If you've been keeping an eye on Facebook over the last few months, you've probably noticed that the algorithm has been keeping us on our toes.
We took a deep dive into the data from across our publisher-base to see exactly how things played out over the summer. Here is what we found.
June: The Summer of the Photo
The summer kicked off with a massive surge for dynamic media, specifically photos. Compared to the month prior, overall views were up +11%, and clicks skyrocketed by +42.4%.
But this growth wasn't shared equally:
- Link posts took a major hit, dropping -24% in total views and -17.2% in aggregated clicks from May.
- Meanwhile, the importance of photo posts was evident, seeing a +20.4% bump in views and a whopping +48.9% increase in clicks.
- Over the course of June, photos averaged 19.9x more views and 11.6x more clicks per post than links.
When it came to Facebook Content Monetization revenue in June, Reels led the pack, averaging $10.66 per post, followed by photos at $8.23 per post. Links trailed far behind, bringing in just $0.13 per post.
The data also showed that the most successful Reels featured people right from the start and leaned heavily into driving comments and shares.
July: Social Peaks through Dynamic Media
In July, the trends from June didn't just continue, they intensified. Photos widened their lead over links, averaging 22.8x more views and 14.7x more clicks per post.
- While overall views across all media types were flat (+7.1%), total clicks grew by +20.9% MoM.
- Photo posts continued their climb with a +22.8% increase in clicks.
- Link posts continued to bleed, down another -10.8% in views from the previous month.
Revenue also hit new highs in July.
Reels average revenue jumped to $12.62 per post, and photos climbed to $8.83.
Interestingly, July data also revealed an untapped opportunity: Photo Album posts had the highest average revenue at $21.19 per post, despite making up less than 1% of total post volume.
August: The Late-Summer Slow Down
As August rolled around, the metrics did dip across the board. Overall views dropped by -16%, and overall clicks fell by -10.9%, following July's highs.
- Even though overall performance was down, photos still drastically outperformed links, averaging 14.9x more views and 10.5x more clicks per post.
- Monetization felt the squeeze in August, too. Reels average revenue dropped back down to $10.09 per post, and photos dropped to $6.90.
August also introduced a new hurdle: Facebook's crackdown on "unoriginal content". To avoid being penalized by the algorithm, True Anthem's research team recommended publishers adjust their recirculation strategies to avoiding recirculating content within two days of the initial post.
👉 The TL;DR If this summer taught us anything, it's that the Facebook algorithm itself is prioritizing dynamic media over traditional link posts. Though August brought a dip in overall engagements and monetization revenue, the hierarchy remains clear: if you want reach, traffic, and money, you need to be jumping on the photo-forward approach.
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