Facebook-First Content Puts KOAT Ahead By A Million

Social Scorecard this week reveals how original content created just for Facebook has led KOAT to be the leader on Facebook by more than a million actions in Albuquerque, N.M.

Hearst-owned ABC affiliate KOAT is ahead in social media actions in the market over the last six months according to data from audience insight firm Shareablee.

KOAT has more than 2.1 million actions on social, 44% of the total engagement generated by the DMA (No. 46), with more than 4.8 million social actions.

KQRE, the market’s CBS affiliate owned by Nexstar, led on Instagram during the same period with more than 30,000 actions.

KOB-FM, owned by Cumulus, and broadcasting a top-40 format, led on Twitter with more than 50,000 actions and also led on actions per post with 129 during the same period.

But it’s not only news that is generating KOAT’s engagement on Facebook.

Some TV stations are discovering that, due to the recent change in Facebook’s algorithms, posting original content custom-created just for Facebook is driving the station’s success.

“We are looking for stuff that causes engagement,” says Maggie Krajewski, KOAT’s digital media manager.

“Conversation starters where people are going to tag their friends: ‘Hey look at this’. Things that just get people talking.”

Krajewski says the station does have news on its Facebook page, but so does everybody else.

One of KOAT’s Facebook-only franchises is a series called POV.

“We try to feature just people in New Mexico that are doing really cool things,” says Krajewski.

“We have another series called Cocina (Spanish for kitchen) which is a cooking series. I think the more local, the better. So those clips and videos always do well if they have more of a local flare,” says Krajewski.

Krajewski produces these Facebook-only franchises since they do not appear in KOAT’s newscasts.

“I have a photographer in the creative service department, Matt Montoya, who is also a graphics designer. These are really, really high quality, and well done.”

7 Best is another Facebook franchise Krajewski and her team produce, asking users to weigh in and choose the seven best in various categories, like red chili.

“People will comment and have their opinions about who is better and what not. Did your spot make the list? If not, let us know in the comments to keep them continuously talking. That’s what’s behind our success, just getting people engaged in the content.”

Krajewski also looks for opportunities to bring more awareness to emotional topics that are timely and news-oriented.

“It was Postpartum Depression month, so we talked to one of our employees at the station who agreed to talk to us about her own struggle.”

Krajewski did another video about pregnancy and infant loss.

“I had a few different parties who agreed to come in and they all shared their stories and that did really well, too. I kind of keep an eye and an ear out for these types of topics. These are where we see such huge spikes in engagement.”

But KOAT does provide news coverage on Facebook, says Krajewski, often using Facebook Live.

“We don’t ignore the news. We use Facebook Live a lot. When we are in breaking news, one of the first things I will do is ask the reporter who is going out there, ‘Can you do a Facebook Live when you get to the scene?’ And those stand-alone Facebook Lives that we do sometimes … just really take off.”

Krajewski sees the station’s special content on its Facebook page as a pathway to KOAT’s on-air news products.

“If they already follow us because they happen to love our POV and Cocina series and then the road is blocked off in their neighborhood and they see some police lights, [we’re] the station they are going to watch.”