I don’t mean to sound hipster, but I was in the Facebook Marketplace game long before Marketplace was even conceived, before any Facebook advertising company was even really big. I was a college student surviving on savings, scholarships, and financial aid. I was poor, and I was hungry for deals because, as most everyone knows, college is expensive. Then I discovered buy-and-sell groups.
Before Marketplace existed, users were already buying and selling on the social network’s platform, on groups where people trade and sell used items. I joined these groups to purchase clothing, household items, and textbooks. I’ve had plenty of experience as both the seller and the customer, meeting with students to close deals in lecture halls, libraries, and cafeterias, and I can proudly boast that I have—not once—been hoodwinked by shady dealers. You don’t have to be a big-time editor for a top Facebook ad agency to know what the red flags are. There are several ways that you, too, can outsmart scammers.
1. Research the Product
Before you even begin seriously considering an item, you must first research the product. Remember that the seller isn’t likely the only person selling that item. You will probably also find it listed in other Facebook groups, as well as legitimate e-commerce sites for used items, such as eBay. Search for the product online to see how much other merchants are selling it for. It’s also wise to find the original retail price of the product to determine whether the seller is giving you a fair deal or whether the seller is ripping you off.
2. Don’t Fall for “Bids”
Bruce Mars / Pexels
After contacting the seller to express your interest in an item, that seller may respond with this: several other customers are interested in the product, and they are all bidding for it. How much are you willing to bid for the item? Although bids do happen, they usually occur within the comments section of the listed product. These bidders will comment with their offers until one user outbids them all. However, be wary of secret bids that a seller is claiming to exist without any physical evidence. If you’re not careful, you may be tricked by a seller fictitiously creating a bid to overcharge you for the product.
3. Closely Inspect Furniture and Rugs for Bedbugs
Bedbugs are a growing problem that plague even pristine and glittering five-star hotels. They are difficult and expensive to kill, and they reproduce too quickly. For this reason, you must be wary of any used furniture you want to buy. Before purchasing, ask the seller why he or she is selling the items. Additionally, ask to see the pieces in person, so you can closely inspect for bedbug droppings, sheddings, or eggs. Don’t buy furniture with rips, as those could be hiding spaces for these pests.
4. Ask for More Images
How do you know the item you want to purchase actually exists? The seller could very easily pull an image online, post it to Marketplace, and sell the “item.” To ensure that the seller isn’t trying to scam you with an imaginary product, ask to see more images. Ideally, ask for images taken in real-time. If the seller keeps making excuses to avoid providing more pictures (Oh, I’m not home; my camera broke; I lost my phone), that’s a red flag you shouldn’t ignore.
5. Meet at a Public Space
Helena Lopes / Pexels
This is perhaps the most important precautionary step in this list. You must absolutely insist on meeting in a public space when it comes time to pick up your item. Starbucks is a great place to do it or even a grocery store parking lot. Never meet in the dark, in a strange secluded alley, on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere, or at someone’s house. If you do have to meet at someone’s home, make sure to bring a friend or two. If you’re going alone, let a friend or a family member know where you’re headed.
This precaution, although it may sound paranoid to you, will save you from becoming a victim of a crime, like an assault, robbery, or worse. After all, you’re meeting a stranger for the first time. You never know.
6. Test the Product Before Paying
Before you hand your cash over to the seller, make sure to thoroughly inspect the item for defects. If you’re purchasing clothing, make sure to try the items to ensure they’re the perfect fit for you. If you find that the item is defective in any way, you can even try haggling the price down.
The Rise of Facebook Marketplace
Buying and selling on Facebook existed even before Marketplace rolled out to the public. It first arrived to the platform in October of 2016, and by that time, users were already hunting for the best deals on used items.
When Facebook announced Marketplace’s rollout, many believed it was an attempt to compete against retail sites like eBay and Amazon. This is not a surprising conclusion. Marketplace and buy-and-sell sites function similarly. You search for great deals on Marketplace by category, price, or location. If you tap on an item, you will find details such as the name, profile photo, and location of the seller and product description. You can save an item to buy for later or you can send the seller a direct message if you would like to make a purchase.
Buying and selling on Facebook, which may seem strange to some, makes perfect sense upon further examination. Think about it: Facebook already has numerous buy-and-sell group pages such as UCSB Free and For Sale, Fashion Exchange, and OC Buy and Sell. These groups aren’t obscure groups that have only a small following. According to Facebook, more than 450 million users visit buy-and-sell groups each month.
If you find social media platforms meddling with e-commerce strange, keep this in mind: Social commerce, as they call it, has already taken root in Asia. If you already participate in social commerce, just remember: take precautionary steps before purchasing.
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For many, stalking comment sections can be both entertaining and vexing. On the one hand, it’s amusing to watch people bicker in long paragraphs and spectators drop in their snide commentaries. On the other hand, it’s frustrating to watch people argue over remarks and topics that are inconsequential. These days, anyone can feel enraged and offended over nothing.
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Yes, the comments section is both a curse and a blessing. Invented as a tool to foster meaningful discussions that could make any Facebook ad agency rejoice, it is now a battleground for keyboard warriors and ruthless trolls emboldened by anonymity. Posting on the internet is to risk exposing oneself to ridicule and hate.
A few social media networks allow you to block unwanted comments. Instagram and Facebook, specifically, allow you to block comments from the accounts you choose and filter out comments with offensive words. There are several reasons that may compel you to block comments on social media.
A Case for Blocking Comments
Higher Click-Through Rates
In an A/B test by Agora Pulse, the researchers found that Facebook ads with negative comments received lower click-through rates (CTR) than ads with positive comments.
The researchers tested ads identical in copy, objective, ad format, and call-to-action buttons. However, one ad contained only positive comments while the other only contained negative comments. The results showed that the ad with positive comments received a 1.88 percent CTR while the ad with the negative comments received a 1.30 percent CTR.
The ad with the positive comments likely performed better because comments function as social proof. Users are less likely to click on an ad that people are bombarding with negative reviews. If people claim that the business or product advertised is bad, then it must be.
Peace of Mind
In an April 2018 survey by Pew Research Center, teens were asked why social media is harmful to their age group. The common answer? Bullying.
Of the teens surveyed, 27 percent said bullying, as well as rumor spreading, made social media harmful to their mental health.
This revelation isn’t at all surprising. Mental health professionals have long suspected social media to be detrimental to the well-being of its users. According to CNN News, a recent study by the American Psychological Association found an increase in reported negative psychological symptoms from an age group called the iGen, teens born in 1995 or later. Researchers suspect that the rise of social media resulted in negative psychological symptoms in teens.
Of course, correlation does not mean causation. One mental health professional advises the public to be cautious when correlating mental health with social media use.
“We can’t say for certain that the rise we’re seeing is the direct result of social media use,” said Aaron Fobian, clinical psychologist and assistant professor in psychiatry at the University of Alabama, to CNN News. “For example, teens could have depressive or anxious symptoms and therefore spend more time on social media outlets to look for a way to connect.”
Still, if the ping! of your comment notifications fills you with dread, blocking comments or filtering out offensive ones may give you peace of mind.
Curbing Defamation
Blocking comments may be especially important if you manage an online business page. As a business owner, you must uphold the reputation of your brand to attract and keep customers. However, there are bad actors—perhaps a competitor, scammer, or disgruntled ex-employee who’s determined to take you down—who may make false, damaging accusations or statements about your business on your posts and ads.
In fact, back in 2018, bitcoin scams were proliferating in the comment sections of posts published by several companies. One such company was the online publishing website The Verge whose comment sections were attacked by imposters using a fake account donning the publisher’s name and logo. The scam invited victims into providing personal information in exchange for free bitcoins.
The scam, which can be damaging to The Verge’s brand, fits the definition of online defamation as described by HG.org, a law, and government online resource:
“When individuals feel that their reputation is damaged because of a reckless comment made on Facebook, Twitter or other social media channels, they may consider pursuing a defamation lawsuit against the insulting party.”
There are many ways to handle a person who defames your business, such as taking legal action as suggested by HG.org. However, taking legal action can be expensive and time-consuming. An alternative is to shut down perpetrators by blocking their comments from appearing on your posts, which Instagram allows you to do.
A Safe Place to Share Ideas
In the world of social media, engagement is key to increasing the reach of your organic posts. Both the algorithms of Instagram and Facebook place posts that are teeming with comments, likes, and shares higher in users’ feeds. Because social media engagement is so pivotal to organic reach, you, too, should strive to increase engagement on your posts, and you can do that by garnering comments. However, trolls may cow followers into silence.
By eliminating trolls from your pages, you are providing followers a safe space to voice their ideas, consequently encouraging them to write comments on your posts. Rather than spewing insults at each other, followers are forced to convey their opinions in a productive and useful way that avoids unnecessary conflict.
A Clean and Professional Page
As a business owner, you’re responsible for maintaining your brand’s image. There are many ways to do this, and one involves aligning yourself with reputable partners, such as influencers or celebrities who aren’t plagued by scandals.
Aligning yourself with the wrong kind of followers can also damage your brand’s reputation. Walmart, for example, has been negatively associated with the disreputable customers that shop at the company’s stores, so much so that those customers have become a meme, earning the title “People of Walmart.” Of course, not all of Walmart’s customers are similar to the ones portrayed in memes, yet people associate both the brand and its customers with ill repute.
Trolls who often post offensive comments on your page and attack other followers may negatively affect your brand’s image. People may conclude that if your brand attracts unsavory individuals, your brand must also be unsavory.
An Alternative to Deleting Comments
Some businesses delete offensive remarks from trolls in an attempt to keep their comment sections clean. However, this practice is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, you’re keeping your comments section from negativity, and as the aforementioned Agora Pulse A/B test showed, this can improve the performance of your posts. On the other hand, deleting comments shows that your business is not transparent, and it can provoke further criticism from trolls, who likely will have no qualms over calling you out.
How to Block Comments on Instagram
When you block comments from your Instagram account, you are only blocking the comments that appear on your posts. You can change your commenting preferences from the Settings page of your Instagram app. These steps are applicable to your personal account and your Instagram business account.
Step 1: Go to your Instagram settings
To get to your settings, first, navigate to your profile. From there, click the three-lined hamburger icon from the upper-right corner of the screen. Then click “Settings” from the bottom of the page.
Step 2: Go to “Privacy”
The “Privacy” tab is the third option in the settings menu, located between the “Business” tab and the “Security” tab. Click “Privacy” to access your comments settings.
Step 3: Click “Comments”
Once you arrive at your comments settings, you will find several different options to manage the comments on your posts. Each option will handle unwanted comments differently, so you must choose the option that works best for you.
From the top of the list, under “Controls,” you will see an option called “Allow Comments From.” This option allows you to enable comments from specific groups. You can allow comments from everyone, including the people who follow you, the people you follow, and the people who aren’t connected to your account (you don’t follow them, and they don’t follow you).
If that option is too broad for your liking—for example, you don’t want to receive comments from random Instagrammers who find your posts on Discover—you can, instead, only allow comments from the people you follow and the people who follow you. If you want even stricter limitations, you can choose to allow comments only from your followers.
You can also block comments from specific users. You can use this option in tandem with the “allow comments” option. For example, you can choose to allow comments for everyone except for your annoying roommate, Carla. You can choose to allow comments from only your followers except for your nosy coworker, Greg.
Of course, disabling all comments may seem drastic to you. If you only want to filter offensive comments, you can do so using Instagram’s filter tool. You can use this filter tool in tandem with your comments settings; meaning, you can set your comments preferences while having comment filters in place.
To turn on comment filters, swipe the toggle button called “Hide Offensive Comments” to the right until the button turns from gray to blue. Once enabled, Instagram will hide comments it deems offensive. Because the meaning of “offensive” is arbitrary and defined only by Instagram, the comments Instagram hides may, at times, seem inoffensive to you and to the person whose comment was blocked.
If you want to block comments containing specific offensive words, you can instead turn on the manual filter. For this option, you will need to type in the words you don’t want to see in your comment sections. When the filter identifies a comment as offensive, it blocks the comment from everyone’s view. Only the original writer of the comment can still see it; that way, the violating user is less likely to make the offensive content viewable by, for example, reposting variations of the comment to bypasses the filtering tool.
Another option is to filter comments containing the most reported words on your posts. For example, if your followers often report comments on your posts with the words “stupid,” “ugly,” or “dumb,” Instagram will filter out comments containing those words.
If you spot an offensive comment that Instagram’s filtering tools somehow missed, you can long-press the comment and click the exclamation icon that appears on the upper-right corner of the screen.
How to Block Comments on Facebook
Although you can block comments from the posts on both your personal account and business page, the options for your personal account are not the same as the options for your business account.
Personal Account
Step 1: Click the inverted triangle icon on the upper-right corner of the screen then click “Settings” at the bottom of the menu.
Step 2: From the left column, click “Public Posts” then click the “Public Post Comments” section.
From this section, you can choose who can comment on your public posts. You can either choose the public (everyone, including people who are not on your friends list), friends of friends, or only friends.
Facebook Page
The comment-filtering options from your Facebook page are different. In fact, it is a much better tool than the one provided for your personal account, allowing you to create more granular restrictions. Specifically, you can choose to block comments with specific words and filter comments containing profanity.
When you block certain words, these words will be immediately marked as spam by Facebook as soon as they appear on your page. Here’s how you block words on your Facebook page.
Step 1: Go to settings
Step 2: Go to “General” then “Page Moderation”
From the “General“ section, scroll down to “Page Moderation.” Click “Edit.”
Step 3: Enter words to block
Type in the words you want to block then click “Save Changes.”
Step 4: You’re Done
Facebook will block the words as soon as they appear on your page.
Filtering profanity works differently than blocking words. While you choose the words you want to block, Facebook determines which profanity to block based on commonly reported words and phrases marked as offensive by Facebook users. Facebook also determines which profanity to block according to the degree you choose. Choosing medium will block moderately vulgar profanity while choosing strong will block only strongly vulgar profanity.
Step 1: Choose degree then save
From “General,” scroll down and click “Profanity Filter.” Choose your degree then click “Save Changes.”
Step 2: You’re done
Your changes were saved. Profanities that fall under the degree you choose will be blocked from appearing on your page.
If Facebook missed comments that contained profanity or offensive words, you can manually hide the comment or report it to Facebook by clicking the three-dotted button that appears alongside the comment.
The Disadvantage of Blocking Comments
Although there are many legitimate reasons to block or filter comments, one disadvantage arises: loss of engagement.
Arguments often result in rapid engagement, as commenters heatedly respond to one another. These arguments spawn into a long string of back-and-forths, which the algorithm values. The more engagement your post receives, the higher it will appear in users’ News Feeds. The higher it stays in News Feed, the more exposure it receives.
Whether or not you should block comments is up to you. It depends on what you value most. If you’re in desperate need of engagement, then perhaps blocking and filtering comments may not be the most prudent choice. However, if you organically garner hundreds of comments, then missing out on a few likely won’t harm the performance of your posts.
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As a Facebook advertising company, we get a lot of questions on social media about social media. Today, we’re talking about a question we get a lot; how to download videos that have been posted on Facebook.
Although Facebook allows users to download photos, the social media network does not allow the same ability when it comes to videos. Unfortunately, users can’t download videos posted on Facebook. However, there is a way to do that using URL-to-video converter websites.
SaveFrom.com is a website that lets you download Facebook videos using a URL for free. Other free download websites include FBDown.net, Getfvid.com, and Bitdownloader.com.
The following steps use SaveFrom to demonstrate how to download Facebook videos. The other free download sites listed above work similarly.
How to Download Facebook Videos on Desktop
Step 1: Log in to Facebook.
Step 2: Locate the video you want to download. Make sure the video you want to download has a globe icon. The globe icon appears below the name of the poster. If there’s a lock or a two-person silhouette icon where the globe would be, you are not permitted to download the video because the privacy setting is not set to public. The globe icon indicates that the post is public.
Step 4: You should see a small pop-up box with the video’s Facebook link in it. With the link highlighted, on your keyboard, either press Ctrl+C (Windows) or Command+C (Mac) to copy it.
How to Download Facebook Videos on iPhone
Step 1: Navigate to the App Store on your iPhone. In the search bar, type “documents” and tap “Search.”
Step 2: In the search results, locate the app “Documents by Readdle.” Tap “GET” and follow the download prompts.
Step 3: Open the Facebook app on your iPhone. Navigate to the video you want to download.
Step 4: Look for the globe icon below the name of the video’s poster to make sure the video is public.
Step 5: Open the video and begin playing it. This ensures that you won’t get a broken link in the next step.
Step 6: Tap “Share” below the video.
Step 7: From the menu that appears, select “Copy Link” to copy the video’s address to your iPhone’s clipboard.
Step 8: Return to your iPhone’s home screen and open the Documents app.
Step 9: Open your Safari browser. Navigate to the SaveFrom website by entering savefrom.net in the address bar. Tap “Go” on your keyboard.
Step 10: In the text field at the top of the page, paste in the video URL you copied earlier.
Step 11: Tap the green “Download” button located below the video’s preview.
Step 12: Tap the light blue “Done” button.
Step 13: Tap the “Downloads” icon located at the bottom right of your screen.
Step 14: After your video finishes downloading, tap the video file on the downloads tab. You should now be able to watch the video in the Documents app.
Step 15: To move the video to your iPhone, with the Documents app open, tap the “Downloads” folder. Tap the ⋯ beneath the video. Select “Share” and proceed to save the video file to a folder on your iPhone.
Paid Software That Lets You Download Facebook Videos
If you don’t trust the free download websites, there is also software you can pay for to ensure any downloads are safe and secure. Below is a list of trusted software you can pay for to download Facebook videos:
AllMyTube
Video Downloader Ultimate
Replay Media Catcher
iTube Studio
Download Accelerator Plus
A Note about Copyright Infringement
Before downloading any videos from Facebook, you should double-check Facebook’s copyright guidelines to ensure you are not violating the rights of the original poster or creator of the video. Whether or not you are committing copyright infringement ultimately depends on your intended use of the video after downloading it. For example, you are not committing copyright infringement if your use of the video is fair use.
Factors that determine whether the use of copyrighted work is fair use include the following, as listed by Facebook:
The purpose and character of the use. For example, do you plan to use it for commercial use or educational purposes? Do you transform the work to give it new meaning?
The nature of the copyrighted work. Is it factual, like maps or databases, that you plan to use merely for informational purposes?
The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole. For example, are you using just a small, insignificant portion of the work?
The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. For example, do you plan to replace the original work, taking away the credit and overall benefits from the original creator?
As a top Facebook ad agency, we have a unique understanding when it comes to social media. One of the most important ones? Your privacy matters, especially in an age when information is so easily accessible to internet users. It’s easier than ever for people to steal your information, impersonate you, or hack your photos to disperse for illegal activities. Luckily, Facebook gives you an array of options that tighten your profile’s security, some of which you likely have never heard of. Here are 13 Facebook privacy features you didn’t know about.
1. Control Who Sends You Friend Requests
Section: Privacy Subsection: Who can contact me?
Many of you may understand the arduous task of scrolling through hundreds of unwanted friend requests from strangers and from people you dislike. Eyes glazed with apathy, you systematically click one “delete request” button after the other, wishing there was a way you could somehow block all friend requests. Fortunately, Facebook allows you to do exactly that.
In your settings under “Privacy,” you’ll see a section that says “Who can contact me?” Click edit to select who can send you friend requests. You can choose between everyone or friends of friends.
2. Control Who Sees Your Posts
Section: Privacy Subsection: Who can see my stuff?
The ability to hide posts from specific individuals isn’t just a fragment of your social media fantasies—it’s a reality awaiting discovery in your privacy settings. Not only can you exclude the public or all of your Facebook friends from seeing your posts, but you can also exclude specific individuals. If you want to hide posts from specific friends from your friends list, go to “Friends Except” and type the name of the friend you want to exclude.
If you only want specific friends to see your posts, go to “Specific Friends” and enter the name of those with whom you want to share content.
3. Control Who Searches for You
Section: Privacy Subsection: Who can look me up?
This option is particularly helpful for anyone eluding someone, whether that someone is an ex-lover, a former friend, or an estranged relative. Because there are several ways people can search for you on Facebook (email, phone number, and search engine), you have to specify who can search for you under each category. Below are the three types of ways someone can search for you and the options you have.
Email: everyone, friends of friends, friends
Phone number: everyone, friends of friends, friends
Search engines outside of Facebook: allow or not allow
4. Control Who Posts on Your Timeline
Section: Timeline and Tagging Subsection: Who can add things to my timeline?
There are two ways you can control who posts on your timeline:
1. You can choose who can post on your timeline by choosing friends or “only me.” Choosing the latter means no one, not even your Facebook friends, will see your posts.
2. You can enable timeline review: you can review and approve (or reject) posts that are posted on your timeline and posts that you are tagged in before they can appear on your timeline.
From the “Timeline and Tagging” section, go to the subsection “Who can add things to my timeline?” to control who can post on your timeline.
5. Control Who Can See Your Timeline Posts
Section: Timeline and Tagging Subsection: Who can see things on my timeline?
Not only can you control who can see your posts, but you can also control who sees the posts your friends posted on your timeline. This feature is located under the “Timeline and Tagging” section of your settings. Your options include everyone, friends of friends, only you, custom, members of certain groups, schools, or people who live within certain cities.
6. Control Who Can Tag Your Posts
Section: Timeline and Tagging Subsection: How can I manage tags people add and tagging suggestions?
Sometimes you want your photos to remain where they are: on your timeline. However, when friends tag themselves on your photo, that photo will also appear on their timeline. If you want to keep your photos where they belong, enable the tagging option that allows you to review and approve (or reject) tags on your post.
7. Control Who Can Follow You
Section: Public Posts Subsection: Who can follow me
Unfortunately, online stalkers aren’t just nuisances—they are dangerous. Fortunately, you can control who follows you under the “Public Posts” section of your settings.
8. Control Who Comments on Your Public Posts
Section: Public Posts Subsection: Public post comments
A recent update, which was previously mentioned in a different article, allows you to control who can comment on your public posts. Although by default, everyone can comment on your public posts, you can choose to limit comments to only your friends or your friends of friends.
9. Control from Whom You Receive Notifications
Section: Public Posts Subsection: Public post notification
Once your followers engage with your posts, you will receive notifications from those interactions. However, you might not want to receive those notifications. If so, you can alter from whom you can receive notifications: you can choose nobody, friends of friends, or the public.
10. Control Profile Picture
Section: Public Posts Subsection: Public profile info
Women, in particular, can suffer from unwanted comments by lecherous strangers on their public profile pictures. One option apprehends this predicament, an option that allows you to control who can comment on your public profile pictures. The options available to you include the public, friends of friends, and friends.
11. Control Who Can Send You Messages
Section: Blocking Subsection: Block messages
If you want to block someone from messaging you, you can do so under the “Blocking” section of your settings. While blocking messages still allows the person to view your profile, they are unable to contact you via Facebook Messenger. Don’t worry. You can always remove the person from the blocking list if you change your mind.
12. Control Apps and Who Can Send You App Invites
Section: Blocking Subsection: Block app invites
When Candy Crush burst into the scene, you were likely plagued by app notifications inviting you to play the game. App invitations, especially if they’re irrelevant to you, can be annoying. Fortunately, you can block app invites. Simply type in the name of the culprit who incessantly sends you app invites, and you will never receive an invite from that person ever again.
13. Control Who Can Send You Event Invites
Section: Blocking Subsection: Block event invites
Although receiving event invites from friends is flattering (you want to be included in the gang, after all), event invites from people you don’t often interact with, people who you don’t consider friends can be annoying. When you block event invites from someone, you won’t be able to get any more invites from them.
Hopefully, you have found this helpful. Whether you want to block someone, prevent certain individuals from seeing your post, or limit where people can search for you is your right. These privacy options not only protect that right but also keep your online presence as public or as private as you want it to be.
Need help with Facebook advertising? We are the number one rated Facebook advertising agency and we can help you create, manage, and optimize your ads. Call 844-236-4686 today for a consult.
For those who venture not to hire a Facebook ad agency, managing your Facebook ads can be quite simple once you get over the steep learning curve. If you want to view all your account activities, you can do so on Ads Manager. From your account history, you can track the changes you made and the dates of the changes. Video Player
To view your account history, click “All Campaigns” located on the left side of your screen, then select “Account History” on the drop down menu.
Your account history should appear on the screen as illustrated by the image below.
The activity types you can view from your history are the following:
Account spending limit changes
Campaign, ad set and ad status changes
Campaign, ad set and ad creation
Daily/lifetime budget changes
Ad review approvals
Ad set schedule changes
Placement and targeting changes
Campaign, ad set and ad name changes
Ad bid type changes
Billing-related changes
To quickly find the information you need, you can filter results according to activity types. The filters you can use are the following:
All
Account
Ads
Ad Sets
Audience
Bid
Budget
Campaigns
Schedule
Run Status
Targeting
You can also filter by person. Use this if you want to only see results by a specific person who made the change.
That’s it. Pretty easy, right? If you do need assistance with managing your ads, consider connecting with our Facebook advertising agency. We can help you create, manage, and optimize your ads.
A new feature launched by Facebook this week has business owners and every Facebook ad agency (especially ours) rejoicing.
Facebook Pay is a feature that allows you to make purchases from the social media company’s family of apps without being redirected to a different landing page. You can, for example, send payments to your Messenger contacts. You can also purchase digital gift cards from businesses’ pages. When you make transactions using Facebook Pay, you will not incur any processing fees.
This feature is currently rolling out to Facebook and Messenger users in the U.S. and internationally in the future. The social media company also plans to roll this out to WhatsApp and Instagram.
Transactions via Facebook Pay are secure and protected. It has the following:
An anti-fraud feature that monitors suspicious activity
Data encryption that protects your payment information
Biometrics and pin options for added security
How to Set Up Facebook Pay on Facebook
Step 1: Click the three-lined icon from the upper-right corner of the screen.
Step 2: Click “Settings & Privacy” then “Settings.”
Step 3: Under your account settings, click “Facebook Pay.”
Step 4: Click “Add Credit or Debit Card” or “Add PayPal.”
Provide your account information then save. Your transaction history, including payments made via Messenger, appears underneath your payment method.
How to Set Up Facebook Pay on Messenger
Step 1: Click your profile picture on Messenger.
Step 2: Scroll down to “Facebook Pay.”
Step 3: Click “Add new debit card or PayPal” then enter payment information.
You can find your Payment history under your payment information. Using Facebook Pay on Messenger, you can send money to contacts or request payments. All transactions occur within the Messenger conversation between you and the recipient. All payments are automatically deducted or added to your account.
Most people don’t understand Facebook’s Search feature. Turn to the person next to you and ask that individual how Facebook Search works. That person, confused, will likely stare blankly at you.
As the #1 Facebook advertising agency, we are always on top of what’s new in the social media world. Want in? Sign up for our emails so you’re never out of the loop.
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Like the algorithm, Facebook’s Search is an enigma to many. People know they exist, but they don’t know how it functions. They don’t know, for example, what influences search results and what type of content is available to be discovered.
Facebook Search is nowhere near as sophisticated as Google. While Google retrieves information from the entire world wide web, Facebook Search retrieves only content within its platform, content shared and posted on Facebook. As a leading Facebook ad agency, we are here to guide you through the mystery that is Facebook Search.
Facebook Search, Demystified
Like all search engines, Facebook Search retrieves results based on the keywords you use. Type in “Mark Zuckerberg,” and results bearing those keywords will appear. Similarly, type in “pizza,” and content with that keyword will appear in results.
As mentioned earlier, Facebook Search can only retrieve content posted on Facebook. The following are the types of content you will receive:
For-sale posts on Marketplace
People
Photos posted by Facebook friends and public accounts
Videos posted by Facebook friends and public accounts
Posts to timelines by Facebook friends and public accounts
Facebook pages
Places
Groups
Apps
Events
Links posted by Facebook friends and public accounts
The results from those categories will appear in one long string of content, similar to how posts appear on News Feed. You can click the 11 categories above the feed to narrow your results to a specific category. You can also filter your results.
Search results have three influences: your activity on Facebook, people’s activity on Facebook, and your search history.
To illustrate how my Facebook activity affects search results, let’s return to the pizza example. In 2016, I posted a video to someone’s timeline containing the keywords “pizza.” This Facebook activity appeared on my search results because the keyword “pizza” matches the word “pizza” from my post’s copy.
As seen in the results, my post isn’t the only one that appears. Search also retrieved posts by my Facebook friends. As I scroll further down, posts by public pages also appear.
If I searched for a specific keyword in the past, and if I clicked on a specific type of content from the search results, that content will appear once again. For example, the business 1-800 Flowers, which I previously searched for, appeared on my results after typing in the keywords “flowers.” Facebook notes my previous search activity as interest in the business. Thus, it includes 1-800 Flowers to the results, ensuring I get the information I want.
Facebook Search Limitations
Facebook search exists to help you find content on the platform, whether a person, a post, or a Facebook group. Because the results are limited to Facebook content, your online activity outside of Facebook will not influence the results. When you use Facebook Search, don’t expect the type of results Google will retrieve. And don’t worry, Facebook won’t track your online activity for Search. Facebook will, however, track your online activity for ad targeting.
There’s nothing more annoying than being blinded by an app’s bright, piercing display when opened in the dark of night. How can you stop this assault on your eyes once and for all?
Thank goodness for dark mode, which allows you to change your apps’ theme from light to dark, protecting your sensitive eyes from irritation. Dark mode is currently available on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Messenger. Here’s how you turn them on.
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How to Turn On Dark Mode on Facebook?
Although dark mode is not yet available on the Facebook app, it’s currently an option for users with the redesigned version of Facebook desktop. Still a beta test, the new Facebook is not yet available to everyone — so don’t despair if you don’t have it right now.
For those who do have the new Facebook, follow this step.
Step 1: Click the upside-down triangle from the upper-right corner of your screen then click “Dark Mode.”
Easy, no? Also, a tip: If you have the redesigned Facebook, and you would much rather have your old Facebook back, you can switch between new and old by clicking the same aforementioned upside-down triangle then clicking “Switch to Classic Facebook.”
How to Turn On Dark Mode on Instagram?
Although not yet a feature on Instagram, you can force dark mode on the app by changing your phone’s display settings. This tutorial is for Android devices (Samsung Galaxy S8, specifically).
Step 1: Go to your settings and click “Display.”
Step 2: Click “Night Mode.”
Not only does your phone switch to night mode but also your Instagram app. Behold:
How to Turn On Dark Mode on Twitter?
Twitter has had a dark mode long before Facebook and Instagram. Follow these steps to turn it on using your mobile phone.
Step 1: Click your Twitter profile picture.
Step 2: Click “Settings and privacy.”
Step 3: Under “General,” click “Display and sound.”
Step 4: Under “Display,” click “Dark Mode.”
Step 5: Set your preference.
Twitter has more sophisticated options than Facebook and Instagram. You can choose from the following:
On: Instantly turn on dark mode. It will remain enabled until you turn it off.
Automatic at sunset: Dark mode will turn on at sunset and turn off during the day.
Dim: When dark mode is enabled, your display will have a dark gray theme.
Lights Out: When dark mode is enabled, your display will have a black theme.
How to Turn On Dark Mode on Messenger?
Enabling dark mode on Messenger is easy. Follow these steps.
Step 1: From your profile, click the three-dotted icon from the upper-right corner of your screen.
Step 2: Click “Settings.”
Step 3: Click “Chats”
Step 4: Click “Theme”
Step 5: Click “Dark.”
How to Turn On Dark Mode on YouTube?
Of course, you can’t forget about YouTube.
Step 1: From YouTube’s home page, click your account icon.
Step 2: Click “Settings.”
Step 3: Click “General.”
Step 4: Click “Dark Theme.”
For far too long our eyes have burned from our apps’ searing displays. White is the preferred theme for a clean look, but it sure doesn’t do our optic nerves any favors when we’re opening our apps late at night.
You face a tough decision: Should you delete your Facebook account?
As torn as you are, know you are not alone. As a top Facebook advertising agency, it’s something we are talking a lot about with our clients. A Google search for the words “Facebook account” tellingly shows a new trend: two of the top three search results are articles that teach people how to permanently delete Facebook from their lives.
Search yields articles on how to delete Facebook.
You, and the many others on the Internet, have good reasons for leaving. Why stay when, in the past two years alone, Facebook allowed politically divisive Russian ads and fake news to proliferate on its platform. Why place your trust in a company that concealed the data breach of 87 million users. Just when the wounds from those betrayals are healing, you learn of a Facebook security issue that exposed user accounts to hackers. You want to leave, and that’s not surprising. Deleting your Facebook account is easy. In fact, it only takes four steps.
How to Delete Your Facebook Account
Step 1: Click the upside-down triangle on the upper-right corner of your web page. From the drop-down menu, click “Settings.”
Step 2: From the left-column menu, click “Your Facebook Information.”
Step 3: Click “View” from the option “Delete Your Account and Information.”
Step 4: Click “Delete Account”
In the final step, you have the option to download all of your information, which includes your photos and posts. If you want to salvage your information, click “Download Info.” Otherwise, click “Delete Account.”
If you’re worried about your data, it’s best that you purge your apps and web browsers of trackers. Although you’ve deleted your account, it’s entirely possible that Facebook can still create a consumer profile based on your behaviors.
Chris Smith, author at BGR, says you should limit or opt out of ad tracking from your Facebook app. He also recommends sending a “Do Not Track” request to the web browser you’re using. Tim Collins and Annie Palmer, too, have a few suggestions for ensuring Facebook stops tracking your web activity after deleting your account.
You might, however, have second thoughts about deleting Facebook. A loyal Facebook user for many years, you may mourn the loss of the memories you built: your pictures that detail your life from high school to the present day, your connections, your witty status updates, the lovely birthday greetings friends posted on your timeline throughout the years. When your Facebook account is gone, is it gone for good?
Deleting Your Account: The Aftermath
According to a post in Facebook’s help center, you can’t retrieve a deleted account, and when your deleted account goes to the social media afterlife, your profile, photos, posts, videos, and everything you posted on Facebook will go with it, and like your deleted account, you can’t retrieve anything you posted or added on Facebook unless you download your data and archives before deleting your account.
Of course, you may no longer care about the memories you built on Facebook. To you, Facebook is just another MySpace, and you’re ready to move on to another social media app. Unfortunately, moving on may be more difficult than you expected. After deleting your account, you can’t use Facebook Messenger and access the apps for which you use your Facebook login, like Spotify, Pinterest, and Instagram. For the latter issue, you would need to contact the apps and websites to recover your accounts. Deleting your Facebook account may be a bigger hassle than you expected, especially when so many of your online activities are intertwined.
Deactivation, a Less Drastic Solution
If you want a less drastic solution (perhaps you want a temporary break rather than a permanent divorce from Facebook), you can, instead, deactivate your account. Unlike deletion, when you deactivate your account, you won’t lose your photos and videos, you can still use Messenger, you can still use your Facebook login to access your connected apps, and you can still return any time you want. Although you are no longer visible to your Facebook friends (people won’t see and can’t visit your profile), you can still connect with those friends on Messenger. Deactivation allows you to take all the time you need and return whenever you’re ready, whenever you find a reason to keep your Facebook account.
You Deleted Your Account – Now What?
Radu Florin / Unsplash
As torn as you are, you weighed your options and deleted your Facebook account. Sure, you may have abandoned the platform on which you built memories and gained friends throughout the years, but after recent events, you can no longer support the company that failed its users too many times—it’s understandable.
But if you find yourself missing Facebook, if you suddenly have the desire to restore your account, there is still hope. Facebook gives you 30 days to finalize your decision, in the event that you begin to have second thoughts. If you log back into your account in less than 30 days, you can still save it. Wait longer than 30 days, and your account is lost forever.
When you delete your Facebook account, is it gone for good? Yes, unless you meet the 30-day grace period. Facebook wouldn’t let you go so easily.
Update October 2, 2020: The View As feature is once again available to desktop devices, appearing under the cover photo. This previously removed feature, restored after the rollout of Facebook’s redesign, shows you what your desktop Facebook profile looks like through the eyes of the public, or people you’re not connected with as friends.
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Update May 31, 2019: After an 8-month hiatus, the View As feature has now officially returned, slowly rolling out to both Android and Apple devices. The View As Feature was disabled back in September of 2018 because of a security issue that affected 50 million accounts. In response, Facebook disabled the feature temporarily.
With this tool’s return comes two big changes. First, the new View As appears to only be available to mobile devices. Previously, it could also be assessed from desktop devices, although that is now not the case. Second, the new View As tool can only show you a version of your Timeline from the eyes of the public, not the eyes of specific users. Previously, you could choose a specific Facebook user to view what that person can see from your Timeline (see the original version of this article below.)
You can find the new View As feature under your Facebook profile photo. Once clicked, the feature will load a version of your Timeline through the eyes of the public (people who are not your Facebook friends).
The updated version of View As is located under users’ Facebook profile pictures.
Scrolling through my timeline, viewing it as “public,” I can see the posts I published with the “public” as my privacy setting.
Note, however, that this feature is still slowly rolling out—not everyone will have access to this feature yet. If you don’t see the View As feature on your app, try updating it. If not, the best you can do is wait until it rolls out to you.
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Note: This feature was been disabled due to a security issue. In September 2018, Facebook’s engineering team discovered that attackers used a vulnerability in Facebook’s “View As” code to steal access tokens, which were the equivalent of “digital keys” that could be used to access people’s profiles. Nearly 50 million accounts were affected by this hack.
To prevent further damage and stop the hack, Facebook fixed the vulnerability and alerted the authorities. The social network also reset the tokens of the 50 million affected accounts, as well as an additional 40 million that, although were not affected, used the View As tool. This was an extra precautionary step.
Unfortunately, as another precautionary step, Facebook also disabled the View As tool. Facebook did not indicate when it will restore the View As feature. The following article documents how this feature was previously accessible.
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Have you ever wondered what your Facebook profile looks like to others? I certainly do.
Unfortunately, as I post more and more each day, adding more content to my Timeline, I can’t remember the posts that are appearing to the public and the number of those posts. As a result, I have no idea what my Facebook profile looks like to people who aren’t in my friends list. For example, my mother. What will my profile look like to mom who, because I didn’t add her on Facebook, stalks my profile once in a while to see what I’m up to? Will she see my feminist rant from three weeks ago, a rant that I don’t want her to see? How about my boss? Will he see my crazy weekend in Mexico? How far will strangers have to scroll to discover embarrassing, teenage posts from five years ago?
As it turns out, I’m not the only person know wants to know what my Facebook profile looks like to the public. Do a simple Google search, and the first few Q&A pages from Facebook will appear, containing questions from Facebook users who want to know how to view their profiles as though they were snooping strangers.
As I was looking through Facebook’s settings, wanting to discover new or old features that may be useful to our readers, I recently discovered a viewing tool that allows you to see what your profile looks like to others. “Others” include Facebook friends and strangers who aren’t included in your friends list. Perhaps you, much like me, wondered the same thing. If so, then this article will confirm your speculations. Here’s how to view what your Facebook profile looks like to others.
Step 1: Go to Settings
Click the expand button (shaped like an upside-down triangle) to get to settings, the second-to-the-last option from the dropdown menu.
If you’re not familiar with your Facebook settings then you should start doing so now. Settings give you the power to control how you want Facebook to work for you. For example, if you’re having trouble with stalkers, you can apply and remove blocks from your settings page under the section called “blocking.” If you want to prevent certain apps from gathering data about you, you can do so from the Apps and Websites section.
Step 2: Go to Timeline and Tagging
From the options located on the left side of your screen, click “Timeline and Tagging.” There, you can also control the options for tagged posts. For example, you can control who can see your tagged posts and enable the feature that allows you to review tagged posts before posting on your Timeline, and, finally, the reason you’re reading this article, what your profile looks like to other people.
Step 3: Click “View As”
On your page, you will see various subsections. Click “View As” under the “Who can see things on my Timeline?” subsection.
After clicking to view, Facebook will direct you to your timeline that people who aren’t your Facebook friends can see. If you can see certain posts and photos, this means those posts and photos are available for public eyes because you posted with a public privacy setting. If you don’t see any content at all, it’s because your profile is private.
Although the example profile below is a private profile, it contains images, information, and photos that are viewable to the public because those posts’ privacy settings were set to “public” rather than to “friends.”
Step 4: Click “View as Specific Person”
But wait—there’s more. Not only can you view your profile through the eyes of the public, but you can also view your profile through the eyes of specific Facebook friends. To do this, click “View as Specific Person” on the black tab hovering above your profile.
After clicking “View as Specific Person,” a search engine, in which you will type in the person whose eyes you want to borrow, will appear. Note that you can only search for Facebook friends. Attempting to search for people who aren’t your Facebook friends will reap futile results.
There you have it. That’s how you can view your profile picture in the perspective of a user not included in your friends list. No longer will you have to wonder, worrying about your Timeline’s appearance to others, worrying about whether or not that embarrassing post from when you were 15 is a mere few scrolls away from discovery.
Now that you know what your Facebook profile looks like to others, take the time to scroll through your Timeline and find the embarrassing posts visible to the public. Then, by clicking on the three-doted button on the upper-right corner of each post, change the privacy settings from public to private. This will allow you to hide posts that you no longer what the public to see.
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