Facebook Pages Will See Drop In 'Likes' Following Policy Change
Robert Palmer nailed the social networking scene when he sang, "You might as well face it you're addicted to Likes." Okay, we might have changed the lyrics just a tad, but Facebook Page owners who deny getting excited at seeing their Likes count climb will be put to the test. In an effort to make Page Likes more meaningful, Facebook is going to remove Page Likes from memorialized and voluntarily deactivated accounts.
For some business Page owners, this might not be a big deal. But for others that have been around for a long time and have amassed a large number of Likes, they could potentially see their Page's Like count drop by the hundreds, if not thousands. Nevertheless, Facebook says it's in the best interest of all involved, including Page owners.
"Removing inactive Facebook accounts from Page audience data gives businesses up-to-date insights on the people who actively follow their Page and makes it easier for businesses to find people like their followers through tools like lookalike audiences," Facebook says.
In addition, Facebook points out that it already filters out comments generated by deactivated or memorialized accounts from individual Page posts, so removing Likes keeps the data consistent.
Of course, we all have that friend or relative who blows his top every other month and vows to quit Facebook and never return. And sure enough, he deactivates his account, but inevitably returns a few days or weeks later. In those instances, any Page Likes he may have left will removed when it deactivates his accounts, but will be re-added once he reactivates his account.
For some business Page owners, this might not be a big deal. But for others that have been around for a long time and have amassed a large number of Likes, they could potentially see their Page's Like count drop by the hundreds, if not thousands. Nevertheless, Facebook says it's in the best interest of all involved, including Page owners.
"Removing inactive Facebook accounts from Page audience data gives businesses up-to-date insights on the people who actively follow their Page and makes it easier for businesses to find people like their followers through tools like lookalike audiences," Facebook says.
In addition, Facebook points out that it already filters out comments generated by deactivated or memorialized accounts from individual Page posts, so removing Likes keeps the data consistent.
Of course, we all have that friend or relative who blows his top every other month and vows to quit Facebook and never return. And sure enough, he deactivates his account, but inevitably returns a few days or weeks later. In those instances, any Page Likes he may have left will removed when it deactivates his accounts, but will be re-added once he reactivates his account.
