Facebook Pages: a change I've noticed

A year ago when I was sharing the news that my realistic young adult novel, Love Ya Like a Sister, was available, I used the "Update" option in Facebook Pages "Resources" to send a message to all those who followed or "liked" the page.

That is no longer possible. 

Here is the explanation from Facebook from their "Help" page:

Can I update fans of my page using Facebook Messages?

As of September 30th you'll no longer be able to send an update to fans using Facebook Messages. We want you to connect with your audience in the most effective ways possible, and updates that go to Facebook Messages may end up unseen in the "Other" folder.

Here are other ways you can expand your reach:

• Post content on your page Wall so people see your updates in their news feed. You can target your posts by location or language by choosing Customize from the audience selector dropdown before you post.
• Consider using targeted Facebook Ads or Sponsored Stories to help grow and highlight your message within the Facebook experience.

 Of course, targeted ads and stories do cost you. So it seems that Facebook has removed the option of messages to fans for free because the message may end up in the "Other" folder for what they consider a more viable option, paying for an ad that posts on the right sidebar of Facebook that your "likes" friends may or may not look at. 

 

If we do not want to pay, we can do the following:

How do I update my page fans?

As a Facebook Page admin, you can update your fans by sharing posts on your page's Wall. Update your status, ask a question, post photos, share a link, or record/upload a video. Your page posts will appear in the News Feeds of people who like your page, as well as your page's Wall for anyone who is visiting.

This is exactly what we could do before, except that we are now missing the message update option.

Hmmm . . . How nice of Facebook. By the way, how often do you check out the ads and sponsored stories on the right sidebar of Facebook?

Copyright 2011 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved