
What to be aware of with the new “Facebook Slap” and how to protect yourself and your business so you can not only survive, but you can thrive.
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Uh oh, the Facebook slap just happened and now you gotta get a funnel. Welcome to Marketing Secrets podcast. So the big question is, how are entrepreneurs like us, who didn't cheat and take on venture capital, who are spending money from our own pockets, how do we market in a way that lets us get our products and our services and the things that we believe in out to the world and yet still remain profitable? That is the question and this podcast will give you the answers. My name is Russell Brunson and welcome to Marketing Secrets. All right, everybody, I've been prophesying of this for so long. So long. And for those who are new, the newbies who only been online for a year or two years or five years or eight years, I wanted to give you a history lesson. So the networks, they don't like you or me. Guess what they like? They like money from big brands who don't annoy them, who just write big checks and don't. Who have big huge marketing budgets and don't care if they're profitable or not. People like us, who care about direct roi, us, direct response guys, they don't like us very much, but they endure us for a little while because that's what builds their platform and then they smash us. So I was hoping to Google back in the day, they were awesome. Then they smashed us. That's what happened to every platform since I've been around for now 15 years that you've probably heard of the Google slap and then the other Google slap and then the other Google slap and then this and that. And I kept warning people, I'm like, don't put all your eggs in Zuckerberg's basket. Zuckerberg doesn't care about you. And I've been talking about that. In fact, I did a whole presentation at Funnel hacking live about that last year. But it's happening. The Facebook slap has officially begun. Zuckerberg just announced it about a week ago. And I want to let you guys know a couple things because the Facebook slap is actually a really good thing for people like you and me who are doing funnels. If you're not doing a funnel now, this is going to force you to finally learn and understand funnels. Alright, so here's the context. Zuckerberg came out and was like, hey, we're gonn how Facebook's algorithm works. So instead of having he said that this algorithm change makes less people, people spend less time on Facebook, which seems insane, but this is what they're trying to do. They try to squeeze out the direct response marketers and build a bigger platform for the branding marketers. This is how it works. What they do is he's making it so that what you will see now more so is more of your actual interactions with friends, right? So your feed will have less business stuff and more brand stuff, right? Or, excuse me, more personal interaction. So you'll see more of your friends stuff, you'll see fan PA stuff like that are going to be dropping dramatically and groups will go up because groups they consider social interactions. So groups and your personal stuff you'll see a lot more of in your feed and you'll see a lot less of business pages, fan pages and ads. So what's going to happen? Because there's less stuff for you to scroll through and just like mindlessly scroll, you'll actually spend less time on Facebook. That's his plan. So you'll spend less time on Facebook, there'll be less ad spots. And when supply and demand does that little thing, guess what happens? The price goes up. So ad costs will be going up. They're short, shown some stats and basically in the first quarter, supposed to be up like, I can't remember, 30 or 40%. And by the end of the year, almost 100% increase in ad cost. And so what does that mean for people like us? Couple things. Number one, it means that the competition, a lot of these people who are just throwing Facebook ads and becoming ad experts overnight, they are going to be gone. They will not be able to sustain it anymore. And most of them will not be intelligent enough to diversify their traffic off Facebook. A couple things for us marketing secrets people and our funnel hackers, we are smart enough to know there's more than one way to drive traffic. Facebook is a source, not the only source. And if you've been looking at your business that way, then you're fine. If not, it's now time to start diversifying. Like freak out. Yes, freak out. Diversify. Now. If you wait for a year to diversify, a lot of you guys will be in trouble. So just diversify now. Start looking at other traffic sources, looking at YouTube, looking at your own podcast, looking at all these things, using this time now, where ads are still a little bit cheaper, to drive people to these other networks, to build up your podcast, to build up your email list, things like that. Build up your many chat lists, like those kind of things, because the ad costs are dramatically going to go up. Number two, we've been talking about this since day number one, click funnels, right? Whoever can spend the most money to acquire customer Wins. That's the first chapter, the introduction of Dotcom Secrets book. If you haven't read it, go and read it. Dotcomsecrets.com Go get the book. Because it helps you understand that whoever can spend the most money to acquire a customer, wins. As ad costs go up, you have to spend more money to acquire a customer. That's actually a good thing. It means all of these little people who are just dabbling are going to go away because they're not able to spend more money. Now for us, the intelligent ones who are studying marketing and sales and funnels, that's okay. That's why we build funnels. Okay. You know, I think last year, 2017, a lot of people got away with one funnel and they made a really good income. I think that's going to be harder and harder. I think understanding the concept of funnel stacking, we talk a lot about in our community here, where you have one funnel that then leads to the next funnel is vital. It's going to be vital to your success. Having a fully developed value ladder is gonna be vital to your success. Now a couple things about value ladder I want to just touch on. I wish I could rewrite that whole chapter in Dotcom Secrets book because everyone thinks that they need these complex value ladders. The 80 steps clickfunnels right now has three steps. That's it. Okay, We've got all the front ends are on the front step. We've got clickfunnels webinar that sells click funnels in the middle. And then we've got our coaching program that's not even available right now. But we'll be after funnel hacking live on the back end. That's it. So it doesn't have to be complex, but there needs to be levels. Cause your front end funnels, ones that used to be profitable, are gonna be breakeven funnels. If that' entire business, you're gonna struggle. Okay? So the good news is the Facebook slap has come. We know it's happening now and it's not like when Google slapped us. It was like they just turned us off overnight. We all just got shut down. Right now you've got about a year. Over the next year, you'll see your ad costs go up 50 to 100%. So just be aware of that. So now it's time to start understanding that and putting in, okay, this funnel is to acquire customers. If I'm profitable right now, it's awesome. Am I gonna be profitable in six months? If they add, if my ad costs double if they go up 50% or like, if not, then start tweaking that, and then it's like, hey, we've acquired a customer through this funnel. Now I need to send them up the value ladder and there's your profit. Okay? So if you've been following me and you've been listening to this stuff, you've read the dot com secrets book, you've read the expert secrets book, you've gone into this, this shouldn't freak you out, okay? But if you haven't, then, yeah, you should be a little bit nervous. You should go get Dotcom Secrets. Read it. Understand sales funnels, value laddering. These are the core principles that have worked since day number one. Okay? Excuse me. This is not something new. In fact, you know, it's crazy. The online world made this so easy. Like in traditional offline, I cut my teeth learning this game with Bill Glaser, Dan Kennedy and all these people who are doing direct mail and classified ads and tv, where it's like, nobody breaks even on tv, right? You lose money and you lose money for five, six, seven months before you're profitable. And so that's where my foundation came from. That's what the dotcom secrets book teaches, that foundation. And I think we've been spoiled because it's been so cheap to acquire media online. And that's been awesome. And hopefully new platforms will continue to rise up that we can come in and we can arbitrage attention from it at a discount. But just be aware that right now, Facebook is now shifting. They're making that transformation. This is the first Facebook slap. I got a little mini slap about a year and a half ago. They started shutting down ad accounts, but they took the gas pedal off that one and made it a little bit easier, which has been nice. But this one's happening and it's not going away. And so it's like, now is the time to prepare for it. Starting to get better at acquiring customers on your front end funnels and getting better at sending them to the next step. This will be a huge theme of funnel hacking Live. I got some crazy amazing presentations. So all my funnel hackers, you guys will learn about some of these things. But right now, I just wanted to give you guys the voice of warning because this is what's happening. But luckily, this is not like a shot where you just get shot and you die like back in the Google days. We've got time, but it's all about understanding that, preparing and building out your value ladder. Go back, read Dotcom Secrets again, read it two, read it three times, internalize those concepts. Figure out your value ladder, identify it. Figure out your breakeven funnels. Acquire customers profitably now so you can get to the point where you're breaking even in six months to a year from now and then be able to start sending people up. So the Google slap is here, but the funnel people, funnel hackers. Don't even worry. It's all going to be good. If you've been following the principles we teach you since day number one, you're protected. So don't stress about it. But if you're not, it's time to start looking at that. Start building out your value, getting prepared, because it's coming. All right, guys. Appreciate you all. Sorry, I got my stuffy nose. I probably sound a little funny, but that's about it. So, heading back in the office today we've got Todd and Ryan and Nick and Karen and a whole bunch of people in the office. It's so much fun. So I'm gonna get back to work. We were out late last night working and now it's early morning. We're starting the game over again. So I'm sure next couple days I'll do a lot of podcasts and I'll probably be really tired, so I apologize in advance. If you enjoy this at all, please go to itunes. Rate us Review us. This is a new way to recreate a new feed, so we're starting back over on the reviews and stuff like that. So please, if you love this podcast, if you reviewed in the past, please come back, review it again. We appreciate that and we'll talk to you soon. Bye, everybody. Would you like to see behind the scenes of what we're actually doing each day to grow our company? If so, then go subscribe to our free behind the scenes reality TV show at www.funnelhacker t.
Title: Uh Oh, The Facebook Slap Has Officially Hit, Yet Funnel Hackers Rejoice
Host: Russell Brunson
Date: February 8, 2018
Theme:
Russell Brunson addresses the latest "Facebook slap” — a major algorithm change announced by Mark Zuckerberg — and explains how these shifts will dramatically impact entrepreneurs using Facebook for advertising. He provides historical context, outlines what’s happening, and shares why those who use sales funnels should actually celebrate this change, not fear it.
“So the big question is, how are entrepreneurs like us, who didn't cheat and take on venture capital, who are spending money from our own pockets, how do we market in a way that lets us get our products and services and the things that we believe in out to the world and yet still remain profitable?” (01:05)
“He’s making it so that what you will see now more so is more of your actual interactions with friends, right?... Business pages, fan pages, and ads... are going to be dropping dramatically.” (04:10)
Russell’s Prescription:
Don’t panic, but start diversifying now.
Explore alternative traffic (YouTube, podcasts, email, ManyChat lists).
Use current, still-affordable Facebook ads to build assets — email lists, podcasts, etc.
Quote:
“If you wait for a year to diversify, a lot of you guys will be in trouble. So just diversify now.” (08:15)
Recaps a core principle from DotCom Secrets: “Whoever can spend the most money to acquire a customer wins.”
As acquisition costs rise, only those with robust sales systems (funnels, value ladders) will survive and thrive.
Quote:
“As ad costs go up, you have to spend more money to acquire a customer. That's actually a good thing. It means all of these people who are just dabbling are going to go away.” (10:05)
One funnel is no longer enough; marketers need to think about funnel stacking (a chain of funnels) to maximize value per customer.
A value ladder isn’t about complicated 8-step flows; even three distinct offers can suffice (front-end, webinar, high ticket).
Breakeven on the front end is fine if the value ladder is robust.
Quote:
“Everyone thinks that they need these complex value ladders... Clickfunnels right now has three steps. That’s it… It doesn't have to be complex, but there needs to be levels.” (13:35)
The core strategies outlined in Russell’s books (DotCom Secrets, Expert Secrets) are more relevant than ever.
“Old school” direct response rules have always required front-end losses and back-end profitability.
Russell stresses internalizing these concepts to succeed through any platform change.
Quote:
“These are the core principles that have worked since day number one… The online world made this so easy. In traditional offline... nobody breaks even on TV, right? You lose money for five, six, seven months before you’re profitable.” (16:50)
“Don’t put all your eggs in Zuckerberg’s basket. Zuckerberg doesn’t care about you.” (02:45)
“This is not like a shot where you just get shot and you die, like back in the Google days. We’ve got time, but it’s all about understanding that, preparing, and building out your value ladder.” (18:30)
On the bright side:
“The good news is the Facebook slap has come... but the funnel people — funnel hackers — don’t even worry. It’s all going to be good. If you’ve been following the principles we teach since day number one, you’re protected.” (20:10)
End Note: Russell wraps up with encouragement for loyal "funnel hackers," assuring that those who stick to fundamental principles will weather the change. The episode is both a warning and an actionable playbook for marketers facing platform-driven market shifts.