MANILA – As of the third quarter of 2016, Facebook already has over 1.7 billion users, a population greater than China, the most populous nation in the world. But the bigger the platform gets, the harder it is to reach even a portion of these billions of people thumbing through their mobile phones, rarely stopping at anything.
In an exclusive masterclass with Kitty Lun, Head of Facebook Creative Shop Greater China organized by adobo magazine at the Makati Diamond Residences, she shared some of the tips and tricks on how brands can hack Facebook’s system.
“Mark Zuckerberg built Facebook for the people. It’s not for advertising. It’s for the people. Mark has decided since day one that the advertising on Facebook is not going to hurt the experience that people love in Facebook. Ads should be effective as being part of people’s experience,” said Lun.
So, if you’re an advertiser, here’s how to make it on Facebook:
1. Make use of in-app tools like Canvas and Iceberg. Since content published in Facebook’s in-app tools are pre-loaded, the content loads faster than if they were in third party apps, preventing your audience from abandoning your material.
2. Create short, compelling pre-produced videos. People nowadays have an attention span shorter than a gold fish’s–four seconds. Instead of using the old way of storytelling–intro, build up, climax, end–start big and sustain the audience by making use of the heartbeat rhythm method where there’s no climax and there’s no end.
3. Stream unique and interesting videos on Facebook live. Contrastingly, Facebook live videos don’t have a time limit. It can go on for as long as 40 to 90 minutes if you’re content is as worth watching as a live video of Martha Stewart cooking.
4. Add text to your videos. Unless you’re confident that your video can stand alone without sound, adding text is important to aid the viewers who are watching on silent mode.
5. Mobilize your TV commercials. Facebook is not dictated by television. The commercial you used for TV should be repurposed to cater to your mobile phone audience by applying the heartbeat rhythm, adding text, trying square and vertical video formats instead of horizontal.
6. Experiment on Facebook’s advertising platforms. Other than programmatic ads, Facebook offers various advertising platforms like Slideshow, best for people with features phones and low bandwidth, and Carousel, offering full stories but letting the users control the sequence that consists of videos and stills. The users get to decide what they want to watch and how much they want to watch.
But despite all these, Lun reiterates that there’s really no recipe for creativity. It’s just something that brands should think about. “It’s all about hacking what’s already happening there in the system and making it relevant to what you’re saying.” And for Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, “Advertising works most effectively if they’re in line with what people are already trying to do.”
This event was co-presented by adobo magazine and RUSH. Special thanks to Facebook Philippines, Makati Diamond Residences, Beer Below Zero, Don Papa Rum, and Philippine Wine Merchants.
