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ALERT:Attention All FACEBOOK Page Owners

by FrankBowman
78 replies
It seems as though FaceBook is taking a Page from the Google Handbook
of how to Screw affiliates.

I had a freebie page setup with links to freebie offers. It had over 5000 fans!!

It was deleted this morning. Why? I have no friggiin clue!!!

Here's the email I got:


Hello,

You created a Page that has been removed for violating our
Terms of Use. A Facebook Page is a distinct presence used solely
for business or promotional purposes. Among other things, Pages
are hateful, threatening, or obscene are not allowed. We also
take down Pages that attack an individual or group, or that
are set up by an unauthorized individual. If your Page was
removed for any of the above reasons, it will not be reinstated.
Continued misuse of Facebook's features could result in the
permanent loss of your account.

If you need further assistance with this issue, please visit
http://www.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=page
_disabled.

The Facebook Team

So if you're looking to make some money with Facebook,
you better hire a lawyer to explain their TOS to you because
I read it and I can't figure out what I did wrong.

Personally, I think they'd prefer you PAY for one of their ads.

Just a heads up to everybody
#alertattention #facebook #owners #page
  • Profile picture of the author RGallowitz
    Was it links to CPA offers perhaps?
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    • Profile picture of the author fredjr1978
      You may want to email them. They have a link that makes it really easy for people to "report" a page. If you were spamming people to much, perhaps you pissed them off. With to many "reports" I can see why the deleted you. The name of the game. Very much like email marketing, you have to be careful.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
    Maybe some people complained about one of your "freebie" offers. Did you feature CPA offers with forced continuity trials?
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  • Profile picture of the author hushy
    I would email them and ask them specifically what TOS you violated. That your site did not violate any of the said statements. I did on kijiji and had to get my account there reinstated.
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  • Profile picture of the author J5isAlive
    Here is my take on it. There is a huge spreading of this script to setup groups and fan pages with with the intentions to just build up a quick list and send to cpa offers. So maybe they are just generalizing you into that category. I would send them a nice email asking why this happened and try to prove you are real and offering something of value to facebook. That is if you are offering something good. If it was merely an account to use to promote cpa offers to I would say they probably will not reinstate the account.

    Hope that helps.
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    @RGallowitz

    Of course

    @Ron Douglas

    Not one forced continuity....not one!

    @hushy

    Already did that, waiting for reply
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    • Profile picture of the author J5isAlive
      Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

      @RGallowitz

      Of course

      @Ron Douglas

      Not one forced continuity....not one!

      @hushy

      Already did that, waiting for reply

      Ahh I was to slow on my post. I am sure they will reinstate you. I had a similar issue and they reinstated it after my nice email.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kody
    i hope that does not happen to mine
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Listen, if they want to ban my fan pages thats fine...........I'll just post a link to one of my sites OUTSIDE of FB and everyone will end up going there.......I just don't understand why they can't give a warning first, even suspending the page until you fix the problem.....

    Like ...."Listen this is the problem, fix it or we'll delete your page"....Instead they go the Google Adwords route ........they just delete it without warning you
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  • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
    I said it once and will say it 1,000 times ... Facebook (or anything social media site) is NOT a marketing platform.. There are ways to make money from facebook but these guides that tell you to create a fan page or a group are telling you to break the tos of facebook.

    You want to make money on facebook the opportunity is there but you have to get creative and stop looking at what you think is obvious... Look for the unseen and unused methods..

    James
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    • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
      Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

      I said it once and will say it 1,000 times ... Facebook (or anything social media site) is NOT a marketing platform.. There are ways to make money from facebook but these guides that tell you to create a fan page or a group are telling you to break the tos of facebook.

      You want to make money on facebook the opportunity is there but you have to get creative and stop looking at what you think is obvious... Look for the unseen and unused methods..

      James
      Hey James, I didn't buy any guide, I came up with the idea myself plus they page was around for 2 months.........so I really don't know.

      I'm not stressing over it as I wasn't doing to much with it anyway, maybe $10-$20 bucks a week.

      My only issue is their summarily deleting a page without warning.....very Googlesque in my opinon
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      • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
        Frank,
        Not saying you bought a guide but fact is there has been post after post on "how to make money on facebook" and most go running and slapping up the fan page and then start spamming. Even if you just sent your link once a month, the fan page was built for one purpose "To Make Money"..

        That is the mistake people are making and trust me there are many in facebook that do not like "marketers" and many will report it when they get these stupid join my marketing fan page. These people know why you want them to join.

        There are far better ways to make money from facebook that follows the tos and breaks or violates no rules at all..

        First and foremost people need to understand it is a "social network" and not a marketing platform..

        James

        Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

        Hey James, I didn't buy any guide, I came up with the idea myself plus they page was around for 2 months.........so I really don't know.

        I'm not stressing over it as I wasn't doing to much with it anyway, maybe $10-$20 bucks a week.

        My only issue is their summarily deleting a page without warning.....very Googlesque in my opinon
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    • Profile picture of the author J5isAlive
      Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

      Admin, Please delete this post

      I am having problems with WF running slow to but on topic I believe it is alot of the people buying these scripts( I know of 3 currently being sold on big IM forums) that are sad to say ruining it for others. I think just like anything else they see an influx and nip it all. It is fast and easy leaving you to have to start over. It sucks but maybe try paid advertising as that is a huge thing right now.
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Also, think there was a WSO about some Facebook script............anyone who bought might want to look into this issue as well
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    @J5isAlive

    I know what you mean. I didn't buy any type of script I just built it from scratch with fans referring other fans........well.......no big deal.......like I said for $10-$20 a week, I'm not stressing.........

    Just wanted to let people know who may have bought the scripts.........there blowing their money
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  • Profile picture of the author KirkMcD
    Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

    We also take down Pages that are set up by an unauthorized individual.
    Were you authorized by the company to put up the page? Just because you are an affiliate, doesn't automatically make you authorized.
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    • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
      Originally Posted by KirkMcD View Post

      Were you authorized by the company to put up the page? Just because you are an affiliate, doesn't automatically make you authorized.
      By that logic I guess my Led Zeppelin fan page idea is a no go as well, since I'm not employed by the band ,,,,,LOL
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Authorized by what company..........the cpa networks..........no I wasn't........but I was posting links to my site.........not direct linking
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    James

    I get your point. I guess I could have an app created to monetize FB traffic or just buy ads.....the point of the exercise was to get free traffic.

    Again, I'm just posting this for everybody who was trying the same thing I was or worse, bought one of those silly scripts, which you could tell from a mile away was a TOS violation

    Frank
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    I wonder if forming a group, instead of a Fan Page would avoid all these hassles?
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    • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
      Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

      I wonder if forming a group, instead of a Fan Page would avoid all these hassles?
      That's my point though.. No offense but it is a social network and not a marketing platform. If you plan on creating a group for social interaction and not marketing then go for it.

      If you plan on creating a group to market, then you may find yourself in the same problem and even your account being banned. Yes I know some marketers that use a group and I know some that are starting to annoy me on how they use those groups. I pretty much ignore it but many are not so forgiving.

      Those that do get away with it for now may find one day when they try to login that they can't... Ok so you only target only marketers, well what if one of them are your competition and they want to weed out that competition ???

      You see .. to me it is just not worth the trouble.. It's a social network, use it as one and you will be far better off..

      James
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      • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
        Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

        That's my point though.. No offense but it is a social network and not a marketing platform. If you plan on creating a group for social interaction and not marketing then go for it.

        If you plan on creating a group to market, then you may find yourself in the same problem and even your account being banned. Yes I know some marketers that use a group and I know some that are starting to annoy me on how they use those groups. I pretty much ignore it but many are not so forgiving.

        Those that do get away with it for now may find one day when they try to login that they can't... Ok so you only target only marketers, well what if one of them are your competition and they want to weed out that competition ???

        You see .. to me it is just not worth the trouble.. It's a social network, use it as one and you will be far better off..

        James
        You know, you're right James, it isn't worth the trouble.......I'll just stick with ppc and ppv........If you can't beat em........then screw em.....lol
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        • Profile picture of the author cscarpero
          Sorry, I'm with FB on this one. I've been spammed one time too many by these abusive groups, especially MLM related. I'm deleting myself out of the mast majority of them.

          I do have my own fan page, which I use exclusively to syndicate my blog content. No sales pitches.
          Signature

          I'm an online marketer and mortgage loan officer.

          Connect with me at www.Scarpero.com

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          • Profile picture of the author garyv
            Originally Posted by cscarpero View Post

            Sorry, I'm with FB on this one. I've been spammed one time too many by these abusive groups, especially MLM related. I'm deleting myself out of the mast majority of them.

            I do have my own fan page, which I use exclusively to syndicate my blog content. No sales pitches.
            I believe you have to join a group for it to send you anything. Am I wrong here? How's that spam?
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            • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
              Originally Posted by garyv View Post

              I believe you have to join a group for it to send you anything. Am I wrong here? How's that spam?
              Gary,
              I think his point is just because he joined a group does not mean he gave them permission to send him "marketing" messages everyday selling something..

              I know a few that do this and I just trash the emails myself but it does get annoying. I am not on facebook to get junk email list spam email. I do not subscribe to list out of facebook so why is it that my mail inside facebook is used as a spam list ??

              I personally joined the groups because I was asked and I was told something totally different then what it really is.

              Now I can always remove myself but that is not the point here, the point is a social network being used as a Marketing Platform for which it is not intended to be used for.

              James
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      • Profile picture of the author mmurtha
        Frank,

        James is right. FB is not meant for a marketing platform in the sense that you are using it, especially running CPA offers on your pages. If you are going to use FB for a marketing platform, use their ad system. You'll get better targeted leads anyway, and you will not be going against their TOS.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mac the Knife
    Look at the backend statistical date that is included on fan pages...if you don't think this is geared toward folks using fan pages for marketing...what do you think it is used for? Facebook has been gearing up to provide increased marketing solutions for quite some time now...I don't really think that point is that much in question in the grand scheme of Facebook/Social Media knowledge...the point is, they make decisions that are oftentimes arbitrary and they rarely provide sufficient data as to why they made them. I have heard more than enough stories to know that happens.

    BUT...the rule remains...their site, their rules. Just don't tie up too much of ANY of your efforts into any one thing. Be it a hosting company, a newspaper or magazine you advertise in, a huge client that sends you tons of money...if these go away, how is your business affected? Facebook can and IS part of many people's business and marketing plans and certainly should be (if used correctly) but it is only ONE thing of many...or at least certainly should be...

    Mac the Knife
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    • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
      Honestly it is called a fan page for a reason ... It is not called a marketing page. Yes facebook does have pages for "business" but they are not designed to be used as SpaMarketing...

      Yes there is plenty of room for marketing on facebook and that is why they sell ads... There are other ways of doing it without breaking the terms or ticking people off that end up reporting you...

      Can a social media site be used for marketing ? Yes it can as long as it is done "properly" and in my opinion fan pages and groups are not the proper marketing avenue. As I said if you target only marketers then you may be able to get away with it but the everyday normal facebook user is NOT on facebook to make money.

      James

      Originally Posted by Macurdy View Post

      Look at the backend statistical date that is included on fan pages...if you don't think this is geared toward folks using fan pages for marketing...what do you think it is used for? Facebook has been gearing up to provide increased marketing solutions for quite some time now...I don't really think that point is that much in question in the grand scheme of Facebook/Social Media knowledge...the point is, they make decisions that are oftentimes arbitrary and they rarely provide sufficient data as to why they made them. I have heard more than enough stories to know that happens.

      BUT...the rule remains...their site, their rules. Just don't tie up too much of ANY of your efforts into any one thing. Be it a hosting company, a newspaper or magazine you advertise in, a huge client that sends you tons of money...if these go away, how is your business affected? Facebook can and IS part of many people's business and marketing plans and certainly should be (if used correctly) but it is only ONE thing of many...or at least certainly should be...

      Mac the Knife
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  • Profile picture of the author Mac the Knife
    James, totally not the venue or even the correct thread, but there are HUNDREDS of fan pages popping up everyday by some of the most well known and successful marketers in the world...I am close to many of them...the consensus is...fan pages were created for marketing.

    Anyways, I appreciate your opinion, and unless Mr. Facebook pops in to say hello and tells me otherwise, this is mine.

    Peace

    Mac the Knife
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Just a note............I had a few other fan pages that I set up..........very few fans.......I just deleted them...........its really not worth the aggravation............my ex-wife takes care of that fine all by herself!!!
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  • Profile picture of the author Obilex
    say I have a fanpage thats like "I love snowboarding."

    That page fills up with thousands of snowboarding fans.

    Is it wrong to send them to my snowboarding blog?

    I dont think so, because they joined the page saying they like snowboarding, and me being the creator of the page wants to help out the fans by providing them with more information and deals on snowboarding gear.

    So what if i make a few bucks on commissions, they are getting info on a topic that they chose to join. I understand if they joined the snowboarding page and i sent them CPA offers for something completely unrelated to snowboarding, this would be very uncool, but if it sticks to the topic, I dont see the big deal.
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    • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
      Originally Posted by Obilex View Post

      say I have a fanpage thats like "I love snowboarding."

      That page fills up with thousands of snowboarding fans.

      Is it wrong to send them to my snowboarding blog?

      I dont think so, because they joined the page saying they like snowboarding, and me being the creator of the page wants to help out the fans by providing them with more information and deals on snowboarding gear.

      So what if i make a few bucks on commissions, they are getting info on a topic that they chose to join. I understand if they joined the snowboarding page and i sent them CPA offers for something completely unrelated to snowboarding, this would be very uncool, but if it sticks to the topic, I dont see the big deal.
      Dude, I checked out your site...............keep it up, you're going to be a very rich man one day, if not already.........kudos
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      • Profile picture of the author Obilex
        Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

        Dude, I checked out your site...............keep it up, you're going to be a very rich man one day, if not already.........kudos
        aww shucks, don't make me blush!

        but yea, that site is a labor of love between me and my best friend, we are aiming to make it the classiest most interesting blog alive. Our only concerns with it is monetizing without taking away from its class, so right now we are just building a reader base and putting off any real decisions on the money end of it
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  • Profile picture of the author Mac the Knife
    Here is the link that gives info about fan pages on Facebook: Pages | Facebook

    Pay attention to this first block of info (keep in mind, this is from FACEBOOK)

    Create a Facebook Page

    A Facebook Page is a public profile that enables you to share your business and products with Facebook users. Create one in a few minutes with our simple interface. For more details about Facebook Pages, download our Product Guide.


    Ok, so it actually says "Share your business and product with Facebook users" so that is pretty straightforward. Fan pages were designed for marketing and business purposes. I did TONS of research when developing Perfect Networker, but I didn't have this filed, but just found it. Anyways, Facebook is looking to be the ALL IN ONE solution. They want the social aspect for the people who just want to POKE each other, and they want the BUSINESS solution for the LinkedIn market share as well...


    Go ahead, market away! Going back to the OP, even though it sounds like he didn't violate the TOS, they can still pull the plug...but like the others said, if it happens, state your case...they still don't communicate well, but using FB for marketing is cool.


    Mac the Knife
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  • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
    And as I stated : Honestly it is called a fan page for a reason ... It is not called a marketing page. Yes facebook does have pages for "business" but they are not designed to be used as SpaMarketing...

    Not to mention the fact that facebook can have business pages all they want, if "users" feel they are being "Spammed" and report it, guess who facebook is going to listen to ???

    James
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  • Profile picture of the author Gary Huynh
    A site like Facebook will shoot first and ask later to save their behinds. They have to be extra precautious because their site is an open ground for BlueFart marketers. Think of what happened to Myspace. I'm sure they've done their research and don't want to go down the same path.

    If I owned Facebook or Google or Ezinearticles (another love hate relationship), then I would take the same precautions. Upsetting the minority to keep the majority happy is a smart move. We don't run these sites and we don't see the stats that they have. Every move they make has been thought out. Just live with the fact if you plan to use them for marketing purposes.
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    Living the internet lifestyle!
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  • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
    Well I just got 6 .. yes 6 page suggestion all from the SAME "Marketer" ... Guess what ? I just have one less friend on facebook. So decide for yourself "HOW" you want to market and do not listen to anybody that just says "Go build a fan page and market away" ....

    James
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  • Profile picture of the author marketerguru
    Facebook is just merely protecting their users. I guess they dont want to get sued..
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  • Profile picture of the author binjai15
    Yea many people are misusing facebook for many reasons...online prostitution etc, unbearable.
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    Honda Scoopy
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Ok everybody......I get the message.....no marketing on FB unless I pay for ads.............I don't agree with it, but there's nothing I can do...is there?
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    • Profile picture of the author ShaneBoyd
      Personally, I think facebook can stick it. I used it for a short while, but then I realized I was doing nothing but wasting time.

      I'm sure there are ways to make money from it, but you can make money digging ditches too.

      It's still a new platform for marketers to exploit. Just look at how many products offer "Make Money With Facebook". :rolleyes:

      I heard this quote a while ago about social media. "When the marketers move in...the members move out".

      Peace,

      Shane
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  • Profile picture of the author Carl-Reed
    theres a lot of marketers flagging groups and fan pages to remove the competition, expect a lot mpre of this in the future, much like craigslist ad flaggers.
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    • Profile picture of the author ExRat
      Hi Frank,

      I'm not stressing over it as I wasn't doing to much with it anyway, maybe $10-$20 bucks a week.
      There are lessons here about business, prioritisation, positioning...

      I wonder if forming a group, instead of a Fan Page would avoid all these hassles?
      Ok everybody......I get the message.....no marketing on FB unless I pay for ads.............I don't agree with it, but there's nothing I can do...is there?
      Consider the ROI then move on and never look back. Target people who are looking to buy stuff instead of people who want to connect/chat/play games etc.

      It's almost as if we need a pop up that appears every time someone visits here that says - 'just because something is new, shiny, has lots of 'cool' flashy features and millions of users, doesn't mean that it's advisable to spend time trying to use it for marketing purposes - in fact most of those flashy things will simply make it take longer for you to use the site, and will probably draw you into a world of time-wasting silliness and goofing off. As a starter, visit these threads about buyer keywords, the insanely low cost of hosting, domains and backlinking methods.'

      Even the thread title demonstrates the mistake - the only facebook page owners are facebook.

      Why would people want to use the wrong marketing medium to try to sell stuff that no-one really needs to people who don't really want it, when it actually takes less time and effort to sell stuff through the right channels to people who desperately want/need it and are actively looking for it, credit card in hand?
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      Roger Davis
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Perez O'Connor
    If you want to monetize facebook your better off creating apps.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
    There is a big difference between marketing and spamming offers.

    Facebook Fan pages are perfect for marketing, list building, and SEO if you know what you're doing. The key is to share information that people really want and leverage the SEO authority of Facebook to rank well in the search engines.

    One of my fan page has 11,000+ members and is growing every day. About 4,000 of those people were new fans referred by their Facebook friends.

    The sad part is, a thread like this will cause people to dismiss the idea of using Facebook Fan pages. Folks, do your own testing. Opinions are worth what you pay for them.
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    • Profile picture of the author Martin Luxton
      Two things.

      1. Facebook can do what they like and even creating apps, as has been suggested, is fraught with problems when they are not on your own site.

      BBC News - iPhone developers angry as Apple purges adult apps


      2.

      Posted by macurdy

      Here is the link that gives info about fan pages on Facebook: Pages | Facebook

      Pay attention to this first block of info (keep in mind, this is from FACEBOOK)

      Create a Facebook Page

      A Facebook Page is a public profile that enables you to share your business and products with Facebook users. Create one in a few minutes with our simple interface. For more details about Facebook Pages, download our Product Guide.


      Ok, so it actually says "Share your business and product with Facebook users" so that is pretty straightforward. Fan pages were designed for marketing and business purposes. I did TONS of research when developing Perfect Networker, but I didn't have this filed, but just found it. Anyways, Facebook is looking to be the ALL IN ONE solution. They want the social aspect for the people who just want to POKE each other, and they want the BUSINESS solution for the LinkedIn market share as well...
      Yep, it's very clear

      " . . . that enables you to share your business and products . . ."

      I take that to mean, if they're not your products you could be in breach of their TOS. CPA or affiliate links are liable to be penalised.

      In light of this

      Go ahead, market away!
      seems like kamikaze advice if you are an affiliate marketer.

      Martin
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      • Profile picture of the author Jeremy Kelsall
        I've talked to or heard from no less than 10 people in the last 24 hours that have had their pages permanently closed.

        If you are setting up a page thats only purpose is to monetize it, get ready for the banhammer
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      • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
        Exactly Martin and very well put ... Only thing I would add is that the apps are on your own site.

        @Rodger - Great post and very well put also ....

        James

        Originally Posted by Martin Luxton View Post

        Two things.

        1. Facebook can do what they like and even creating apps, as has been suggested, is fraught with problems when they are not on your own site.

        BBC News - iPhone developers angry as Apple purges adult apps


        2.



        Yep, it's very clear

        " . . . that enables you to share your business and products . . ."

        I take that to mean, if they're not your products you could be in breach of their TOS. CPA or affiliate links are liable to be penalised.

        In light of this



        seems like kamikaze advice if you are an affiliate marketer.

        Martin
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        • Profile picture of the author Martin Luxton
          Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

          Exactly Martin and very well put ... Only thing I would add is that the apps are on your own site.

          James
          James,

          I stand corrected. I should have said "apps designed for your own site/business".

          Martin
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      • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
        Before I comment, I want to tell Frank that what follows is NOT aimed at him personally. I don't know Frank, his fan pages or his blog, so none of this can be aimed at him directly.

        As I read the TOS, Martin has it right. Business fan pages were created so companies could communicate with customers without the friend limit imposed on individual pages. They were meant for real businesses to share their own products and services, not for commission sales reps (aka affiliate marketers) to spray offers across the service.

        > A band can promote their upcoming appearances, CD releases, etc.

        > A Mom & Pop HVAC business can offer a special maintenance/checkup coupon to local prospects.

        > A major food company can offer news about new products and offer coupons.

        > An author can share his/her personal appearances, offer snips of coming books, etc.

        Fan pages were never meant for building a list to spray links to CPA/affiliate offers, either directly or via splog/flog.

        As James points out, there are many ways social networks can make your business more profitable. Most involve communication, not hosing fans down with solicitations...
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        • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
          Thanks for posting that John ... This was my point it is not a "marketing" page.. I have a good many friends that do play games and keep in touch with family. I have spoken to many of them and they even tell me they are not on facebook to "make money" and they certainly do not want to be "marketed" to.

          This is what is meant by "TESTING" and I will never understand why people just blindly follow some marketer that slaps out an ebook on how to rape a site and turn it into a spam fest.

          Yes people I have built some "relationships" (have we forgot what that is ?) and I actually asked many their opinion on this very subject. So while some claim they did research, I do not think they actually asked the normal everyday facebook users their opinions.

          There are ways to make money on facebook but plastering a fan page and group with SpaMarketing is not the way to do it. This is a social network. You are on their turf now and not your own and as such you have to adjust yourself and play by their rules.

          But this is just my opinion, what could I possibly know ....

          James
          Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe View Post

          Before I comment, I want to tell Frank that what follows is NOT aimed at him personally. I don't know Frank, his fan pages or his blog, so none of this can be aimed at him directly.

          As I read the TOS, Martin has it right. Business fan pages were created so companies could communicate with customers without the friend limit imposed on individual pages. They were meant for real businesses to share their own products and services, not for commission sales reps (aka affiliate marketers) to spray offers across the service.

          > A band can promote their upcoming appearances, CD releases, etc.

          > A Mom & Pop HVAC business can offer a special maintenance/checkup coupon to local prospects.

          > A major food company can offer news about new products and offer coupons.

          > An author can share his/her personal appearances, offer snips of coming books, etc.

          Fan pages were never meant for building a list to spray links to CPA/affiliate offers, either directly or via splog/flog.

          As James points out, there are many ways social networks can make your business more profitable. Most involve communication, not hosing fans down with solicitations...
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          • Profile picture of the author Jeremy Kelsall
            I've never done the whole fan page thing myself. Hell, I won't even accept friend requests from "internet people" no matter how long I've known them - My facebook is for my family and immediate friends only.

            BUT

            I do know several people that did very well with fan pages when they were one of maybe a couple hundred that was using them that way. Now that "attention" has been turned to the rape and pillaging of facebook, it makes sense that facebook is going to do what they need to do to protect their site and their users from being abused from anyone but them.

            Think Twitter...

            I'll admit, the only thing I find twitter useful for is baiting some of the morons on there into filling out surveys and CPA offers, and I still do pretty well with it, but it wasn't long ago that twitter started laying the smack down on all the auto add softwares and shutting accounts down for adding too aggressively, unfollowing to many people, blah blah blah

            lesson:

            Tactics like plastering CPA links on fan pages only work until everyone finds out about them. So, as soon as you see ebook promotions on those kinds of methods, it's time to pack up shop if you are doing them at all...the party is over.
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  • Profile picture of the author johnben1444
    I don't use facebook for promoting thou i use twitter. Just last night i saw facbook has a slot where you can create an ad, and this ads aint free.

    Perhaps its a strategy to discourage people like you. You can try their paid ad.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
    Maybe I'm misunderstanding this thread. This is not a knock on anyone because you can be really successful (and strongly opinionated) without not be an expert at everything.

    I agree that using a fan page solely for CPA links or soliciting offers is not advisable. However, I think we should be careful about telling people not to use it for "marketing." There is a lot more to marketing than just pitching offers.

    I do quite well marketing with my fan page. If you don't have a successful fan page, you shouldn't be giving advice on marketing or not marketing with Fan Pages. You really shouldn't be telling people that they can't "monetize" a fan page. That's just ridiculous.

    Facebook is a super powerful and super viral marketing tool if you use it for real marketing (traffic generation, list building, relationship building, social proof, etc) and not just soliciting offers.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jeremy Kelsall
      Ron, the problem is, most of the info going around right now about fan pages is nothing more than - get as many people as you can and then pretty much drop CPA links anywhere and everywhere you can.

      That is bad advice.

      If on the other hand, you have a fan page centered around "your business" whether you have an info product business, disposal company, flower shop, or whatever - then no doubt there is some value in getting people that are interested in your business on your fan page so that you can communicate with them and of course market your products.
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      • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
        Originally Posted by Jeremy Kelsall View Post

        Ron, the problem is, most of the info going around right now about fan pages is nothing more than - get as many people as you can and then pretty much drop CPA links anywhere and everywhere you can.

        That is bad advice.

        If on the other hand, you have a fan page centered around "your business" whether you have an info product business, disposal company, flower shop, or whatever - then no doubt there is some value in getting people that are interested in your business on your fan page so that you can communicate with them and of course market your products.
        Agreed. Thanks for clearing that up. I wasn't aware that was what they're teaching. Good thing I don't listen to "them" .
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      • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
        Originally Posted by Jeremy Kelsall View Post

        Ron, the problem is, most of the info going around right now about fan pages is nothing more than - get as many people as you can and then pretty much drop CPA links anywhere and everywhere you can.

        That is bad advice.

        If on the other hand, you have a fan page centered around "your business" whether you have an info product business, disposal company, flower shop, or whatever - then no doubt there is some value in getting people that are interested in your business on your fan page so that you can communicate with them and of course market your products.
        Jeremy is absolutely correct.

        That's why I took down the remaining fan pages I had. I saw the errors of my ways and I am now repenting!!

        No seriously, I gave it a shot and it didn't work. I'm not a big "Social Site" guy anyway.

        I don't use Facebook to communicate with a lot of friends, I use my iPhone, and 90% of the people on Twitter are complete "twits", so I stay away from Twitter.

        I kinda feel sorry I started this thread, there seem to be a lot of people getting pissed off with one another.

        That wasn't my intention at all.

        I understand what James is saying and I really believe that based on what I was making, which as I said was really a pittance, its just not worth the aggravation and loss of time.

        I will say this though. The "M" in IM stands for marketing. So I tried to market some things.........maybe I didn't it in the wrong way, but that will not stop me from trying new ways of marketing both my products and other people's products and offers.

        With all due respect, I don't work to make friends, I work to make money, so if I offend a few FaceBook users I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it.

        I got the FaceBook slap........no problem, I'm a big boy.

        Again........I'm almost sorry I started this thread, I was just trying to give a heads up to people who are using, many here will say "abusing", FB fan pages.

        Peace
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        • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
          Frank,
          You too hard on yourself dude... Nobody here is ticked with each other, just having a normal discussion. It's a good thing that you started this thread because maybe some that have bought those junk ebooks and etc. will learn a few things before rushing in to create a SpamFanPage.

          For the record I have not said you did anything wrong, I am not the one to judge if you did something wrong or not. I just want to make sure "newbies" that may fall for this build a income on fackbook fanpages understands that it is not about slapping offers and spamming people with junk affiliate products.

          James

          Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

          Jeremy is absolutely correct.

          That's why I took down the remaining fan pages I had. I saw the errors of my ways and I am now repenting!!

          No seriously, I gave it a shot and it didn't work. I'm not a big "Social Site" guy anyway.

          I don't use Facebook to communicate with a lot of friends, I use my iPhone, and 90% of the people on Twitter are complete "twits", so I stay away from Twitter.

          I kinda feel sorry I started this thread, there seem to be a lot of people getting pissed off with one another.

          That wasn't my intention at all.

          I understand what James is saying and I really believe that based on what I was making, which as I said was really a pittance, its just not worth the aggravation and loss of time.

          I will say this though. The "M" in IM stands for marketing. So I tried to market some things.........maybe I didn't it in the wrong way, but that will not stop me from trying new ways of marketing both my products and other people's products and offers.

          With all due respect, I don't work to make friends, I work to make money, so if I offend a few FaceBook users I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it.

          I got the FaceBook slap........no problem, I'm a big boy.

          Again........I'm almost sorry I started this thread, I was just trying to give a heads up to people who are using, many here will say "abusing", FB fan pages.

          Peace
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    • Profile picture of the author A Bary
      I agree with James and everyone here, and I warned about this before in this thread that didn't get much attention...

      All these silly offers popping up lately about spamming FB fanpages and Groups will just ruin FB for everyone else,

      Although it's not a marketing platform, some people are using it smartly for marketing purposes, but now, thanks to all those "brilliant" offers, those smart marketers have to search for something else...
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    • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
      Ron,
      The problem is though most think or are told do go do SpaMarketing. Just like the "marketer" sent me 6 page suggestions yesterday and all owned by him. He does not have a "BUSINESS" he has niches that he is in and he wants to make that quick buck by slapping me with affiliate products.

      This is how most understand to use things.. When something new and shiny comes out many go running to see how they can rape it to make money. This ends up normally destroying the thing for everyone else because of those wannabe marketers that are just looking for a quick buck.

      Yes there is a difference between SpaMarketing and Real Marketing, the sad thing is many do not understand this...

      Facebook does give you the tools to make money and build a business but you also must follow by their terms of service.

      James

      Originally Posted by Ron Douglas View Post

      Maybe I'm misunderstanding this thread. This is not a knock on anyone because you can be really successful (and strongly opinionated) without not be an expert at everything.

      I agree that using a fan page solely for CPA links or soliciting offers is not advisable. However, I think we should be careful about telling people not to use it for "marketing." There is a lot more to marketing than just pitching offers.

      I do quite well marketing with my fan page. If you don't have a successful fan page, you shouldn't be giving advice on marketing or not marketing with Fan Pages. You really shouldn't be telling people that they can't "monetize" a fan page. That's just ridiculous.

      Facebook is a super powerful and super viral marketing tool if you use it for real marketing (traffic generation, list building, relationship building, social proof, etc) and not just soliciting offers.
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  • Profile picture of the author MichaelHiles
    I run several Facebook pages for local regional areas, just like a local portal. All of them have thousands of fans.

    Local businesses that hire me to manage their Facebook PPC campaigns for my lead generation package of services get the option of being able to drop promos to the local market audience on the fan page.

    The trick is in knowing how to build the fan page for the local market. It's not just slapping up some silly page and expecting it to go viral.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
    Good thread. Who seems to be pissed off? I just see a respectful sharing of opinions.
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    • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
      Originally Posted by Ron Douglas View Post

      Good thread. Who seems to be pissed off? I just see a respectful sharing of opinions.
      I understand Ron..........but again, my intention was to give a heads up to people who were doing it the "wrong way" as I was.

      Maybe I didn't express myself correctly in the previous post.

      Peace
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Thanks James..........I kinda felt like the Evil FaceBook Phantom there for a while
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    BTW James,

    I PMed you about your membership script, did you get it.

    WF has been running really slowwww for me and I've been getting these "Database Error" messages when posting or PMing the last couple of days so I don't know if it went through.
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    • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
      Frank,
      No PM, it probably got caught on one of those db errors ... Yeah I have noticed the forum running slow and giving some errors...

      James

      Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

      BTW James,

      I PMed you about your membership script, did you get it.

      WF has been running really slowwww for me and I've been getting these "Database Error" messages when posting or PMing the last couple of days so I don't know if it went through.
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Actually, I remember now why I started this thread. There is or was a WSO selling some HTML script for Facebook, and I was trying to let people know that they may be running into a problem by purchasing it.

    The one thing I do not agree with is the way FB took down the page. They could have given me and other people a warning first. But it is their site and they can do what they want with it.

    BTW, I'm starting FrankBowmanBook dot com.........all affiliate links are welcome..lol
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    • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
      I thought it was against the rules to post threads/wso's about something that breaks the terms of another site ??

      James

      Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

      Actually, I remember now why I started this thread. There is or was a WSO selling some HTML script for Facebook, and I was trying to let people know that they may be running into a problem by purchasing it.
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      • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
        Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

        I thought it was against the rules to post threads/wso's about something that breaks the terms of another site ??

        James
        I don't know about that specifically, but I didn't want to post this on the WSO thread, as I do know you're not allowed to "bash or otherwise discourage" people from buying a WSO by posting on the WSOs thread itself...plus I just didn't want to harm another members WSO.

        Peace
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      • Profile picture of the author A Bary
        Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet View Post

        I thought it was against the rules to post threads/wso's about something that breaks the terms of another site ??

        James
        James, you need to check the WSO section, there're more than 5 or 6 offers like this ..

        I read 2 of them, the information inside them is just a disaster..

        I think the WSO section needs a revision for the rules...
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        • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
          Originally Posted by goldmind123 View Post

          James, you need to check the WSO section, there're more than 5 or 6 offers like this ..

          I read 2 of them, the information inside them is just a disaster..

          I think the WSO section needs a revision for the rules...
          I seriously try not to visit the WSO section unless it is my WSO ... But I think Paul posted that you can not post in the main forum about something that breaks another sites terms. Such as some twitter tools.

          So I assumed that would go for the entire forum including the WSO section.

          James
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  • Profile picture of the author Tim_Carter
    You are allowed to market your own business on Facebook pages. You can also promote other pages if you are an "authorized representative".

    Otherwise you are in violation which you were at least to their way of looking at it. You do not have specific authorization from the affiliate product owners.

    To my way of thinking we all have permission since they are in an affiliate network - but Facebook makes the rules.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mac the Knife
    BTW-I wanted to apologize. I do so much stuff for BRICKS AND MORTAR stuff that I should have clarified something...my statements were definitely regarding using fan pages to market, but in MY world, that is mainly your ABC Bricks and Mortar business. Now, those guys DO use IM in the sense of video marketing, building lists using optin methods, etc. But, having a fan page solely for marketing affiliate products, cpa, etc. is probably not wise.

    Just wanted to clear up my position as I didn't want to sound like I endorse blasting and egregious marketing efforts on Facebook...MARKETING doesn't have to be so much about spamming, blasting, etc. It takes into account branding, communication, developing relationships. I have had some of my clients get EXCELLENT conversion to their business using fan pages, but it was because the actual interaction that occurred had a human element to it...at least at some stage of the game. This takes into account James' earlier point of the SOCIAL aspect of it...you CAN benefit from a business perspective by utilizing the principals of relationship marketing via a Social Network.

    All in all though, a good thread. These issues will become hotter and hotter as more offline businesses start to jump into the IM world...

    Mac the Knife
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

      I don't know about that specifically, but I didn't want to post this on the WSO thread, as I do know you're not allowed to "bash or otherwise discourage" people from buying a WSO by posting on the WSOs thread itself...plus I just didn't want to harm another members WSO.

      Peace
      Frank, there's a difference between "bashing or otherwise discouraging" people from buying a WSO and offering your honest opinion based on your own personal experience.

      And, as you said yourself, newbies who purchase that WSO you didn't want to harm may themselves be harmed when Facebook shuts them down. So you make a choice - offer your own experience and potentially harm one person's WSO, or leave it be and let the contents of the WSO potentially harm others.

      The rule against bashing was pu in place to stop members who had an ax to grind from posting BS about something they themselves had not bought and had no experience of. If you had posted pretty much what you did here, you would likely have been on solid ground. And the seller would have had a chance to either refute or explain what you said right in the thread.

      As far as how FB handled deleting your pages, I can understand why they might have done things that way even if it seems arbitrary or heavy-handed to you. FB has millions of users, and among those millions are likely thousands trying various things. If they tried to explain why they were deleting each individual page, they'd end up with a line of people itching to explain why their page was different and should have stayed. Rather than open that can of worms, they just delete the pages.

      Like I told another poster in another thread, who appeared to have much the same complaint as you against a different service...

      "If you're going to fly with a flock of ducks, don't be surprised if you get shot at when duck season opens..."
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      • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
        Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe View Post

        Frank, there's a difference between "bashing or otherwise discouraging" people from buying a WSO and offering your honest opinion based on your own personal experience.

        And, as you said yourself, newbies who purchase that WSO you didn't want to harm may themselves be harmed when Facebook shuts them down. So you make a choice - offer your own experience and potentially harm one person's WSO, or leave it be and let the contents of the WSO potentially harm others.

        The rule against bashing was pu in place to stop members who had an ax to grind from posting BS about something they themselves had not bought and had no experience of. If you had posted pretty much what you did here, you would likely have been on solid ground. And the seller would have had a chance to either refute or explain what you said right in the thread.............
        Thanks John for clarifying that for me.

        Btw, your sig........

        "Salad is not food. Salad is what food eats...
        -- The REAL PETA, People for Eating Tasty Animals
        "I did not fight my way to the top of the food chain to eat tofu!"

        Is the best one on this forum..........long live the Rib Eye!!!.....

        Hey if you're ever in NYC, try Peter Luger's Steak House.....its over 100 years old and the steak is incredible.........but go to the original one in Brooklyn, not the one on Long Island!!

        Thanks again,

        Frank
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        • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
          Originally Posted by FrankBowman View Post

          Hey if you're ever in NYC, try Peter Luger's Steak House.....its over 100 years old and the steak is incredible.........but go to the original one in Brooklyn, not the one on Long Island!!

          Frank
          Duly recorded in my "places to go" log.

          I love a great steakhouse! Thanks for the tip...
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  • Profile picture of the author Farai
    Facebook Fan Page is a very good way of promoting your business to the general public and creating fans for your business. I think although it is not stated in black and white (TOB), they don't allow affiliate links, thats why they have paid advertising where advertisers can market their products.
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