Facebook introduced several new features at its annual F8 conference focused on transparency, security, and meaningful relationships between people. These included tools like Clear History to give users more control over their data, Watch Parties to allow shared video watching and discussion, and new dating features to help people connect in meaningful ways. Facebook also outlined its focus on using AI and other technologies to combat issues like fake news while prioritizing people over advertising and commerce.
4. “The thing that matters to us most is people. I started building a service to
put people first and at the center of our experiences with technology
because our relationships are what matters most to us. That’s how we find
meaning, and make sense of our place in the world…”
Mark Zuckerberg
F8 Keynote, 2018
5. The two main themes:
Transparency, security and user control
Using AI tools, content reviewers and verification methods, Facebook will
be weeding out spam, fake accounts and hoaxes to combat fake news and
the issue around data privacy
Re-visiting what matters most: People and meaningful connections
This year’s F8 announced exciting new features across Facebook,
Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp. From interacting with content in VR
and AR and enhanced personalized experiences through AI and bots, to
meeting new people through a ‘Dating’ section, Zuckerberg reminds us of
the core proposition for which Facebook was born: people, relationships
and connectivity.
6. Meaningful Relationships
AR Camera
Watch Party
Clear History
3D Photos
Stories
Analytics
M Translate
AR Camera
Simplify / Dark mode
Customer chat plug-in
Stories
New ‘Explore’
AR Camera
Video chat
Bully Filter
Stories
Group video call
Third party sticker packs
Stories
Oculus Go
7. Day 1
• The people and policies that drive the
product roadmap
Day 2
• The platforms and technology that power
the product;
• AI, Deep Learning, Machine Learning and
Open Source that enable the product speed
and scale
8.
9. For years, Facebook’s like button has been following you
around the web. Whenever you visit a website that has a like
button, it sends data back to Facebook, telling the social
network that you’ve been there. That helps Facebook track
your interests and target you with ads based on your online
browsing history.
With ‘Clear history’, you can see the information Facebook
has collected about your use of websites and apps that
employ Facebook’s tracking tools. And then, if you want, you
can tell Facebook to forget that information, much like the
“clear history” button on your internet browser.
‘Clear History’ balances
personalization with privacy,
allowing you to wipe data
Facebook has learnt about
you
WHAT IT IS
TRANSPARENCY, SECURITY AND USER CONTROL
Source: Tech Crunch; Slate
10. The company’s ad targeting is premised on its ability to
track, store, and analyze data about each of its users.
With ’Clear History’, Facebook will focus its tracking users
across a multitude of ways on Facebook itself – which
posts you like, what stories you click on, who your friends
are etc.
The blaring effect clearing cookies have is making an
online experience worse. Users will be targeted with ads
that are less relevant to them and the overall interaction
with services will suffer as it relearns your preferences
from ground 0. For brands, they will lose as their ads risk
not getting face-time with high value audience segments.
So while Facebook is giving control back to the user, it will
be interesting to see the effect on Facebook’s ad spend
revenue.
EXAMPLE A
While users will have more
control, overall experience
and relevancy will be at risk
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
TRANSPARENCY, SECURITY AND USER CONTROL
Source: Tech Crunch; Slate
11. Watch party is a new feature in Facebook that
allows you to watch live video and chat with
your friends. The feature was created to
encourage meaningful participation and
discussion on the platform.
Zuckerberg’s example was using the feature to
watch your friend testify in front of Congress.
This is taking Facebook’s existing live streaming
feature to the next level.
WHAT IT IS
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
Source: Mashable; Tech Crunch
Facebook’s ’Watch Party’
brings a new definition to
group participation and
discussion
12. Co-watching video is already a popular experience
online through platforms like Twitch, but they often
center around the video’s creator rather than an
interconnected community. Watch Party is
capitalizing on the growing popularity of the live
stream, while refocusing this experience towards
peer-to-peer interaction.
Brands can use this to bring people together and
also tap into new demographics as reach online will
be far greater. Done right, watch parties are just as
engaging as the live event itself, whether it’s an
awards show, sporting event or something different
altogether because of the undeniable power of
shared experiences.
EXAMPLE A
Businesses should
leverage the heightened
popularity and creativity
of Facebook live
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Mashable; Tech Crunch
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
13. Instagram is getting a revamped “Explore” section to improve
discovery by better organizing its suggestions into topical
channels based on your own interests and tastes. This will
make searching for specific types of content easier.
Before, you would scroll down the Explore page to find groups
of photos and videos tied to a particular theme you may like.
With the update, you will find buttons in a scrollable, horizontal
row across the top of the page.
As you browse the page and land on one of the buttons e.g.
“Animals”, you will see a set of related hashtags underneath
(#dogsofinstagram; #thedailykitten etc.)
WHAT IT IS
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
Source: Tech Crunch
Instagram will allow direct
discovery of more interesting
content through ‘Explore’
14. Instagram had launched the ability to follow hashtags
in December, and says the feature has become a
popular way people interact with Instagram content.
With the new Explore section being powered by
artificial intelligence and augmented with content
classification and curation signals from the Instagram
community, the experiences bought to the users will
be a more personalized one. The opportunity for
brands here lie in their online presence and tag
associations as this becomes a more focused way of
being discovered.
EXAMPLE A
Greater capture opportunity
for prospect customers as
brands have more control
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Tech Crunch
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
15. Zuckerberg says that 200 million people on Facebook
are listed as single, and 1 in 3 married couples in the
United States now meet on the platform. To help aid
this, Facebook is launching Meaningful Relationships.
The focus will be on long-term relationships, and
Facebook will not recommend anyone who is on your
friends list.
Requiring just a first name, users can browse groups
and events to find people who share specific interests.
You "unlock" an event by clicking on it and then you
can browse people who are there or will go there.
Once you reach out to someone, you have a text-only
message service that isn't tied into WhatsApp or
Messenger.
WHAT IT IS
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
Source: Wired
Facebook is taking
‘connecting people’ to new
levels, stepping into the
dating world
16. Interestingly, Facebook draws association
between ”potential date candidates” with
events. With this in mind, business that
have an affinity for meet ups or
connections should definitely promote
such events. This will not only build brand
awareness, but allow for brands to
approach new audiences as well.
EXAMPLE A
Businesses should
optimize on “Data
Candidate selection”
through promotion
of events
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Wired
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
17. WHAT IT IS
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
Source: Newsroom; Tech Crunch
Sharing stories from
third-party apps just got
more direct
People already share their interests daily across
Facebook platforms. To make that experience faster,
easier and more creative on Stories, apps like Spotify,
Netflix, etc. will be enabled to share from their apps to
Instagram and Facebook stories.
Rather than screenshotting, users will be able to hit a
button to share a photo or video of a playlist, song or
mini-movie from another app into Facebook or
Instagram’s Stories camera, where they can embellish it
with effects and post it to their friends. GoPro’s integration
actually lets you edit your movies inside Facebook’s
apps, while you can immediately start listening to songs
shared from Spotify and SoundCloud.
18. Facebook has made the experience of sharing faster,
easier and more creative for consumers, which only
works in the favor for brands when it comes to the
online experience.
With the significant fall in barrier to share from third
party app to social, businesses should explore
strategies that encourage users to hit that immediate
‘share’ button. Personalizing around individual
milestones or achievements is one such idea, where
brands could for example allow unlocking travel
loyalty status or even a fitness milestone after a
completed 5k run. Along this line of thinking, brands
can also hope for more user generated content
(especially with the integration to GoPro).
EXAMPLE A
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Newsroom; Tech Crunch
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
This seamless experience
allows content be be
personalized faster and
easier
19.
20. AR studio is all about using trackers, data,
animation and more to create interactive, shareable
effects that respond to people and objects in their
surroundings. As a result, brands will now be able
to integrate augmented reality features into their
messaging bots.
Details on the AR implementation are fairly slim.
However, what is clear is that that Facebook is
making Messenger more attractive as a sales tool,
with WhatsApp becoming the tool for more
interpersonal communication.
AR Studios will bring a
customer’s imagination
to life, with no
JavaScript required
WHAT IT IS
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
Source: Business Insider; Facebook
21. The demo at F8 involved an experience using ”secret emoji
codes” to unlock a new Nike sneaker that you inspect and
then share with your friends. In the case of other brands,
Sephora’s bot could help you virtually try on different
makeup, or Ikea could make virtual furniture appear in your
living room.
Helping customers make shopping decisions seems to be
the name of the game here, as early partners for Messenger
AR include not only Sephora, but also Nike, ASUS and Kia.
The big question: Are brands able and read to invest in 3D
models and creative to enable these immersive ads?
EXAMPLE A
The added new AR
dimension on messenger is
now a more attractive sales
tool for brands
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Business Insider; AdWeek
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
22. Oculus Go is different to other virtual reality
devices because it does not require
smartphones or a cord tethered to a personal
computer to show three-dimensional videos.
The need for additional equipment is one of the
reasons virtual reality has had limited appeal so
far. But for $199, this may be the tech that could
drive consumers to seek out VR.
Zuckerberg says that VR will be our main way of
communication in the long-term, noting that “VR
and AR will take this to a completely different
level.”
WHAT IT IS
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
Source: CBS News
Oculus Go – the first
standalone VR device
that will reshape the
way we interact
23. Zuckerberg is counting on the Oculus Go to grow the
audience for VR, as Facebook tries to deploy the
technology to reshape the way people interact and
experience life, much as its social network already has
done.
SuperData predicts that Facebook will sell 1.8 million
Oculus Go units this year. Despite only being available
for eight months in 2018, if these estimates hold true
Oculus Go would outsell Samsung’s Gear VR (590,000
units), Sony’s PlayStation VR (1.47 million), Oculus’s own
Rift (120,000), HTC’s Vive (170,000), Microsoft’s
Windows Mixed Reality (120,000), and Google’s
Daydream View (50,000) this year.
EXAMPLE A
Oculus Go may be the
solution brands onboard to
further enhance experiences
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Fast Company
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
24. WHAT IT IS
Messenger’s army of
300,000 bots seem
inhuman…
Source: Mashable
David Marcus, Facebook’s VP of Messaging
Products, proudly announced that Messenger now
has over 8 billions messages between people and
business through over 300,000 monthly active bots,
up from 100,000 when the platform was first
launched.
This substantial growth has been aided by the
integration of built-in Natural Language Processing,
a simple way for developers to integrate 12 entities
and 21 languages with their bot.
Although these updates felt like a bit of a departure
from the rest of F8’s “people first” theme, it was a
reminder that advertising and commerce is still the
financial core of the company.
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
25. WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
…but it can actually equip
businesses to enhance
relationships with
customers.
In the age of customer experience, it’s more
important than ever for business to develop
deeper, more human relationships with their
customers.
Bots have opened up a new world of possibilities
for business around customer service and
engagement. Brands can leverage the
conversational interface to provide product
recommendations, customer service solutions,
and ultimately develop a more intimate
relationship with their customers by making it
easier and more convenient for them to
communicate.
Source: Mashable, Forbes
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
26. Facebook introduced Journeys, a new analytics tool to track
customer journeys through multiple channels. Journeys
provide marketers with omnichannel data and reporting which
allows them to see what users are doing right before they take
an action that results in a conversion.
Facebook noted the data in Journeys is anonymously
aggregated and not tied to any specific individuals’ identities.
Other new analytics tools for marketers will identify friction for
brands and uncover opportunities to optimize for conversions
faster while letting marketers discover unusual patterns and
correlations faster as well.
Providing Data and Analytics
to Help Users Understand
Consumer Journeys
WHAT IT IS
Source: Marketing Land
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST
27. When planning their media and content
strategies marketers will be able to use
Journeys to optimize their sales funnel and
create more engaging content that resonates
with audiences.
EXAMPLE A
Empowering the Sales
Funnel for Marketers
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR BUSINESSES
Source: Tech Crunch; Slate
RE-VISITING WHAT MATTERS MOST