The Facebook Algorithm in 2024

Over the last decade, numerous new social media platforms, trends, and tools have emerged. Despite this, since its inception in 2003, Facebook has remained a cornerstone of the global social media landscape. According to the latest statistics in 2024, Facebook now boasts over 2.9 billion active users, presenting an unparalleled opportunity for businesses to reach and engage with customers.

However, navigating Facebook has evolved significantly over the years. This blog aims to help users, creators, and marketers understand the underlying principles of Facebook’s algorithm and how it shapes our experience of Facebook’s “feed”.

Grasping its intricacies is essential for anyone looking to effectively leverage the world's largest social media platform. In this discussion, we will address the following questions:

• What is the Facebook algorithm?
• How does the Facebook algorithm work?
• What is the Facebook Reels algorithm?
• How can I master the algorithm?
  

Evolution of the Facebook Algorithm

At its core, the Facebook algorithm is a complex set of programming rules and machine learning techniques designed to curate and prioritise content in a user's feed. It determines what posts, stories, and ads you see, and in what order they appear, based on a number of factors including your past interactions, content type preferences, and engagement patterns.

Its primary goal is to create a personalised and engaging experience for each user, making the vast sea of available content manageable and relevant.

However, this represents a significant change from the platform's infancy, where users enjoyed a straightforward chronological feed, and the latest posts from their network appeared first.

In 2010, Facebook introduced “EdgeRank,” its first major step towards algorithmic content curation. It was a relatively simple algorithm compared to today's standards, focusing on three main factors: the relationship between the user and the content creator, the engagement level of the piece of content, and how recent the post was.

Fast forward to 2024, and the Facebook algorithm has transformed, prioritising meaningful engagement by encouraging active participation, such as comments and shares. This evolution reflects a deeper understanding that the quality of engagement far outweighs quantity, steering the platform towards content that fosters positive interactions and keeps users entertained and interested.

Today, the algorithm not only sorts posts but also serves as a sophisticated, adaptive system that finely tunes the balance between personal connections and broader content discovery. It curates a diverse and engaging feed tailored to each user's interests, signalling Facebook's journey from a simple networking site to a mega digital ecosystem dedicated to enriching user experiences.

How the Facebook Algorithm Works in 2024

With the rapid advancements in AI, Facebook’s algorithm has naturally also evolved and now weaves through a four-step process to determine which content is most relevant to a particular user. Let’s dive into the 4 steps:

Inventory

This initial phase involves compiling all possible content that could appear in a user's feed. This inventory is vast, encompassing posts from friends, family, pages followed, groups joined, and ads targeted to the user. Crucially, Facebook's algorithm immediately excludes any content that violates its Community Standards, ensuring that harmful or inappropriate material is filtered out from the start. This step sets the stage for the intricate selection process that follows, aiming to sift through the sea of potential content to find the gems that will resonate most with each user.

Signals

At the heart of the algorithm's decision-making are signals - indicators that provide insights into the content's potential relevance to the user. These signals are both broad and nuanced, ranging from the straightforward (such as the post's age and the relationship between the poster and the viewer) to the complex (like the medium of the content, whether it's a photo, video, or text post, and the viewer's past interactions with similar types of content). Even seemingly minor details, such as the speed of the user's internet connection and the type of device they're using, are taken into account, ensuring that the content not only matches the user's interests but is also accessible under their current conditions.

Predictions

With a wealth of data gathered from signals, the algorithm then moves into the predictive phase, where it assesses how likely a user is to engage with each piece of content. These predictions are rooted in the user's previous behaviour on the platform - the posts they've liked, commented on, shared, or spent time viewing. By analysing these patterns, the algorithm estimates the user's likely response to new content, predicting engagement levels down to the likelihood of a comment, a share, or even a longer viewing time. This predictive accuracy is crucial for prioritising content that will not only catch the user's eye but also encourage active participation.

Relevance

The culmination of this process is the assignment of a relevance score to each piece of content. This score is a comprehensive measure of the content's predicted importance and appeal to the user, based on the inventory of available content, the signals gathered about each piece, and the algorithm's predictions of user engagement. Content with higher relevance scores is given priority in the user's feed, ensuring that they are greeted with the most engaging, personalised selection of posts each time they log in. Moreover, the algorithm works to maintain a diverse and dynamic feed, avoiding the repetition of content types or sources to keep the user experience fresh and engaging.

Mastering the Algorithm

Achieving visibility and engagement on Facebook necessitates a strategic approach tailored to the algorithm's nuances. Here are a few tips to for creators and marketers.

• Craft Relevant Content: Understand your audience's preferences to create content that speaks directly to their interests and needs. Use Facebook Insights to analyse performance and refine your strategy. Posting for the sake of posting will not improve your relevancy.
• Foster Authentic Engagement: Encourage meaningful interactions by prompting discussions and feedback. High engagement rates signal the algorithm to prioritise your content. Giveaways are not authentic engagement and be mindful of falling into the paid for engagement trap.
• Experiment with Content Formats: Diversify your content mix across videos, images, and text posts to identify what best engages your audience. This experimentation can uncover valuable insights into effective content strategies. Do not be afraid to create and express.
• Optimise Posting Times: Timing is crucial. Analysing your audience's online habits can help you schedule posts for when they are most likely to engage, amplifying your content's reach.
• Embrace Video Content: With a shift towards video, especially in formats like Reels, investing in quality video content can significantly boost your visibility and engagement on the platform.
  

Conclusion

Understanding and adapting to the Facebook algorithm in 2024 is essential for anyone aiming to make an impact on the platform. The key to success lies not just in grasping the algorithm's mechanics but in crafting a strategy that aligns with its focus on meaningful engagement. B3 Marketing stands ready to demystify this process for you. Through our social media audits and bespoke Facebook strategies, we're here to ensure your content not only reaches its intended audience but truly resonates, driving engagement and fostering community. Let us be your ally in mastering the Facebook landscape, transforming challenges into victories on the world's largest social media platform.