Wednesday 27 February 2013

Geek List: Paying attention to Facebook Pages

By Candy Gourlay

I had a hundred million other things to do the other day but then I came upon this piece in the New York Times about "Protecting Your Privacy on the New Facebook".

The NEW Facebook? Again?

Sigh. What with now being a quoted company, FB is adding new meaning to the word INSIDIOUS.



Having said that, as someone who promotes stuff on Facebook, I have found the Facebook page very useful in keeping a connection with an audience. However what with day jobs and other commitments, it's hard to keep the energy of the page going.

And then there's FB's fast moving and frequently changing experiments in making money.

It's not enough to read one how-to guide, set up your FB page and then forget about it. You've got to pay attention or miss out.

It's impossible to create a list of FB developments without going stale in seconds so this Geek List is just about Paying Attention.

1. Don't know how to start? Here's a step by step on how to set up a Facebook page

My Facebook page for Tall Story
(btw if you haven't yet and you'd  like to support your humble Slushpile reporters, please like our Facebook pages ... mine is Tall Story - Book, Teri's is Teri Terry - Author and Maureen's is The Funevers - Education)
2. If you want your FB page to look more creative than most then check out these Apps and Tools to Customize your Facebook Page. Warning: because FB is constantly chopping and changing third party apps and tools often get outmoded by FB changes. I tried out the Wix FB templates (see below) but I decided I couldn't afford to pay for it.

Customized Facebook page

3.  There's a difference between promoting your product and promoting your page. Be very clear with what you're hoping to achieve. If you've got that clear - here are 20 ways to promote your Facebook page

4.  Got a budget and planning to do paid promotions on FB? Then you should know the difference between sponsored stories, page posts, promoted stories and marketplace ads. Read this.

5. Investing in 'Sponsored Stories' - Facebook estimates an average reach of 16% of your fans. If that's good enough for you, read Sponsor Your Page Posts. But remember, every time you post ANYTHING on your page, it gets served to the world. So you have to make sure each posting is tailored for that.

Sponsored story


Sponsored Pages
6. And what the hell is a 'Suggested Page' and 'Suggested Post'???? Well it looks like FB isn't sure either but they're trying it out.  We'll add an update if FB makes an announcement.


Well that's all for now, I guess. Go take a paracetamol and lie down.

See you again at the dawning of the next New Facebook. Or three.

    11 comments :

    1. Thanks Candy, Great post as ever. I'm about as technically competent as a goldfish, (I do dabble though), so this is very helpful. If you ever want to do a Twitter one with a list of what all the #'s means that would be great. 

      Told you I’m a complete technophobe!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Thanks, Sally. I'll keep this page updated so that we don't ever have to write another one. Actually, i was about to write a Twitter piece and then I lost the will to live. It was easier to do the Facebook one.

        Delete
      2. Sally,
        I'm confused by all the references to hashtags, too...I know they mean something but what???? Have to publish this as "Anonymous" cuz I don't understand all the stuff about URLs and google accounts...Patti

        Delete
      3. Thanks for commenting even if you don't understand which profile to choose - next time, go for Name/URL ... just put 'Patti' in the space for name. You don't have to put anything under URL.

        Delete
    2. Replies
      1. There were moments when I wanted to quit writing this post.

        Delete
    3. Thanks Candy! This is one of those "must reads", I can feel it in my bones!
      And the links too - must make time to read those links...(but why doesn't Chrome have that nice "to read" slot on the left of the menu bar, like Safari does?)

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. That would be useful, wouldn't it? That gives me an idea. Maybe I should put a to-read thingy on the left hand side of the website for info that might require revisiting.

        Delete
    4. I's so complex I am seriously considering jacking it all in.
      Thanks for the article tho', Candy.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. But if there's anything you should read first it's the link to the New York Times privacy advice - the tools do everything and not just Facebook. I feel so much better now that I've run my profiles through them. Very useful.

        Delete
    5. Such a useful post, Candy
      which I have stashed to refer to later when have more time.
      Thank you

      ReplyDelete

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