One reason might be if there was a heavy skew in the volume of posts for different media types. However, the following chart shows that it is not really the case. There are some differences, but not uniformly relative to the sharing data.
Media type usage
Another factor to consider is Edgerank favoring certain types of posts. With Facebook keeping that algorithm under lock and key, it's certainly a possibility. Even so, marketers would still compete under whatever algorithm Facebook puts out there, so the relative value of the data wouldn't change.
Most likely is that photos and videos have a perceived value that a status update, and even a link, doesn't carry; a certain tangible quality that an advertiser is sending to someone. And of course, video has more perceived heft, content-wise, and makes sense that it would have greater perceived value.
Something else to keep in mind is that pages using third party posting tools have an altered sharing button next to the content they post. Normally, the share button is lined up with the like and comment button. But when a third party posting tool is used, it moves up into the post content area.
Whether or not that makes it more or less likely to be shared could be debated, but keep in mind those pages have changed the user interface for engaging, and changes like that will often impact any related actions.
Not all engagements are created equal
Lately there's been a growing discussion online about the related value of different engagement types. Just looking at the three main engagement types on a Facebook post :
-- a "like," "comment", or "share" --
given how different each is in terms of the user's level of endorsement, it stands to reason that the resulting impact would be different, as well.
You might agree that getting a fan to take something you posted and turn and repost that to their most trusted network, essentially endorsing your company by telling them to read your post, would have a bigger impact for the brand than if they simply "liked" your post, or even commented on it.
Sharing is very much at the core of what companies would like brand influentials to do: Spread brand endorsements about the company to their personal network, social network or otherwise.
What that difference in value is between a "like" and a share could be another article or ten, but the point is, there's a difference. So it makes sense to try to understand the factors that cause the higher levels of brand ambassadorship.
Examples of posts with high sharing
So what do posts with high sharing value look like? In the following chart please see a list of the most shared posts for each of the seven industries in USA that were analyzed.
Most shared posts for each industry in USA
Note that on those most shared posts, shares are often 30 to 50 percent of overall engagements.
Also, you can see the prominence of photos and videos in these posts. The only one that isn't is the Mayo Clinic post, and medical breakthroughs really should need a photo or video to resonate.
A lot of these posts are rather long, certainly relative to many Facebook posts. This suggests that people are interested in more than just simple, lightweight posting from brands. In fact, the added length on these could also be associated with perceived importance, further inspiring sharing.******************
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