Facebook announces the future of social is private at F8
Mark Zuckerberg announced “the future is private” at the keynote of Facebook’s F8 Developer Conference last week. He outlined how Facebook will push for privacy across its ecosystem of apps including Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram. The conference heavily focused on Facebook Messenger and put messaging at the core of Facebook’s future. This means a radical shift for how marketers can engage their audience on Facebook.
Facebook's private future is built around Messenger.
Facebook’s public news feed will be transformed into a more private experience integrated in Messenger. Messenger enables you to streamline your marketing funnel into automated conversations that acquire, convert and retain your customers. It is the biggest marketing opportunity of the next 5-10 years. Here are the 3 major changes that are positioning Messenger as the future of social marketing.
1. Messenger's redesign will focus on close connections 
What's happening?
Messenger will soon have a dedicated tab for your private social feed. It will become a second, more intimate, version of Facebook where you post and get updates only between friends and family.
What it means for marketers:
This change means far more time will be spent on Messenger than on Facebook. It will be the place where your customers nurture their closest relationships. Marketers connecting with customers using automated Messenger experiences will sit right next to close friends and family in this more private social network.
2. Messages will be encrypted end-to-end 🔒
What's happening?
Messenger will have default end-to-end encryption for messages. That means even Facebook can’t see your messages. Whether you’re interacting with friends or a business, your messages will be private.
What it means for marketers:
Encryption means your customers will feel more secure transacting with companies and exchanging private information on Messenger. Encryption also means that businesses own the data and don’t need to worry about being spied on by Facebook or third parties.
3. Messenger users can soon message WhatsApp and Instagram contacts 🤝
What's happening?
Messenger users will soon be able to message Instagram and WhatsApp users directly, and vice-versa. Facebook announced a unified messaging infrastructure for these apps a while ago and it’s still unclear how exactly this will work. What is clear is that the future of social is one where three of the biggest global messaging platforms are deeply connected.
What it means for marketers:
Seamless messaging across Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram offers huge potential for marketers to unify their customer experiences. Marketers who start leveraging Messenger now will be in prime position to dominate a more integrated messaging infrastructure across Facebook’s ecosystem of apps in the future.
Spectrm spotlighted by Facebook as key partner to help brands leverage the messaging future.
The keynote introduced Spectrm as key messaging partner and outlined how marketing teams can leverage Messenger for growth as the social network shifts towards private messaging. Our CEO, Max, took the stage for two sessions outlining how businesses can drive sales and deliver incredible customer experiences with Messenger. Find out how your brand can leverage Messenger now by contacting our sales team.
