8 Important Tips for Avoiding Facebook Jail

Today, there is no doubt that using Facebook to promote your business is one of the most practical & smart things to do. It is also very important to understand Facebook’s rules and guidelines to avoid landing yourself in “hot water”. Facebook jail is when a person (or business page) is blocked from using certain features such as sharing to groups or other pages. It happens primarily when individuals do not follow Facebook’s community guidelines. One of the top reasons for being banned is the spread of SPAM. How do you avoid being banned when you are “innocent” and trying to promote your business or service legitimately? Below are 8 tips:

1. Let some time pass between posts

Sometimes it is enthusiasm, other times you may be rushed, however posting exactly the same content to various groups within a short space of time is bound to get you noticed by the “Facebook sheriff”. Leave at least a few minutes between each post. This strategy is an excellent method to avoid being seen as “suspicious” by Facebook.

2. Create your own original content

If you use pictures from Google, you risk using images or text that has previously been flagged as SPAM. It means that by sharing them, your post may also obtain all the same complaints. It is also important to check that the photos in your post have the right license in order to use them without problems. There are resources available online to help find free and legal pictures on the net. This warning is not just for pictures but applies to text as well, so that is why it is better to create your own content.

3. Make it personal but be careful with tagging

Keep your Facebook usage “real” and “honest”. It can hurt you, for example, if the site detects that many of the friends you invite do not accept your friend or group requests. Individuals may ad to SPAM reporting if they do not know who you are or why you are adding them. Also, don’t tag people in photos unless they are actually in them.

4. Understand Facebook’s Community Guidelines

It will be very boring, however take the time to read Facebook’s community guidelines. Two important sticking points are that you should not use the name of a business as a personal account and that every person on the planet can have only ONE Facebook account.

5. Don’t act like a spammer

Besides being annoying to everyone, there are a number of behaviors that could threaten your account and reward you with a ban. We reiterate, do not send friend requests to people you have no connection to. This is important as when they reject your request, Facebook often asks if they know you. If many people answer “no”, that could be an indicator that you may be a spammer. Do not promote your business on the business page of others (unless you have their permission). The page managers will not hesitate to mark your post as SPAM.

6. Beware of trolls

Trolls everywhere! It is very easy to mark someone or a post as SPAM on Facebook, and unfortunately, some low life users may do this to their commercial competitors just to harm them. A troll can attack any post you make. If you notice or suspect such conduct from any of your followers, block them from your page. If they can’t see your posts, they can’t report them as SPAM. You can also visit their personal profile and report them individually.

7. Don’t go crazy with posts

The frequency of posts is going to differ from industry to industry, however remember it is not necessary to tell customers about every nitty-gritty detail. What you want to do is to provoke them to visit your website or to take action by calling you or visit your establishment if they would like to find out more detail. By saturating news feeds with needless publications, you open yourself up to being marked as SPAM.

8. Provide transparent inf about yourself

Believe it or not, this is often overlooked. Make sure you add information about your business to the “about” section of your page. It ensures that users can find out who you are by just looking at the information in your about section. It will make them feel more comfortable interacting with you. A well written paragraph may even get them to like your page.

The length of a ban can range from a few days to a few weeks. Facebook is trying to protect the community, however sometimes innocent individuals are caught up in a ban even when they did not mean to be seen as spammers. We hope that the tips above will help keep you “out of jail” and you can carry on promoting your business.

We (PortKey Solutions) are a multi service digital Marketing and Brand development agency based in Jeffreys Bay. We provide FREE consultations to assess how we may be able to help you reach your full online marketing potential. Visit our website @ www.portkey.co.za and book your free consultation today. We service clients all across the globe.

1 reply

Trackbacks & Pingbacks

  1. […] presence on social media platforms, the companies themselves have made big moves to combat SPAM (see our earlier blog on staying out of Facebook jail). In most instances, it means marketers have to fight a decline in organic […]

Comments are closed.