Prior to this update, Facebook’s ads manager only allowed marketers to measure a few outcomes of a paid campaign, mainly the number of 'likes' or app installs generated.
The new 'Action Measurement' feature, which was launched last month, will now allow for the measurement of a wider range of actions, including the number of comments or shares of specific page posts, credit spend or app use.
Facebook said the changes would, for example, allow a concert venue with a ticket app on its page to measure how many people used the app to buy tickets after seeing the ad for the app on Facebook.
The update to the ad manager is the latest in a series of changes to Facebook, including the launch of the Timeline feature for brands last month.
Simon Kemp, managing director of We Are Social Singapore, said the changes do not allow brands to learn anything “revolutionary” but added that they should prompt further conversation around the platform.
He said, "With each change and step forward, brands are going to be drawn in. Brands will sooner or later say that they have to be involved in this because everyone else is."
Kemp said the slew of changes are also likely to see Facebook secure a much larger portion of advertising spend going forward.
He said, “That means moving money from somewhere else, and we could see brands shift money away from traditional banner ads into testing how these changes work.”
