Marketing and tech observers call Facebook’s Search FYI, the network’s enhanced search function, a challenge to Google’s search dominance and a possible bonanza for PR and social media marketers.
Search FYI delivers post results from the entire Facebook universe, not just posts from each user’s friends and family. With over 1.5 billion searches a day and over 2 trillion posts in its index, Facebook views search a vital part of its long-range plans.
As we noted in a previous post, marketers may enjoy a new way to reach Facebook users because the new search function increases referral traffic and visits from consumers who are not already following their pages. Of course, the challenge is producing engaging posts and convincing the network’s opaque algorithm to include those posts in search results.
Larry Kim, founder and CTO of WordStream, in a Medium post revealed more detailed information about Facebook’s search function that you may not know about, but should.
Facebook Search FYI Capabilities
The search function provides:
More timely suggestions. As users type in the search box, Facebook highlights posts that are happening at the time, allowing users to follow popular stories as they unfold. The network doesn’t reveal how it automatically populates results, but it probably uses an algorithm similar to Google’s autosuggest.
Different categories. Search results are sorted into four different categories: top, latest, people or photos. Users can view results in any of those groups.
Personalized results. The algorithm uses about 200 factors to personalize results, according to TechCrunch. That includes what users like and engage with, what they search for, and information about their identities.
Public posts connected to a specific link. Users can see the most popular public posts connected to a specific link, allowing them to jump into conversations on those posts. When a link is shared widely, it often anchors an interesting public conversation.
The number of people commenting. When a popular post appears in relation to the link, users see “People Talking” indicators that show how many people are discussing the link on public posts.
All historic posts. Search results can show posts from years ago. That raises a privacy issue, but you can make old posts private, as Quartz explains.
Results for mobile. The search functions are available on iPhones and Android phones as well as desktop. Mobile users can also refresh content at the top of their feed.
Facebook will continue updating the search function. Don’t be surprised by foreign language releases, new features and other improvements. Facebook created a new section in its newsroom to announce updates.
Bottom Line: Facebook’s new and improved search capability opens a new door for marketing and PR pros to distribute educational, corporate and product information. Given Facebook’s huge user base, it’s essential for marketers to understand the search functionality as well as possible.
William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.
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