What Does Facebook’s
New News Feed Mean
for Your Brand?
Facebook is slowly rolling out the new look for
it’s News Feed. This is one of the largest and
most important updates yet for both users and
brands because it affects how users engage
with and discover content. Facebook’s main
goal was to de-clutter the feed and to make it
more engaging, focusing on the idea of posts
as stories. We’ve outlined what’s changing and
what it means for your brand content below.
We also recommend you visit
http://www.facebook.com/about/newsfeed
for more information and to add yourself to the
waitlist to have your personal News Feed
upgraded to the new version.
WHAT DOES FACEBOOK’S NEW NEWS FEED MEAN FOR YOUR BRAND?
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1. Larger Visuals
In order to turn the News Feed into a more
engaging story-telling vehicle Facebook is
devoting more real estate to what users actually
interact with most – visuals!
Facebook News Feed’s New Look
Pros for Brands
• You will have more real estate to work with and more visibility for your posts.
• This change is expected to increase the amount of time users spend on Facebook, increasing
the likelihood they will see your content.
Cons for Brands
• Now that brand posts are larger, users will have less patience with unattractive or
unprofessional looking posts. Users will be more likely to unfollow you if they dislike your
brand posts due to their in-your-face size.
Takeaways
• Visuals are more important than ever! Brand posts must look like they were carefully and
professionally created.
• The quality of your content is more important. Posting for the sake of posting is more likely to
cause people to unfollow you now.
• The new recommended image size is 600x600px
WHAT DOES FACEBOOK’S NEW NEWS FEED MEAN FOR YOUR BRAND?
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2. News Feed Filters
The general News Feed will still be the initial
default view when a user goes to their feed.
However, once they are there, users can choose
from other filtered feeds including All Friends,
Photos, Music, and Following. This gives the user
the opportunity to explore the content they are
most interested in.
New News Feed Filters
Pros for Brands
• Your content can now appear on multiple feeds Recent News, Photos, Following, etc.
• When a user explores their Following feed, they are distinctly interested in interacting with
brands. Your content is valued versus simply an interruption among their friends’ posts. You
are competing only against other brands’ content for their attention.
Cons for Brands
• Users can now avoid your content by choosing All Friends.
Takeaways
• Your content needs to be even more relevant so that users don’t just avoid it with filters.
• Think about how to show up under multiple filters by posting photo content or by creating a
company Spotify or Rdio account so you appear under the Music feed.
• Research into what other brands your followers follow could be beneficial. These brands are
your competition for a user’s attention on the Following feed.
WHAT DOES FACEBOOK’S NEW NEWS FEED MEAN FOR YOUR BRAND?
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3. Page Likes now
Display Facebook Covers
Now when a user likes a brand page, the post
that will show up on their friends’ News Feed will
include the brand’s Facebook cover.
Facebook Page Like Post
Pros for Brands
• You now get a more visual and noticeable presence on users’ feeds when liked. Likes are now
even more valuable!
Cons for Brands
• It is now even more important that your Facebook cover is always representative of your
brand since it can now be seen on its own and not in the context of your page.
Takeaway
• Facebook covers now play an even larger role in spreading your brand message. Make sure
your Facebook cover tells a complete brand story on its own.
4. Consistent Desktop,
Tablet and Mobile Design
The new design was inspired by clean, contentfocused mobile design trends and is now
consistent across all platforms, including the new
left hand navigation side bar and the new feed
filter option menu on the right.
Facebook Desktop v. Mobile Menu
Takeaway
• Whereas before users had different trends and usage patterns on desktop v. tablet v. mobile
these habits should become more aligned across platforms but we’ll have to wait for the data.
WHAT DOES FACEBOOK’S NEW NEWS FEED MEAN FOR YOUR BRAND?
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