25+ Facebook Technical Tips: Tips Everyone Should Know (But Not Everyone Does)

Facebook marketing isn’t easy, whether it’s Facebook organic or Facebook advertising. They keep moving the ball on us, making it harder and harder to show up organically in the news feed, and making it harder and harder to understand the advertising interface. Though the main principles of Facebook marketing are a) know your target audience (are they “on” Facebook? And, if so, what are they doing?), and b) create viral- and share-friendly posts that reach your superfans and fans… there are some technical tips and todos that everyone should now.  For simplicity’s sake I am focusing only on Facebook-native settings and tips, not third-party add-ons.

Throughout, Facebook now allows users to switch between user view (“Profiles”) and business view (“Page”), so some features may appear only if you are in the “Page” or “Business” view.

Updated: July 20, 2023 | JM Internet Group on Facebook

Facebook Business Suite

Here are a few of my favorites –

  1. Search. Simple type in keyword into Facebook search (top left) and then browse by category. Here’s an example search for organic on Facebook. Notice on the left how you can search by post, page, etc., plus public posts (posts > posts from > public) plus by date. Use this for “market research” as in finding competitors, companies to emulate, and what’s popular among your target customers.
  2. Page Settings.  Facebook (“META”) has three different and separate paths to “settings” so keep each of them separate.  NOTE: be sure you are “logged in” as your business page (TOP RIGHT of Facebook screen on the desktop).  Then ->
    1. Path One: Your Page > Edit > Edit Features. (Or Your Page > About > Edit Features)
    2. Path two: Your Page > Professional Dashboard (Left Menu)
    3. Path three: Your Page > Top Right Icon > Settings & Privacy > Settings
  3. THE FOUR KEY PRODUCTS – to manage your business on Facebook.
    1. Your Business Page – create a business page, and manage it directly as in https://www.facebook.com/jm.internet; or, review the help file on it, here.
    2. Professional Dashboard – from inside your Business Page, on the left “Professional Dashboard”.
    3. Business Manager / Business Suite – this is (another) one-stop shop for managing everything on your business page.  To get there Page > Professional Dashboard > Try to make a post > on the bottom, click on “Meta Suite”, or visit https://business.facebook.com/.  (Here’s a link to JM Internet Group, Business Manager), and I recommend once you find yours, add it to your Start.me page.
      1. Then explore the options “inside” of Business Manager.
    4. Ads Manager – this is (another) one-stop shop for managing your ads. To get there, your page > ad center (left menu) > very bottom > ad manager or https://business.facebook.com/adsmanager/. Again, once you find the correct link to your company page bookmark it to your Start.me page (as here).
  4. Groups.  Groups are massive on Facebook and the most uniquest thing about Facebook.  Browse your own groups at https://www.facebook.com/groups/feed/, and search for groups by keyword.  Then create your own “branded” group for your own business. Why? That’s the question. WHY? will a user want to join and participate in your Facebook group? To create a group, you start at the GROUP tab from your homepage on Facebook or here.
  5. The Facebook Recommendations or Reviews Tab. This tab, when enabled, allows anyone to review your business on Facebook. It requires that your business be of the local variety (essentially meaning you entered an address), and then you have to enable it.  You can read the step-by-step Facebook guide, here. And see a vendor with the review tab enabled, here or here. In the “new” page experience, you enable / disable recommendations from “sections.” Thus, browse Facebook as your Page from your Page, then click More > Manage Sections and check or uncheck. (You can also get to reviews in Your Page > About > Edit Features > Reviews as here). Note: some page types do NOT allow reviews, so make sure you have the correct Page category and have a physical address in the “real” world.
    1. Note: once “reviews” is turned on, you can go to your Page > Reviews > … (three dots) > Manage Reviews and turn them ON or OFF.
    2. Note: there seems to be some differences between “reviews” and “recommendations” but Facebook is extremely inconsistent on what they are called. Generally, the idea is that “reviews” have stars and are public (visible to everyone); “recommendations” do not have stars and can only be seen by your friends / family. It’s not clear, however, if this is true for all people and all pages.
  6. Change / Update Your Page Category. Facebook Pages have “categories” such as “doctor” or “public figure.” To browse available categories, log in to Facebook “as an individual.” Next, find “pages” and then “create new page” (here). Then, in “category required” you can start typing a term such as “Dentist” or “Plumber” and see what categories exist. Those that are “local businesses” tend to have reviews / recommendations.
    1. To see your “categories,” Page > About > Categories and then look for “categories.”
  7. Enable Facebook Check-ins. Checkin’s are nice because they allow fans to “check in” when physically at your place of business. To enable this feature, you must be a local business type with a physical address typed in.  From your Page, click on “About,” and make sure you have a physical address/
    1. Once you have “enabled” Check-ins, then open up the Facebook App on your phone (as you, a person / profile). Tap to create a post, scroll down and look for “check in” Then start typing the name of your company Facebook Page and make sure that you see your company. Try “checking in” as yourself.
  8. Professional Mode. While generally a “profile” can’t be used to market (not necessarily… but often), you can now convert it to “professional mode,” which makes a profile, sort of a “page.”
  9. Moderation Assist. Use Facebook AI to “moderate” comments such as those that include certain “naughty” words. You  can also use it to pre-moderate / block certain types of users / bots, such as those with “no friends.” Find it at Professional Dashboard > Moderation Assist.
  10. Facebook Tabs / Sections. You can add or subtract the tabs (now called “Sections”) visible on your Page.  To do this go to your Page > More > Scroll to the bottom > Manage Sections.
  11. Facebook Events. Your business or organization can host “events” which become calendar-based events folks can join. To read the complete mega site on this, click here. Also, you can see a how to article, here. To create an event, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/ and then create a new event. You can then create an event; it will appear on your pages “event” tab. To browse events near you as examples, click here. You can also create an event from Professional Dashboard > Events, or inside of Creator Studio.
  12. Pin a Post. You can “pin” any post on your Page to always show at the top; to do so, find the post you want to “pin” and click on the top right three dots, then select “pin to the top of page.” These are now called “featured posts” and you can “feature” more than one.
  13. Facebook Mobile Studio. Your one stop shop for learning how to create mobile ads on Facebook, plus links to key mobile-friendly tools.
  14. Schedule a Post. Do this inside of Business Manager.
  15. Facebook Marketplace. Got something to sell? Check out the vibrant Facebook Marketplace. Looking for employees? You can also post a job on Facebook, here.
  16. Pro Tip. The Facebook interface is a total and utter trainwreck. Once you “know” the name of a product (e.g., “Business Manager” or “Creator Studio”), go to Google and Google: “Facebook Creator Studio” to find direct access. In many cases, even I as an expert with many years experience, simply cannot find how to go from one Facebook product to another. Then, add a direct link to your Start.me page.
  17. Facebook Live Video. You can publish “live” video to your Facebook page. On the desktop, go to Creator Studio > Create Post > Go Live. On the phone app, go to your Page in the app, then click “post” and select “live video.” At the end, you can also publish the recorded version. You can read the Facebook Live help files, here. To browse videos that are live on Facebook right now, go to https://www.facebook.com/live. (When you go live, Facebook alerts your friends and family; a Page should also create an event, and promote the live stream). You can check out their learning site on live, here.
    1. To schedule a live video, Live Producer > the schedule a live event.
  18. Facebook Native Video. Shoot your video and save as an MP4 file. Then go to your Page, and then click into where it says “write something.” Then select the camera icon and find the video on your desktop. Give it a short headline. You can also browse available content types there –
    1. Photos, video, slide show, instant experience. Experiment by using the tools and mix/matching your video / image content with music!
  19. Create a Story. Pages can now create stories, which are short video clips about your business. You can read the help file, here. To access: Creator Studio > Create New > Story.
  20. Facebook Reels. You can create Reels on Facebook, which are similar to TikToks – short video clips. To access: Business Manager > Planner > Create > Reel (or, of course, via the phone app).
  21. Meta Blueprint eLearning. Did you know Facebook, oops I mean, Meta, has a fabulous, free eLearning site? Well, that’s not surprising as neither did Mark Zuckerberg. It’s at https://www.facebook.com/blueprint and focuses primarily on advertising opportunities. If you’re a small business, check out the small business learning center, here.
  22. Facebook Badges. Recognize your top “superfans” by creating a “badge” option. This is done in Your Page > Professional Dashboard > Fan Engagement Tools.
  23. Facebook Community Standards. Love to read legaleze? Curious about what Facebook’s TOS (Terms of Service) are for your business? Check that out here and then have your lawyer try to disentangle what it means.
  24. Manage Facebook Admins. You can (and should) have more than on Admin to any given Facebook Page. To find them, go to Your Page > Professional Dashboard > Page Access.
  25. Create / Edit Your Page Call To Action Button. You can do this by visiting Your Page > … (three dots) > Edit Action Button.
  26. Manage Instagram on Facebook. Yes, you can! Well, sort of. Go to Your Page > Professional Dashboard > Linked Accounts.
  27. Messaging Settings. From Your Page click on the “message” icon at the top right to get to your “Inbox” (https://business.facebook.com/latest/inbox/). Next, at the top click on “Messenger” and then “Automations.” Automations allows you to create “chatbox-like” messages that automatically respond to users. You can also Google “Facebook chatbot” to find third party apps that have ChatBot functionality.
    1. Check out “messaging settings,” here.
  28. Invite Your Friends. You (and all Page Admins) can invite your friends to “like” your Facebook Page. This is especially useful if you have a very close relationship between your business and yourself, and/or your employees do. To find this, go to your Page on Facebook > Professional Dashboard > Invite Friends to Follow.
  29. Change Your Cover Photo. You can have a single photo, a slideshow, or a video for your Page cover.  Just hover your mouse and then click “Edit Cover Photo.”
  30. Visitor Posts. You can control whether you let, or do not let, visitors to post to your page. Find this at Your Page > Settings & Privacy > Settings > Privacy and then Visitor Posts.
  31. Set up a Shop. Facebook and Instagram are increasingly allowing “native” shops, that is shops that live not on your website but on Facebook. Learn more here and visit a vendor with the shop-enabled, here.
  32. Monetize your Page. Explore the “many” options by which you can monetize your Facebook page.
  33. Restrictions. You can restrict the Page visibility by Country or Age under Settings > Country / Age Restrictions.
  34. Page Moderation and Profanity Filter. Use this to block “naughty words” to your page. Your Page > Settings & Privacy > Settings > Privacy > Public Posts.  Then change the settings accordingly.
  35. Schedule a Post. You can use a third-party tool such as Hootsuite, or native to Facebook, you go to Business Manager > Content (here).
  36. Business Apps. Facebook has many helpful business apps. You can find them under “Manage your Page” (on the Left) and then Business Apps, or here.
  37. Insights. There is a cornucopia of information under the Your Page > Insights.  Drill down into Page Engagements, for example, to see your Page Engagements.  “Posts” will give you information on which posts drove the most engagements.
  38. Invite People Who Liked a Post. You can invite people who “liked” a post (especially a Boosted post) to “like” your Page. Find the post in Insights, and then click on the first couple of names of people who “liked” it.  Then click the INVITE button to the right of each name.
  39. Ban a Person. You can ban an obnoxious person from your Page. To do this, either find them using the method above and then click the “gear icon” to the right of their name.  Then select “Ban from the Page.” Or, Your Page > Settings & Privacy > Settings > Privacy > Blocking. You can view the Facebook Help file, here.
  40. Hide a Comment.  Go to a Post that has comments by fans.  Click the three dots to the right of the comment.  Select “hide comment.”
  41. Audience Insights. Learn about your own Audience as well as browse / research audiences on Facebook. Useful to do background research from a keyword or theme to find the top pages. Or, inside of “Business Manager” > tools > audiences.
    1. Be sure to understand the difference between: “custom,” “lookalike,” and “saved” audiences!
  42. Browse the Facebook MegaHelp File. Go to the “top secret” URL at https://www.facebook.com/help/. Or just search Google using site:facebook.com/help.  Example at https://tinyurl.com/yab7jmff. You can also reach out to the Facebook Help Community.
  43. Advertise on Facebook. The easiest way to understand this is to “boost” a post. Just take a post and click on boost. Pay attention to the targeting options, which range from “people who like your page” to various interests and geos. You can even spy on what competitors are doing via ads on Facebook, here. If you’re looking for help from your peers, check out Facebook’s group ‘Boost with Facebook.’
  44. Set up the Meta Pixel. The Facebook Pixel is used for remarketing (for example, taking people who hit your website and then showing them ads on Facebook via a “Custom Audience”).  Learn more about it, here.  If you’re using WordPress, you can install a plugin. Or if you’re using Google Tag Manager you can install it via Google Tag Manager. Learn about that here.  You can purchase Excedrin Extra Strength Aspirin for the headache you’ll have, here. NOTE: this is being discontinued in 2022 and replaced by the Facebook Conversion API.
  45. Apple iOS 14 and Facebook Privacy. Yikes! Apples has dramatically increased privacy on iPhones, and Facebook has attempted a response. Read about it here.  You can also refer your resident Internet advertising expert to Private Click Measurement, and then refer up to the link for Excedrin Extra Strength Aspirin as he or she configures your advertising tracking.
  46. If you’re advertising, be sure you understand the audiences to whom you can target (See: https://www.facebook.com/business/products/ads/ad-targeting). Namely : core audiences, custom audiences, lookalike audiences (plus age, gender, location).   People who like your page vs. people you choose thru targeting. Also be sure you understand you can a) boost a post, b) advertise your Page or local business, or c) advertise a website. You can also advertise an App.  To learn more about advertising, visit https://www.facebook.com/business/.
    1. Nifty trick. If a competitor has more than about 5,000 fans, they will show up as an interest target. You can then target an ad of any type against your competitor’s Facebook Page. Use the “Create Audience” feature which seems to be better than the “Edit Audience” feature. Go to Ads Manager > Audience and then create Audience. (Custom, Lookalike, and Saved).
    2. Another Nifty Trick. Access Facebook Ad manager directly, here, and Facebook Business Manager here.
  47. Check out competitors’ ads. See what your competitors are advertising on Facebook. Go to their Facebook Page, and then “Page Transparency” on the far Right, and then click. Here’s what Geico is running currently; Or, visit https://www.facebook.com/ads/library/ to enter a company or keyword.
  48. Confused? Access the Facebook Help Center and look for a question, or go to Google and enter site:facebook.com/help and try that.  If you’re worried about what will happen to your Facebook account when you die, read this. Apparently, in heaven people are stuck with MySpace.
  49. Reverse Play. Rather than paying Facebook via ads, or building out your own Business Page, perhaps you should become a Facebook Creator? Similar to the YouTube program, Facebook will pay you to create video content for its platform.
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About Jason McDonald

Jason McDonald is a top-rated San Francisco SEO Consultant. His consulting services include search engine optimization consulting, social media marketing consulting, and Google AdWords consulting. Jason's motto as a consultant is that he doesn't do SEO 'for you' but rather he does SEO 'with you.' That goes as well for his social media marketing consultant activities and Google AdWords consultant services. Besides serving clients in the San Francisco Bay Area, Jason consults with clients in Silicon Valley (San Jose), Oakland and other cities throughout the Bay Area. Beyond the Bay Area, Jason is available as an SEO consultant, Social Media Consultant, and as an expert witness in litigation involving social media marketing, search engine optimization and pay-per-click advertising.