Why I disabled dlvr.it links on Facebook

Should you have read any of my previous posts regarding dlvr.it (link, link, link) you’ll know I not only enjoy using their service – allowing me to share my posts and articles with multiple social networks – but I basically fully rely on it.

There has, however, always been an issue with cross-posting to Facebook.

Within the dlvr.it options for cross-posting messages to Facebook you have the option to post as a status update, a note or a link. As I want to make it appear as though I am actively using the network, I’ve always opted for the status update with as much content as it’ll allow. The difference between posts sent to Facebook and, say, Twitter is the link placement.

On Twitter, the link is posted after the original content to prompt you to continue reading:

On Facebook, the first thing you see is the link, this immediately puts you off reading the content that follows:

When I say “puts you off reading”, I mean it. After toying with the idea of turning the links off all together, I decided that it was ultimately necessary in order to regain the engagement I was always used to getting when I was active on Facebook and not pushing my posts from Google+.

The proof was in the pudding as highlighted here:

Naturally, this test was not very scientific at all, but since turning off the links the comments and likes have been rolling in in a manner that reminded me of the days when I only used Facebook, the days when people read what I posted and didn’t overlook it due to a ghastly (albeit custom) link stuck right at the beginning of the content.

When I cornered dlvr.it over this “issue”, they responded:

Personally? I don’t see why that matters. If someone is reading your post, they will click “read more’ to finish it off anyway. By stuffing the link in a reader’s face immediately I believe more harm is being done than not having the link on display until “read more” is clicked, if a post is infact long enough to require that.

So for now, links are disabled on my Google+ > Facebook route, and will remain that way until dlvr.it fix it. Even if that does cause the odd comment of confusion on occasion when a post cuts off prematurely.

Have you noticed a drop in engagement on Facebook since using dlvr.it with the links activated? Perhaps you should give this a go, also.

Cheers,
Jason

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