• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, July 9, 2015

Redefining cost-per-click measurement, Facebook will henceforth only include clicks to Web sites and apps — not likes, shares and comments.

“CPC will only account for what we call ‘link clicks,’” according to a Facebook spokeswoman.

That means clicks related to certain ad objectives, including visiting another Web site; viewing a video on another site; installing an app; and call-to-action clicks (i.e., “Shop Now”) that take users to other sites.

The change is designed to help advertisers better understand -- and segment -- their business objectives on Facebook, the social giant insists.

“Over the last few years, Facebook’s ad offerings have become increasingly tailored to helping advertisers meet specific business objectives,” the spokeswoman said. “Separating link clicks from engagement clicks (including likes and comments) means your budget will be spent more efficiently no matter if you bid for clicks or engagement,”

Over the next month, the change is expected to take effect in Ads Manager and Power Editor as well.

Facebook is also looking for better ways to connect with advertisers, and small- and medium-sized ones especially. Among other efforts, the social giant recently began inviting SMBs to use its Place Tips service, which pops place-based information right into users’ News Feed.

Facebook also recently developed a “Local Awareness” ad unit that can target potential patrons within a certain radius of a business’ address, as well as an app for advertisers to manage their ad campaigns on the go.

The app was designed to complement an Ads Manager mobile site, which Facebook launched last summer, and which is presently being used by some 800,000 advertisers each month.

Going forward, there is still plenty of room for growth among SMBs. Last year, COO Sheryl Sandberg said Facebook had more than 30 million active small business pages -- all of whom are potential ad partners.