Two Nifty Little Tricks, Facebook, and You.

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Some things are so easy, provided we know about them. We all want to “clean up” our busy social lives on Facebook sometimes, right? Here are two ways to accomplish just that; both are optional of course.

Too many pages? There, there now, we all get carried away sometimes. Sure, you can like both Aerosmith and Robotic Dancer’s Monthly, but oh, “Things My Awfully Cute Terrier Says” has got to go and most of those other pages too. But what if you wanted to get rid of ALL of them with little more than a wave of your magic wand?

In Timeline, start off on your wall (click on your name on the top to get there).
Just under your cover picture, click on the box where it says Likes. Once you’re on the page where your likes are, click on edit in the top right. You’ll see the names of ALL your likes by category. The first thing I see is “Music”; you probably see that too.

For each category, simply click on the first page where you’d like to start deleting and hold down the Delete Key and the pages will delete one by one. You can stop at any time and start the process over elsewhere in the category; maybe there’s a few you’d like to keep after all? When done, click on the big blue button that says Save Changes just below that section. You DO have to do this for each category.

We've certainly cleaned up our stream now, haven’t we? Ready to clean it up a little more? Are there people that annoy you to tears to the point where you’d like to cast a spell on them or people you really, really, really want to hear from more often? You can easily make modifications in regards to both of these situations and customize your stream a bit more to your liking.

Too many posts from Ned Painintherear? If you’re using Timeline, go to his wall and click on Subscribe, just under their cover photo, and directly to the right of Friends. A pull down gives you lots of options. The default is “Most Updates”, with the other choices being “All Updates” and the one you’d likely choose for Ned, “Only Important”.  There’s also a list of the types of posts as well. Here’s where you can shut off your friend’s Farmville posts or those friends that post music videos non-stop. Plenty of options for customizing what you see!

You DO have to go to each of your friend’s walls and make the changes for each individual friend. Unfortunately, there’s no time saving tactics here.
Ah, but the results! See what YOU want to see instead of having Facebook pick those posts that THEY feel are important enough to be “most updates”.

Prest-o change-o! Did that make your day just a little bit better?

Spread That Social Media News: You May Adopt a Pet!

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Several friends of mine tirelessly post on Facebook about dogs and cats that need a home. They are scattered around the U.S. …New Jersey, Ohio, Texas, California, Missouri.  A few are involved with shelters, volunteering their time. Some posts are desperate; the animal is on the list to be euthanized with not much time left.

I read these posts, however I don’t respond very often. One day, I did comment on one and said “This little guy is cute. BTW, I just got a rescue dog.” My friend's reply exclaimed surprise because she didn’t think anyone was reading her posts and expressed delight in my finding a furry friend. I assured her that what she was doing was important and to keep doing it.

And I can justify that statement.

In October, a friend, Jim, shared a post on Facebook from one of his friends; a photo of a small dog in a cage. I was traveling at the time and quite busy. I commented “He’s a great little dog” and didn’t think more about it.

A couple weeks later and back home from my travels, Jim posted another photo of the same dog. I happened to see it and comment “he’s really cute”; this time Jim strongly urged me to call the vet where the dog was staying.

The next day, Tuesday, I called and discovered that the dog’s previous owner brought him to an animal shelter and was turned away because they were full. A concerned shelter employee brought the dog to a vet that sometimes takes in animals.  The only details retained were the dog’s name. So there he lived, in a cage in the waiting area with a sign pleading for someone to adopt him.  Thankfully on the weekends he went home with a staff member.

The following day, I was there, a 90 mile drive. Nervously, I entered and told a staff member who I was.  She said to go ahead and open the cage. I bent down and two front paws immediately went around my neck.

Guess who came home with me?

Would this young dog, who I describe as a terrier mix that looks like he stuck his paw in an electrical outlet, have found a home without the power of social media behind him? Gizmo, while he does like to stick his paw on the keyboard when he’s sitting in my lap, has no clue what Facebook is; if he did, he’d probably be thanking Mark Zuckerberg for its existence.

Facebook and other social networks quickly get information out that wasn’t possible ten years ago. In this particular case, someone I didn’t even know initiated the communication and Jim, as good hearted as he is, spread the word further.

Here’s the point. Anything you post does get seen. You may not see comments on it, however people are reading. And what you’ve posted may be shared, opening up the message to a whole new audience. News where people can help in a particular situation can travel quite far in a short period of time. And some people who aren’t in a position to help resolve the cause or issue will do their part by sharing the information to others who perhaps can.

Social media is a great way to get the word out when someone or something (like Gizmo) is in need.

Let’s go back to the days before the internet, and use my new furry friend as an example. He is turned away at a full-to-capacity shelter and winds up at the local vet. Pet owners who come to his practice see the dog; a few tell some other folks. Someone might even snap a photo, get it developed (you’re snickering now, right?) and pin it up on the lunchroom bulletin board where they work. Perhaps a few phone calls are made.

How many people got the news? A hundred, maybe two hundred?

Now how many people got the news via social media? Possibly thousands, depending on how many shares. It’s possible the vet posted on his page too (if he has one). There could be several chains of communication spreading the word out there.

And the moral of the story? Social Media sharing is often caring.

Social Media “Think”

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We've seen so many celebrities get into hot water with their babbling, or is it blabbing? Our fingers can react, type and swipe faster than our brains sometimes, or so it seems. And while many folks in the entertainment industry use social media for sounding off, us folks with small businesses really have to put a little planning into what we’re projecting.

Yes, you’re a brand just like they are and that’s whether you’re on a social network just chatting with friends, networking, or representing a business. However, those celebrities are established brands. The adoring public will forgive them; how many times have we said “yeah, it’s okay; we still love you” to Alec Baldwin?

Remember, social networks are public forums.

Twitter is the most notorious of all of course, it’s 100% public (except for DMs) LinkedIn is public as well. You DO have flexibility with Facebook and Google+ regarding how widespread your posts are. When I say public, I’m referring to the millions who are members of a particular network.

And how many IS that*? For Twitter, 300 million +, LinkedIn 135 million, 800 million + for Facebook and Google+ is at 62 million and rising fast!
Here’s a little example of something that made me cringe. It’s no longer on my Facebook wall and could only be seen by my friends (thankfully). Chances are that 100 people may have read it before I deleted it (we’ll call my friend Ginger for this exercise):

GINGER:
Hi there!
So are you here in town? If so could you drop over?
GL


ME: Hi Ginger, not there at the moment. I'll message you with my plans! (Soon after I responded, lost track of time while nursing a headache. Yes, my bad!)


...sometime later...


GINGER: So where r u ? No one keeps keeps their word anymore. Just put my books in mailbox


ME (ZING! Now realizing my mistake): On my way now…

Dropping by, I learned that my friend had recently been ripped off by a car dealer and was not a happy camper! I explained that I wasn’t feeling well and had curled up into a ball (true). She gave me instant coffee which helped my headache. We’re okay now!

What’s the point here? Our words can be misunderstood. Our words ARE coming from somewhere; there’s usually a reason for them. However, despite our rationale, speaking in a public forum requires thought. Just like when we are speaking to someone vocally.

My reaction could have been negative towards her words. I may have become angry and possibly unfriended her (I’m not like that).

Though this example is more of a personal nature, imagine that you’re posting as a representative of a business. A few suggestions:

• Always remain cheerful and positive, even when responding to negativity.

• Reread your post or tweet before sharing it; read it out loud if you can.

• Try not to respond or post when you’re in a bad mood.

• When responding to an extremely negative post, don’t reply right away. Let it cool.

• Stay within your brand’s culture.

Sure, it sounds like common sense; however, you do need to remind yourself from time to time that whatever you say will be seen. We all tend to get a little lax and let things slip and slide a bit. Let this advice serve as a friendly, positive reinforcement.

Think before you post.

Alec, are you reading this?

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