I hope that by now you are taking advantage of all of the great features of the Facebook Timeline for
Brand or Company Pages.
If you’re not sure, be sure to check out my previous
Facebook Timeline Format: What Your Brand or Company Needs to Know blog post.
Lately, we’ve had a few clients that have been concerned about users posting negative comments
on their Facebook Page’s wall and how they should manage those posts. First things first,
I do not recommend that a Brand or Company Facebook Page removes the ability for people
to interact. A Facebook Page’s benefits often outweigh the risks of negative and/or
inappropriate posts. With the right tools or settings in place, it’s easy to manage
any negative and/or inappropriate posts that may occur.
Negative Feedback or Reviews
Again, I don’t endorse removing the comment altogether. Instead, respond. Facebook is often a
powerful customer service tool. If you respect the user’s post, you may even find other fans coming
to your Page’s defense. Negative feedback may also bring a problem to your attention.
A worked-up customer could potentially get even angrier if you remove their comment. They may
vent on their personal Facebook profile and you can bet that they’ll vent to their friends. With a
little tact and understanding, an unhappy fan could turn into your biggest supporter.
Jim Belosic put a great post together describing real life examples on Social Media Examiner
“7 Tips for Dealing with Upset Facebook Fans” which I recommend you read here.
When You Should Delete a Facebook Comment
The obvious! Something obscene, threatening, offensive…you know the drill.
Right click on the right corner of the box on the X. At this point in time, you’ve hidden
the comment from being viewed on the page except by the individual who has the personal
profile and their Facebook friends. On this same handy, dandy little box you can choose to report
the comment as abusive or ban the individual from your page which will remove them and
prevent them from posting or interacting in the future.
Can all postings and comments by others on your Facebook Page be disabled?
Not exactly. But, you can prevent users from posting on your Facebook wall, or approve all posts
before they will appear on the Facebook wall. But, remember, your Facebook Page isn’t a website.
And, once again, I don’t recommend restricting or deleting all activity by others on your page.
I’ve outlined the two settings you can enable below.
Show Only Posts on Page after Review
This setting enables only posts to show once they’ve been approved by a Facebook Page admin.
To enable this:
Edit Page> Manage Permissions
Select “Hidden from Page” in the menu to the direct right of the
“Default visibility of posts by others (Facebook Page’s Name)’s timeline.”
Don’t forget to click “Save Changes.”
Visit the Activity Log frequently to choose which posts you will allow on your Page’s Timeline.
This setting could be a great solution for a brand or company whose Facebook page’s purpose is
primarily to benefit SEO with the links and social signals.
Turn Posts Off
This setting will prevent users from posting anything on your wall. They can still “Like” a
Facebook Page’s status or image, but they can’t post to your wall. Unless you have the previous
setting I described enabled, they will be able to comment on posts by the Facebook Page without approval.
Facebook’s Help Center has made some drastic improvements in the last few months including more
in-depth answers specific to Facebook Pages. I encourage you to check it out and test out features and
settings to see how they can benefit your brand or company’s Facebook Page.