The people have spoken: Explore Feed is out. Adam Mosseri, Facebook’s head of News Feed, announced in a Newsroom post that Facebook is ending its test of a second feed (Explore) as a result of feedback from users who indicated that they prefer only one feed.
Back in October 2017, Facebook tested Explore, a second feed designated only for page posts, not for posts by family and friends in the regular News Feed. Explore was intended for users who may want to switch between the type of content available to them based on their interests.
When Facebook first announced that News Feed would primarily show meaningful posts by family and friends, businesses were of course concerned about how that would affect content shared by their pages and if their content would be able to reach intended audiences. Explore Feed may have resolved that issue if the test had generated positive feedback.
However, Mosseri says users indicated in surveys that they do not want two separate feeds.
“We also received feedback that we made it harder for people in the test countries to access important information,” said Mosseri in the announcement, “and that we didn’t communicate the test clearly. We’re acting on this feedback by updating the way we evaluate where to test new products, and how we communicate about them.”
Additionally, Mosseri said Facebook is globally discontinuing the Explore Feed bookmark, which was intended to provide users a way of discovering new pages, celebrities, and other public figures.
Although the Explore Feed test did not end successfully, there are still ways businesses can boost reach organically.
