In 2013, Facebook introduced changes to their Graph Search Feature to give answers to natural language queries, like Pages About The New York Yankees. Graph search operates by use of a search algorithm similar to traditional search engines such as Google. However, this feature is distinguished as a semantic search engine, searching based on intended meaning rather than returning results based on matching keywords. For Facebook Ads Marketers, this is huge.
Facebook Graph search supports searches for the following types:
- People
- Pages
- Places (limitable to specific location and distance)
- Check-ins of the user, friends, or where user or friends have been tagged
- Objects with location information attached. In addition, the returned objects will be those in which the user or friends have been tagged, or those objects that were created by the user or friends.
- Posts and comments
Now that you know a little more about Facebook Graph Search, lets see how we can use it for marketing opportunities.
Check out Competitors: Before investing in an advertisement, do some research on current ads that are working, and what is not working. Find out how competitors are engaging with their audiences. There’s a abundance of information to search for like company name, products or services, hash tags, comments, users press and reviews.
Overlapping Interests: Use this search to find out what other likes your audience may have to give new paths for engagement. For example, if you did a search for people who like “your brand name”, you can identify the common themes and interests among the posts and additional keywords to search for.
Research Hash Tags: People are not only using hash tags on Twitter and Instagram anymore. You can search Google for what’s trending, then come back to Facebook and plug them into Graph Search. Look for common trends and behaviors and tailor your ads to include them.
Before making your next ad on Facebook, make sure to check out the improved Graph Search first for insight on what your fan base is looking for.
Connect with us today for more information on how to expand your audience on Facebook.