F8 Conference Announces Big Changes

With the Facebook F8 conference over there are dozens of fascinating pieces of news to digest and think about. The social network made numerous announcements this week that are sure to have marketers and social media managers thinking. While Buffer published its top ten list of the new features you should know, we’ve condensed things down to the top 5.

Live API

Facebook announced a new way for developers and publishers to build better live video experiences for users through Live API. Facebook is essentially opening the door for numerous Live broadcasts from devices and setups compared to mostly just smartphones.

Crossposted Video

Further expanding on new opportunities for video, Facebook wants publishers to crosspost videos much more easily across pages owned by the same business. Page owners can give other Pages in their Business Manager permission to reuse and create posts from the same video without having to re-upload.

Account Kit

Also coming out of the F8 conference is the Account Kit, a simpler way to sign into apps using your phone, Facebook page or even just your email address instead of remembering multiple passwords.

Instant Articles

Previously only available to major publishers, Instant Articles is now open to everyone and allows articles to open inside of Facebook when a post is clicked on. This happens instead of redirecting users outside of the site. Facebook claims Instant Articles open ten times faster and receive 20% more clicks than mobile web articles.

Expression Kit

Remember when you were able to upload a short video as your profile image? Few people used the feature, but Facebook is doubling down with the tool by expanding the Profile Expression Kit. The Expression Kit supports six apps used by people to record or shoot short videos – so don’t be surprised if you begin to see more people adopting an animated profile picture!

Check out more F8 Conference highlights by visiting the Facebook newsroom.