July 9, 2014
Grab your glowsticks and other party paraphernalia as Facebook enhances events discovery with new tool, “Events for you”. Recently reported by Techcrunch, Facebook is optimising its events calendar tool. Not all users will have immediate access whilst the feature remains in its testing stages, but we will see a wider roll-out over the coming weeks.
The main functionality of the update is to recommend events based on the users’ interests and location and time – regardless of whether they’ve been invited.
Up until now users only had visibility of events they received an invite for, and a few suggested, based on Facebook friends, places you have checked in to and pages you have liked. Once the feature is fully rolled out, users will see an even more extensive list of suggested events in a new “events for you” section, which will sit on the right hand side of the screen.
What’s the point?
We’re a social bunch and crave interaction – everyday, people are searching for new experiences and looking to discover the hottest upcoming events. This is precisely why brands must consider a strong presence when promoting an event, to ensure it grabs the attention of the user in the hopes they click through to the event when it does appears in front of their eyes.
From concerts and sporting events, to seminars and conferences, this new and exciting development offers businesses a great market, with the possibility that is seen by a highly targeted audience group.
Did Facebook do this with the aim of meeting its ostensible goal to “connect people”, or is it just another way to monetise the platform if brands have the potential to pay to push their event into Facebook’s suggestions? The cynic in me believes the latter, but it is an exciting change nonetheless.
© “GLOWSTICKS!” Photo by misterdiskord. Attribution 2.0 Generic