged
(people who have clicked on, liked, commented on, or shared something from your page)
Page tags and mentions
Page checkins
In addition, the former Page Insights virality metric, which Facebook says is often used as a benchmark for post quality, is getting more data. Clicks on post links, which have not been included in virality measures, are now being added in, along with the existing count of how many people saw your posts. Since clicks are being added in, Facebook is tossing the “virality” monicker and substituting “engagement rate.”
Facebook is also adding new metrics and data around page engagement, showing not only who you’ve reached by who you is engaged with your content, down to sex, geography, country, city, and language:
Perhaps most interesting, however, was what Facebook had to say about getting your posts featured in your fans’ news feeds.
We all know that Facebook rewards “quality posts” with greater reach, and that posts with more likes, shares, and comments are more likely to be seen by fans. Facebook said today that one major consideration is the ratio of positive interactions to negative interactions. Which means that posts with plenty of likes, comments, and shares … and no hide posts, hide all posts, report as spam, or unlike page actions will do very well.
But if the negative reactions go up, your post dies.
In the new Page Insights, Facebook will aggregate all those metrics into a single per-post score card, so you’ll be able to see and evaluate those positive and negative interactions, and fine-tune your content strategy for the future.
The changes will be rolling out over the next few weeks and months, and Facebook expects to complete the roll-out by the end of summer.
Sadly, there is no waiting list you can sign up on to speed access.
People say that peanuts are healthy. They’re a super food or something. But the peanut is apparently good for other things too, like inspiring design. The Japanese architect Hiroshi Ueda overlapped two circles to create the peanut concept for this building, completed last year. And it seems only fitting that the peanut house a nursery school. More »
Aussiegamedevelopers are receiving$ 6 million in federal government funding, but what future does the industry have? LifehackerAustralia editor Angus Kidmandiscussed the issue on ABCRadio NationalDrive last night. More »
Android: Getting detailed information about your device isn’t always easy. Apps like Speccyhelp on the desktop, and now CPU-Z can do the same for your phone or tablet. More »
A lot remainsuncertain about the number of users affected by the NSAPRISMsurveillanceprogram that is taking place, the extent to which companies are involved, and how the NSAhandles this sensitive data. Here are some of the biggest unresolved questions. More »
Gizmodo Australia Dan Auerbach, Jonathan Mayer, Peter Eckersley — EFF
AustraliaPost has issued a statement staunchly defending the progress of its IT transformation program, Building Future ReadyIT, as questions are being raised about some aspects of the project’s ability to meet its goals on time and while avoiding significantrisks associated with any such corporate technology renewal effort. Delimiter
Renai LeMay
I met with a couple of extremely impressive entrepreneurs recently, and I was so blown away by these guys, I wanted to share a bit of their wisdom (without disclosing any specifics about their stealth company).
When I asked them who they were going to target for their product, they responded, ”Reality has its own voice.”
Sounds simple, but there is so much more to this, I can only begin to explain. One of the key phrases that we hear regularly in Silicon Valley and beyond is “product market fit.” I know many investors who prefer to wait until a company has found fit before they will invest.
The problem is many don’t listen. We learn in school about market segmentation, and hear everywhere about demographic and geographic targeting, but often that criteria isn’t totally relevant, or worse yet, it is wrong.
Listening to Market Feedback
One of my good friends launched a collaborative creation and video platform called Scoot & Doodle, with the plan to provide a platform for young children to interact with remote relatives. It is an amazingly cool platform for anyone who hasn’t seen it. The early adopters were young people, mostly in college and high school, who loved the ability to collaborate on creative ideas and projects. Not what the company was expecting at all. They had been focused exclusively on young children connecting with relatives. But they listened to the market, and the new capabilities they are adding cater to the crowd they have. The feedback is amazing, and the stats back it up — some people are spending hours daily because the company is listening. It may be that the platform expands to get to the very young group the team initially thought was its target, but it may not, and that won’t determine the success or failure of the company.
Set Yourself up to Listen
However, the signal from the market is often much weaker than Scoot & Doodle experienced. Sometimes the noise drowns out the signal for all but the most discerning. Those predisposed to listen have the best chance of identifying the signal and tracking it. This is not as easy as it sounds. Most people have a pretty good idea of who they think the most likely users of their product will be and how those people will use it. Initially, there usually is less data than one would like.
The best in the business set themselves up to “listen.” They go in with plans to learn and questions to answer. They try to find the reality in the feedback. It is an art, as well as a science. Most companies now overflow with the amount of data they collect. The best ask and answer questions constantly. They collect data that can help them “listen.” This doesn’t mean you go in without a hypothesis. It does mean you try to prove your hypothesis wrong, and if you do, develop a new one.
One of the entrepreneurs I most admire is Uri Levine, founder of Waze. I had a great conversation with him recently, and in his very unassuming way, he articulated some of the most brilliant customer understanding I have ever heard. He said, “We learn about the first customer and make sure that person loves the service, and then move to the next one. Each represents a group of people, and as we move forward, we delight more users.” 50 million people can attest to this approach based on his experience at Waze, and Waze is growing by millions of people per month. They are doing something right!
The team I met yesterday is starting with questions and not making too many assumptions until they get some answers. I don’t want the approach to sound vague — they clearly have an idea of who their best customers will be — but they are not letting their premonitions cloud the data. It is a very strong approach that has the potential to yield great results.
Understanding = Great Customer Experience
When you think about the best customer experiences you have had, and this can be for consumers or businesses, I would hazard a guess that you felt like you were “heard.” When you go to Starbucks and they remember your name and favorite drink, it can brighten up your morning. When you get a great recommendation online that fits what you like, you know they are “listening.” Similarly, a service provider who helps your business solve a problem because they understand your business differentiates from the pack. Why do you think Zappos tells their customer service reps to talk to customers for as long as they want?
Listening Builds Great Businesses
If I had a dollar for every company I see that tells me about the data they collect and the value of the data, I would be retired. If I had a dollar for every company that actually makes a company habit of asking and answering questions, and truly listening for the “voice of reality,” I would not be so rich. But, as an investor, I want to put dollars into companies with a core skill of listening. There are not so many that make the practice a reality, but if we look at companies like Waze, putting the practice to reality can be extremely lucrative.
Jon Soberg is a Managing Director at Blumberg Capital, where he invests in early stage companies, specializing in FinTech, SaaS, and eCommerce. Prior to joining Blumberg Capital, Jon has been a serial entrepreneur and senior executive in multiple companies including Ditech, Broadband Digital Group and Adforce, which had a highly successful IPO.
A CFA Charterholder and adjunct faculty in the Wharton Marketing Department, Jon earned a B.S in Engineering from Harvey Mudd College, an M.S. in Engineering from Northwestern University, and an MBA in Entrepreneurial Management and Marketing from the Wharton School, where he is a Palmer Scholar.
Hey, cat lovers, there’s a new way to embarrass your feline and find fame on the Internet.
Behold, the Cat Fro. The latestInstagramphoto fad has cat owners posing with their furry friend on their head. It’s the new Cat Beard, which is so three weeks ago.
Web-famous, curmudgeonly kitty Colonel Meow popularized the #catfro hashtag, sharing his favorite shots on Facebook. With 4,000 Likes and counting for the Colonel‘s Cat Fro album, you can expect to see your newsfeed filled with cat-topped humans.
Just don’t forget to give Fluffy extra tuna treats after humiliating her for all the Interworld to see. Read more…
This year in Belgium a TEDx conference was held in Louvain LaNeuve. Two Dutch crowdsourcing authors Tim Meuleman and Robert van Meer held a talk. The video has gone live just now.
In their talk they discusses how crowdsourcing can have a positive impact on important themes in live, such as Healthcare, Business & Economics, SocialEnvironment & Safety, and Employment.
Facebook page owners have long yearned for more insight than PTAT — Facebook’s people talking about this metric — offers. Starting today, they’re getting their wish.
Page likes
The changes will be rolling out over the next few weeks and months, and Facebook expects to complete the roll-out by the end of summer.
Jon Soberg is a Managing Director at Blumberg Capital, where he invests in early stage companies, specializing in FinTech, SaaS, and eCommerce. Prior to joining Blumberg Capital, Jon has been a serial entrepreneur and senior executive in multiple companies including Ditech, Broadband Digital Group and Adforce, which had a highly successful IPO.
