Remember Facebook's Poke? It's back with Snap-style streaks
What's the story
Facebook has revived its classic "Poke" feature, a digital nudge that was once the hallmark of the platform. The move comes as part of Meta's efforts to increase user engagement on the platform. The company has introduced a new Poke button and a streak-like feature called "Poke count," making digital nudges more visible on user profiles in the Facebook app.
User engagement
Meta introduces dedicated Pokes page
Along with the Poke button, Meta has also launched a dedicated page at facebook.com/pokes. This page lets users keep track of all their poking activity with friends. In a bid to make the feature more engaging, Meta has also introduced different emojis that appear based on how many pokes have been exchanged. The move is similar to Snapchat's streaks and aims to make the experience more fun for users.
Feature revival
Poke feature once became part of Facebook culture
The Poke feature was one of the few ways to interact on Facebook before it became a hub of new features. It was never really useful, but quickly became part of Facebook culture. Over time, however, Meta quietly phased it out and most users forgot about its existence. The company has been trying to revive pokes for some time now and last year reported a 13-fold increase in usage after bringing them back into search results.
Target audience
Zuckerberg aims to bring back 'OG Facebook' features
The revival of the poke feature also fits into Zuckerberg's larger plan to bring back what he calls "OG Facebook" features. Earlier this year, he expressed his desire to show people content from their actual friends again, something many users think has been lost under a sea of algorithm-driven posts. The quirky update to an old feature could be just what it takes to grab the attention of young adults who often see Facebook as their parents' platform.