Stacy Lukasavitz passionately argued six months ago that Facebook Pages should exist for organizations and celebrities, but not everyday people.
I’m tired of regular people thinking they’re special unique snowflakes and deserve their own fan page just to boost their own egos. Non-public figure fan pages cheapens the value of fan pages for those who actually are public figures.
I wrote a comment at the time, referencing fan pages I maintained here and there. (They’ve since been replaced by facebook.com/aribherzog which exists as a distribution channel for things I am writing and liking, and which 89 people have opted into being a fan of today.)
Stacy understood where I came from and admitted she was not writing about folks like me, but about other people, as she elaborated in this response:
They are not elected officials, they don’t have high-volume blogs like yours, they are not celebrities even in the most minor sense, and they have no real reason to have a fan page other than to make themselves feel better about themselves. If that’s what it takes for them to justify their self worth, then fine, but to the outside world, including me and others who have privately messaged me and don’t want to publicly comment here, it looks ostentatious.
If you search this blog for the word Facebook, you’ll see numerous results about the social networking site. I’ve struggled for 18 months whether I should accept friend requests from the world, as I used to do, or if I should keep my friendships to only people I know intimately and have either physically met or spoken to on the phone, as it is now. It frustrates me that Facebook friend requests require mutuality.
Rereading Chris Brogan’s short-lived experimentation of having a Facebook page to boost branding — explaining why he created the page in January 2009 and why he deleted it by June — I blinked and had an epiphany.
See, I receive a lot of Facebook friend requests. Some people read this blog and want to befriend its writer. Some people see me speak at a workshop and want to befriend and learn more. Some people live in Newburyport and want to befriend their city councilor. Some people went to high school or college with me and want to befriend a classmate. Some people this, some people that.
Considering 99% don’t write anything in the optional box explaining why they want to be my friend, I am forced to guess — and for the better parts of 2009 and 2010, I encouraged those relative strangers to like my page instead.
No more.
My Facebook usage changes today.
I don’t know what I want to do with the facebook.com/aribherzog page, and I am open to your suggestions.
Not unlike Chris’ explanation why he deleted his page, I don’t want my page to be about how many people like it. I want your time on Facebook to be productive and being forced to like a page to interact with me is counterproductive. If you prefer to be my friend, send me a friend request. If you prefer to be my fan like me, you can do that too. I want you to use Facebook how you want to use it, and not abide by arbitrary rules I create.
I recognize Facebook users have their own reasons for accepting all friend requests versus being selective in their mutuality.
But I also recognize it is silly to force you to adapt to my Facebook rules, so I am saying goodbye to them and saying hello to efficient organization of my web experience.
If you want to say hi to me on Facebook, you may do so here. If you like me, I’m here too.
Make sense?
About Ari Herzog
Makes a lot of sense and is a good policy. It keeps you open to connecting with people the way they want to instead of forcing them into a particular channel or method, which is good networking.
Indeed. Plus, I can keep order the way I want through specific lists and privacy settings around those lists. So, if I don’t want someone I’ve never met to see my photo albums, a click of a button and voila.
Hmm, it makes me think over and over again.I am just wondering about your rules in facebook. Well, maybe you can still apply those rules while your being connected with people. Who knows, your rules may be adapted by many people.
What’s making you overthink?
What you said make sense. But I think the link to “do so here” is not correct.
How’s that, Peter?
your link of the text “do so here” at the end of your article: http://facebook.com/ariherzog, returns a 404 page.
I too used to accept almost all FB requests, but recently there has been an alarming rise in the number of spam accounts, and those that keep sending you requests for all apps! I had to reject many since then.
I am a big Facebook fan and user. I have 3 accounts. One is for me the social marketer and I started it before there was such a thing as Pages so I could create groups and ads for clients at arm’s length, and without inviting them to be “friends” with me. One is a new Page for me the poet so I can share with my “fans” my poetry and musings on writing. I will use this Page when my book is launched. And my third account is my personal account. I recently culled 20% of my “friends” list. The reason; I had too many people I didn’t feel I could be myself around – I felt they were voyeurs on my life – so one day I nixed them all. Now it’s real friends only. And I am much happier. Sure, sometimes I add people I barely know, and then I get to know them. If I don’t like what I see – delete.
Business-wise Facebook provides an even playing field. I have seen amazing use of it to attract business: see http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/JaySankeyFan?ref=ts and I hope that it continues to be open to all of us fortunate enough to be able to afford a computer and an ISP.
Do you assume people reading your marketing tips and people reading your poetry don’t want to read both?
I don’t give marketing tips – unless I get paid for them!
But yes, I would make that assumption. Two different audiences.
But you are assuming each audience only wants X, not X and Y.
I’m actually surprised how many people read and like poetry. I don’t read it very much – I just write it!
But my FB pages/profiles are organized for business purposes. There’s nothing to stop any of my fans/friends from crossing over. And the main thing about FB is it must be fun – or no one will use it.
Stacy Lukasavitz “…Non-public figure fan pages cheapens the value of fan pages for those who actually are public figures.”
I love it, Stacy prespposess that being a “public figure” somehow adds value and “cheapen the value” This kind of thinking is fueling the celebrity culture… But maybe the heart of tis argument is the fact that “public figures” could do with having their percieved value lower then maybe BBC licence payer wouldn’t have paid Jonathan Ross £6 000 000 or whatever it is.
Personally. I think that the celebrity culture stinks, but hey, I might not agee with that damm redhead but here’s to her and everyone elses freedom of expression
)
Dave.
Ari,
Good points here. Thanks.
I resisted the urge to start an FB Page for many months until I had an idea that made sense and had something of interest to offer its “fans.” I did not want to have a Page just about me or even a Christine Green Web Designer or Marketer page. Those are a dime a dozen and no one really wants to “Like” another marketer. But I wanted to share stuff, engage with people and strengthen my digital presence. I reflected and waited.
Then it hit me that my greatest strength and strongest skill is my endless creativity and humor. So I combined the two and created Christine Green’s Creative Factory where I post photos, and videos that I shoot myself and articles from others and news items that are funny, creative, head-scratchers with an unique point of view. Then occasionally I will share something I am working on. I don’t promote the page heavily but I have fun with it. Actually my cat’s FB Page (Zen Master Ziggy) is far more interesting than mine! He gives spiritual advice and facilitates harmonious human-feline connections.
Wouldn’t your “friends” want to see your homemade videos?
I invite my “Friends” to “like” my other page and most of them have. But since I post a lot it works for me to have the two separate pages.
Hi Ari,
.
I’m wondering if many of those people who want to be friends but don’t give a reason could be getting ready to tell you that they have a large fund of millions of dollars that they need help transferring
Just read you article about getting more fans to facebook as well. There’s some great ideas there that can be used for other services i.e. Twitter. Thanks for kicking my grey matter back into gear.
Wow, glad to know you are going out of the rules…me too I accept most of the friend requests that I get in Facebook. I do not see any reason in denying them since any social network is meant for being social and getting to know new people.
Facebook pages are really a cool way to get your blog new readers without actually having to add them all as your friends!
I prefer not to go out of rule. I don’t feel to add someone who is unknown and do friendship as being a girl, i need more privacy as i upload some personal info as well as pics of mine which i don’t want to share with strangers.