This is Why You’ll Never Pay for a ‘Like’ Again

Last week brought great news to marketers who care about real business metrics and ROI (which should be all of us, right?) Facebook announced that the latest update to their ad platform, will start calculating cost-per-click (CPC) based on “link clicks.” Engagement clicks, or user interactions which take place on Facebook such as comments, likes and shares, will no longer count towards your costs. 

So, what’s considered a “link click”?

• Essentially, any click that takes you off Facebook, or clicks that lead to a direct conversion like installing an app, including Facebook apps.

• Clicks to view a website off Facebook, like YouTube, will count.

• Clicks on a video uploaded to Facebook won’t. This move aligns their ad offerings more with Google’s Adwords model, which is well-suited for generating direct response.

What does this change mean for Marketers?

This doesn’t mean marketers won’t be able to set up campaigns where the goal is greater engagement on Facebook. The marketing funnel still applies.

Some brands will continue to need Facebook as a display advertising channel, to build awareness and get their message in front of an audience to spark consideration. You’ll still be able to bid for engagement clicks by setting your optimization options. The difference is, those clicks won’t be measured when calculating your CPC.

The social advertising ecosystem has matured a lot in the relatively few years it’s been in existence. As other platforms follow Facebook’s lead, marketers will have more power to optimize their campaigns, and more options for tailoring their objectives towards real business goals.

And that’s a development we can all “like.”