Facebook & Instagram to Reveal Location of High-reach Pages Targeting US Audiences

1. Facebook & Instagram to Reveal Location of High-reach Pages Targeting US Audiences In an attempt to make pages and accounts more transparent, Facebook is piloting a new feature that provides the location of the 'high-reach' FB Pages and Instagram accounts. The most popular social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram, have always focused on providing unique ways for businesses to reach their customers in new and engaging ways. This feature has made Facebook a very valuable platform when it comes to digital marketing for healthcare as well as various other business niches. Recently, Facebook announced their plan to introduce a new feature on the platform that will reveal the location of popular pages when they publish posts. In a bid to make messaging during election more transparent, Facebook says it will now display the location of the Facebook Page or Instagram account with a large audience on every post it shares, so end users have a better understanding of how reliable or authentic the accounts may be. While the feature is described as one designed for overall increased transparency, it will initially launch only in the U.S. That means, Facebook will display the location information for Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts that are based outside the U.S., but that reach large audiences located primarily in the U.S (techcrunch.com).

2. Image Source: https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/22/facebook-and-instagram-will-now-show-location-of-posts- from-high-reach-accounts-targeting-u-s-audiences/ Facebook is piloting this new feature aiming to making it easier to see who’s behind the posts published across Facebook and Instagram. It will allow users to see the country where page managers are posting content from and will make it easier to tell if they’re actually located where they say they are. The company says it’s testing this update as part of an effort to make high-reach pages more transparent. According to Search Engine Journal, Facebook says, “These changes are part of our broader efforts to protect elections and increase transparency on Facebook and Instagram so people can make more informed decisions about the posts they read, trust and share,” “We want to make sure people use our services authentically and can understand who is behind the posts they’re seeing… so we’re taking extra steps to make Pages and accounts with large audiences more transparent.” When this update is to be introduced, the location of a page will be displayed in the same spot as a regular location tag. However, rather than showing the exact city/state where a page manager is located it will only show the country. So, there is still some level of privacy for page managers, while still accomplishing the goal of making pages more transparent. However, the update is obligatory and page managers cannot choose out of having their location revealed when they publish a post. What benefits can this new feature provide? Even though, it's said earlier that Facebook introduce this new feature in a bid to make messaging during election more transparent, this update does not appear to be exclusive to pages with political affiliations. There are certain use cases for this feature if and when it rolls out to other types of

3. pages. Users make informed decisions about the posts they trust. They can quickly determine if content published by a local organization is really being published locally, or if it’s being published from another country entirely. This update will also come to all types of pages because there’s evidence of Facebook making similar changes in the past - like in 2018, Facebook pages began displaying the primary country location of the people who manage the pages. Update first coming to Facebook Pages and Instagram accounts in the U.S. Instagram also launched ‘About this Account’ to provide additional context so people can evaluate the authenticity of an account, this change is only rolling out to pages that “reach large audiences primarily based in the US.” Though Facebook didn’t indicate what qualifies as a page with a “large audience” or “high reach”, it's for sure that the feature will not apply to all pages in the US. It can also apply to pages managed in other countries, as long as their primary audience is in the United States. At first, this update will apply to posts on Instagram and Facebook. The company is exploring ways to bring this level of transparency to other places – such as Facebook pages and Instagram profiles. Facebook marketing is always rapidly evolving. But now in this current coronavirus pandemic, where it has us all on edge and taking precautions, and even if it’s slowing down other development even a little, it’s good to see that Facebook is taking its role and responsibility here seriously. Along with new feature announcement they have also announced certain changes in their platform related to COVID-19. •Facebook has announced that due to changes in the moderation process and with staff out of office, there may be delays and errors in ad reviews. In such cases, you have to make sure that you’re creating your ads and submitting them for approval long before you actually need them so you have time to adjust, edit, or appeal them if needed. •Facebook has created a ban on any ads and commerce listings that seek to capitalize on fears related to the virus. To prevent exploitation, any supposedly magic cures, hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, face masks, and test kits cannot be advertised at this point in time. •Facebook is currently testing new features to reduce misinformation about the virus on both WhatsApp and Messenger. If you are convinced that Facebook’s new feature is a great option for digital marketing of your business website, you can let know your online marketing team about the same. A reliable social media optimization service would use the latest features, relevant strategies and techniques and increase the visibility, traffic and exposure of your business website on social media platforms. Remember to focus on valuable, empathetic marketing on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, and look for shifts in consumer behavior. (800) 941-5527