Social media can be a daunting landscape for those unfamiliar with the technology involved. But the benefits can be enormous. Perhaps the most well-known social network in the United States is Facebook, founded in 2004 by Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg. What began as a tool to connect university students eventually grew in popularity until it circled the globe. Facebook currently includes several billion worldwide users and over 190 million users in the United States alone. On Facebook, anyone who signs up can create their own profile page, upload videos and photos, and write posts about whatever is on their mind. They can view their friends’ profiles, join Facebook ‘groups’ with other people who share similar interests, and receive notifications on their devices on the activities of their friends and groups. Not only is Facebook a fun and useful ‘virtual public square’, but its advertising platform, Facebook Business Pages, can be a very valuable tool in the lending space. Loan officers have the ability to create a Facebook Business Page in which they may connect with - and generate referrals from - realtors, builders, and consumers. The following guide is designed to assist you with a few of the major ‘how-to’s’ of Facebook.

To create a Business Page on Facebook, users must first have a Personal Facebook Profile to attach the Business Page to. Signing up for Facebook is easy. To start, visit this link (1) which will take you to Facebook’s signup page. The site will ask you for some basic information: your name, either your mobile phone number or your email, your birthday (users must be at least 13 years old), and your gender. You will also be prompted to create a password of your choice. The site will then ask you to confirm either your mobile # or your email by sending you a message. Facebook needs your mobile # or email in order to protect your security, find contacts to suggest as ‘friends’, and show ads relevant to your area. Once you confirm your information, you are ready to navigate Facebook as a personal user. The next step is to create a Business Page.

Facebook has an easy way for helping users with the Business Page creation process. While still logged in as a personal Facebook user, use this link (2) and select Create a Page to begin the process. Be sure to consult with your marketing and/or compliance team when creating the page to ensure your Facebook Business Page meets all company requirements.

Access to Facebook Business Pages is tied directly to the Facebook Personal Profile. If you ever forget your password or lose access to your account for some other reason, there are a few options for you to regain access. If you’ve forgotten your password, you can request a password reset link here (3). Facebook will ask for you to enter the email or mobile # that you used to create your account and you can follow the instructions to change the password and log in to your account with an updated password. If your account has disabled for whatever reason, a pop-up alert will appear when you attempt to log in. You may visit this link (4) to ask Facebook administrators to review your page and restore it. If you believe your page may have been hacked, follow this link (5) to alert administrators to fix the issue.

Once you’re logged in under your Personal Facebook Profile, you can toggle over to your Business Page to make any necessary edits by selecting the flag icon in the center of the home page. After selecting your Business Page, you can easily edit any of the sections by selecting the pencil icon next to each profile field. To edit the About section, select the More tab and visit the About page itself. Here is a link with more information on how to customize your Facebook Business Page (6).

To delete a Facebook Business Page, visit your page and click 'Page Settings' in the bottom left. From 'General', click 'Remove Page', select 'Delete [Page Name]' and then click 'OK'. Keep in mind that when you request to delete your Facebook Page, Facebook will unpublish your Page immediately but it won't be permanently deleted until 14 days have passed. You can also unpublish your Page at any time during that timeframe. Here is a link to more information on this process (7).

If you have decided to leave Facebook entirely, you will want to delete your personal account as well. This will permanently erase your profile, along with all photos, videos, and posts within. To delete your account, go to ‘Settings and Privacy’ in your account, then ‘Settings’, then ‘Privacy’, then ‘Your Facebook Information’, then ‘Deactivation and Deletion’, and ‘Delete Account’. Then select ‘Continue on to Account Deletion’ and then ‘Delete Account’. Facebook will prompt you to enter your password to finalize deletion. Keep in mind that deleted accounts cannot be recovered. Here is a link with more information on this process (8).

We hope this has helped you get a little more comfortable with the basic framework of Facebook. It may seem like a confusing new world to navigate, but learning the ins and outs of this social network can give you access to a very effective tool to reach both new and old customers quickly and easily.