(PDF) Back to Basics: Facebook’s EdgeRank Algorithm for SEO

Facebook is a relatively simple social media platform for personal and business use. Since most people have a personal profile, they know how to create a post, check their News Feed, or comment on a picture; however, this is not enough for effective business use.

Facebook business page basics take what you know and do on your own personal page a step further. Every post and comment you make is an effort to engage with current and potential customers. What’s the best way to ensure you are capitalizing on the business potential of Facebook? Understanding the Facebook EdgeRank Algorithm provides a great solution.

(Free PDF Breakdown) Beginning to Master the Facebook EdgeRank Algorithm

What is the EdgeRank Algorithm?

Facebook uses an algorithm called EdgeRank to decide what will populate a user’s News Feed. The first thing people see when they sign-on to Facebook is their News Feed, so every single action you take on Facebook should aim to get noticed.

Three factors make up the EdgeRank algorithm: affinity score, edge weight, and time decay.

1. Affinity score measures how connected you are with another user. The more you interact with a person (or brand) on Facebook, the higher your affinity score, and the stronger your message to Facebook that you want to see updates about this person (or brand) in your News Feed. 

2. The second EdgeRank factor is edge weight. An “edge” is Facebook’s term for any action you take on Facebook – status updates, photo comments, event RSVPs, etc. Each edge holds a different weight based on how engaging the content might be to you. In general, a photo or a video weighs higher than a link. One example of a company that does a great job of taking advantage of this concept is the Cleveland Clinic. Every post on their Facebook page includes a branded image. This makes their content highly share-able and much more engaging – and gives them a higher edge weight.

3. The third EdgeRank factor is time decay. Time decay simply measures the time that has passed since the edge took place. Check your personal News Feed and you’ll see this in action – status updates from one minute ago appear higher than status updates from four hours ago.

(Free PDF Breakdown) Beginning to Master the Facebook EdgeRank Algorithm

Implications for Your Business Profile

For your business profile, this means you need to frequently interact with your followers (affinity score), post engaging content such as photos and videos (edge weight), and post often (time decay) in order to increase your chances of showing up in a current or potential customer’s News Feed.

This is all easier said than done, so stay tuned for my next post with simple tips on how to ramp up engagement with your followers!

In the comments below, let me know your experience trying to master the Facebook EdgeRank. I'd like to hear your experience, good or bad.

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles via FreeDigitalPhotos.net