So why do I need a Facebook business page and not a profile?
Before we start delving into the technicalities of this question we get asked so often let’s make sure we are all on the same page. So on the Facebook platform there are two types of accounts. Profiles and Pages.
Profiles are for users (individual human beings. Hopefully this is you if you are reading this!) and should have a name like Mark Zuckerberg.
Pages are for companies, organisations, clubs etc. Pages are for non individual human beings and are designed in a way that is so much better for your business.
So now we’ve explained a little about the differences in the two types of accounts let’s explain one of the biggest reasons why your business should be using a Facebook business page and not a Facebook profile.
Not many of us realise this but using a profile for a business is against the Facebook TOS (Terms of Service) which you would have ticked when you created your Facebook profile [Oops]
This means that Facebook technically are within their rights to deactivate any Facebook profile which is in breach of their TOS if you are using a profile for your business [Yikes]
Some clients we speak to don’t want the hassle of creating a page as they have been used to getting friend requests for their business page but we will never connect with businesses on Facebook if it requires us to send a Friend request as this opens our personal Facebook profiles up to businesses we hardly know so the time to act is now if you are using a Facebook profile for your business.
To help you make the decision to move to a Facebook business page we’ve listed some of the main reasons below.
1 – Using a Facebook profile for a business is in breach of their Terms of Service (TOS)
Facebook can shut you down any time they want with no warning or apology.
2 – Using a Page for a business is more professional and respects users privacy
Professional companies use pages not profiles because it’s better for your business to use a page than to try and use a profile. When you “friend” a profile the person who you have accepted a friend request from gets access to all of your Facebook data which could include photos and information about who your friends are and sometimes even things you’ve said to friends.
As a rule we do not “friend” any profile that isn’t a person acting as a person as we don’t want a company being able to poke around our data and know where and what we’re doing. It’s just not appropriate.
But if I “Like” a business page all of my privacy remains intact.
3 – Facebook business pages get analytical data that you don’t get with a profile.
This information is really useful for helping you see what works and what doesn’t and how far your posts reach. Facebook unlock this very powerful analytic data after only 30 people “Like” your page so is well within the reach of most businesses.
4 – Facebook pages for business are publicly accessible
So what this means is that there is an SEO benefit to having a Facebook page that you don’t get from a profile. By default Facebook profile privacy settings are set to make most of your data private. With a page it’s the complete opposite so Google can access and index your page data.
5 – Personal Profiles are limited to a total of 5,000 friends
Pages have no such restriction and the last thing you want in business is to be restricted by a friend limit!
6 – Facebook Pages can integrate with your website.
You can now easily add a Facebook Like button to your website for your company page which isn’t possible with a profile. Facebook even gives you the code to do it via their developers resource page which is well worth a look via the link:
https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/like-button
7 – Set your page /Username or vanity URL
Finally don’t forget to add the icing on your Page cake by giving it a nice username which you can use on all of your offline and online marketing. We still see business pages with a nasty long page name which is made up of random numbers. A vanity URL is something that will stay with your page forever so pick wisely and look professional.
You can easily add this vanity URL by signing into Facebook and visiting the username link below. The vanity username must be unique and once selected can’t be changed easily without contacting Facebook which is always an adventure in itself!
https://www.facebook.com/username
We hope you found the information useful and thanks for reading.