What Facebook Pages Are
As businesses began to enter social networking sites to market their goods and services, it did not make sense for them to create Profiles like a person would. Instead, they did the next best thing and created Groups around their brands.
Groups were not meant to promote brands, however. They were meant to build communities and interaction around a given topic.
To rectify this, Facebook created Pages in 2009. Pages are like Profiles. Pages are for businesses like Profiles are for People. Instead of friending a Page, you Like it.
The functionality of Pages is more conducive to marketing and public relations efforts that brands employ to drive interest in their offerings.
By Liking a business’s Page, you access special offers directed at their Likers only. You are included on discussions and announcements that bypass the regular world. Many companies continue to discover how social networking sites like Facebook increase the reach of their brands with little to no cost beyond a dedicated staffer to conduct social media efforts.
Have a brand you love? Search for it, and Like their page. Whether it’s a consumer good, a community organization or your favorite coffee shop, by Liking their Page you become a part of the inner circle where you can participate in what the brand is.
As you find Pages you want to Like, don’t forget to suggest the Page to people in your network who you think would Like it also.
Viral Power
Remember that a key power underlying social networking and social media is its ability to spread virally. That is, your actions do not happen in a vacuum (unless you really nail down your privacy settings). What you say and do is shared back out to your network as a way to drive similar behavior in others. This herd mentality is a natural response we have to want to belong. Social networking capitalizes on this to drive its growth.
This is why I remind users to always think about their actions thoughtfully, and not act impulsively.
We do not have to censor our every action. We reserve the right to behave and think as we choose. We just have to remember that now every one else knows about it, so it pays to think ahead.
Apps, Games, Polls and More
One big draw on social networking sites is the applications, games and other add-ins you can add to your profile.
These are entertaining ways to explore the site and connect with others. However, not everyone is interested in giving you a sheep to complete your farm (search for FarmVille, with over 78 million daily users).
If casual gaming is your thing, then dive in. The myriad of games will keep you on the site for hours at a time if you like.
As mentioned before, use good judgment when including others in your game play. Speaking personally, I find these very annoying and not a request I would impose on anyone.
If you notice your Wall becoming clogged by game updates from people in your network, move your mouse over the user’s name in your Wall. The button labeled “Hide” will appear to the right of their name. This lets you hide all updates by this person from your Wall. In the case of games, it selectively removes only updates generated by games on the person’s Wall.
This is a gracious way to turn off the annoyance of game updates but retain the person in your network, and to see their updates – not their games’ updates.
Adding Games
To explore the casual games available on Facebook, click the Games link below your photo on the left-hand side.
This opens a directory of all games. The ones you subscribe to are listed first, followed by the ones your friends most recently used.
Below that you can see which of your friends are playing which games.
To add the game to your profile, click on its title. Facebook will request that you allow permission for the game to access your Profile (this is how it updates your Wall). From there you are taken to the game’s page and can learn how to play it, and start playing.
Adding Applications
Similar to games, Applications add specific functionalities to Facebook.
For example, you can add a birthdays application to round up all the birthdays of everyone in your network. You will see reminders in your Profile page, making it easy to send (real or electronic) birthday cards. Birthdays are easy to forget so I love this feature.
Chat in Real-Time
The Chat feature in Facebook is very similar to any other instant messaging system you may have used.
The Chat feature is located in the bottom right of the screen. The number next to it is how many people in your network are logged in to Facebook at a given moment.
Click on the Chat button and a list of these online users is loaded.
If you sorted your friends into Lists, they will be organized by Lists here, too.
To start chatting a person, click on their name and you’re done. Note that the ones with a green dot to the right of their name are the ones actively using the site. Those with a gray crescent icon are idle.
Unlike full-fledged instant messaging systems, there is no file sharing, screen sharing, video webcam or audio functionality with Facebook’s Chat feature.
More Than Just Friends
Facebook offers a constant stream of new tools, applications and features to keep the site fun, fresh, and engaging. Keep trying out the ones that interest you for a little variety, and find something different to share.
Want to Join the Game?
Looking for tips on the best Pages, popular games or apps? Just want to ask a question about this? Post your question in the Comments section for a response.