I joined Facebook over 11 years ago and have watched the site evolve from a place for college students to find out who’s in their classes to now being one of the most powerful marketing tools for both small businesses and large brands. As someone who uses Facebook both for personal reasons and business purposes, I have learned a lot of tips and tricks along the way to make Facebook more valuable. Facebook has many hidden features that aren’t general knowledge so I created a list of 5 tips to help you use Facebook like a pro. I based these tips on things that have helped me but also common misunderstandings I notice from other users.
Facebook Pro Tip #1- Make the most of asking for recommendations from your network: I see a lot of people turning to Facebook to ask their friends for recommendations. They often want their friends to tag people they recommend in the comments. Whether you’re seeking a roommate, want to hire a graphic designer, a musician or need to borrow something etc., the power of Facebook gives you referrals with social proof!
However, almost 100% of posts I see asking for recommendations are only view-able to your direct friends. This means when someone comments and tags a friend who you aren’t already friends with, that person can’t see or comment. Easy fix! Change the setting on that post so it’s view-able to “Friends of Friends”. On the bottom right next to “Post” (before you post) or on the top left you will see a mini triangle (if you have already made the post) scroll down to “More Options”, then “Custom” and click your mouse over “Share With These People or Lists” and the “Friends of Friends” option will come up. It only shows up if you click your mouse in the box. It’s hidden but it’s there!
Facebook Pro Tip #2- Be mindful of what you “Like”: Many of you including myself remain neutral with your opinions on controversial topics. I don’t post about politics, religion or anything that may cause an uproar. If your intention is to remain neutral, then you need to be mindful of the updates you “Like” on your friends’ news feeds. When you “Like” an update that’s public, it becomes a part of your digital footprint and you run the chance of that update showing up on your news feed to friends. Therefore, if you like a post that’s anti this, pro that or supporting/ not supporting a sensitive topic but don’t want to be public about it on Facebook, well your “Like” is essentially being public about it. If you don’t care, then “Like” away! If you do care, please be mindful before giving an update the good ol’ Facebook stamp of approval with a “Like”.
Facebook Pro Tip #3- Learn what your privacy settings really look like: Most of us are concerned about privacy. Perhaps you have coworkers sending you friend requests and you want to accept them but you don’t want them to see your college party photos. You probably already know how to change privacy settings on individual photo albums and posts. However, there’s still that concern of, “are my photos really hidden from certain people?” To find out exactly how someone else sees your profile, click on the 3 dots right on your cover photo, next to the “View Activity Log” button. From there, click on “View As…” then you can type in each friend’s name to learn exactly what they see when they click on your page.
Facebook Pro Tip #4- Manage your page notifications wisely: Some of you don’t comment on Facebook posts for fear of getting too many notifications whenever someone else comments after you. If you don’t want to get notifications but still want to add your two cents to the topic, there’s an easy fix. After you post, on the top right of that particular post you’ll see an arrow pointing down (looks like a chevron pattern). Click on that arrow and scroll to “Turn off notifications”.
Facebook Pro Tip #5- Get updates from pages you “Like”: Do you “Like” a business page because you want to get their updates? Many of you probably wonder why you never see posts on your news feed from a page you “Like”. Due to the mysterious Facebook algorithm you will miss many important updates from pages you “Like”. No fear, there’s a trick! If you want to get the latest updates from a specific page you “Like”, click on the “Liked” button after you “Like” a page. Then scroll to “Get Notifications”. Once this is checked off, you’ll get a notification each time the page makes an update just like you would get a notification from a friend who comments on one of your posts. Please note that as I’m writing this, Facebook is currently also in the process of rolling out layout changes to business pages. This screen shot and tip may change depending on when you are reading this.
Facebook is constantly changing their privacy settings, layout and features. What works today may not be relevant tomorrow. Be flexible and be open to changes with Facebook and any other social network. These tips are also meant for desktop usage. Some features aren’t available on the mobile app.
There you have it! Now you can use Facebook like a pro! Do you have your own Facebook pro tips to share? Leave us a comment, and your tip may be featured in a future post.
from Darlene Milligan http://ift.tt/1OheLG9 via transformational marketing
from Tumblr http://ift.tt/1M0s4NK
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