Facebook is the biggest online social network today. It’s already become an inseparable part of millions of people’s social lives, and it becomes even more inseparable because Facebook integrates with lots of other online services. This achievement has put Facebook in the realm of the Internet giants.

One of the other online giants which has also influenced the lives of millions is WordPress. It’s fair to say that WordPress is the most popular blogging platform today. I’m sure that there are many who wonder whether these two services could be integrated.

If you are one of the millions of WordPress users who wants to add Facebook to your WordPress website(s), you’re in luck. There are two ways to do just that!

Syndicate Your Status

The first and easiest way to add Facebook to WordPress is to subscribe to the syndication. There are many elements of Facebook, most come with their own RSS subscription. The problem is, it takes a little effort to locate the RSS button.

For example, to integrate Facebook’s “Links” to WordPress, you need to dig a little deeper on the side menu under your Home panel. Click “More” to reveal more links.

Then click the “Links” to go to the Links page.

At the sidebar on the Links page, you will find the RSS button. Right click on it to copy the RSS URL. You could subscribe to two kinds of links: “My Links” and “My Friends’ Links“.

By default, Facebook will bring you to “My Friends’ Links” page. So if you want to subscribe to your own links, click “My Links” link and right click on the RSS button on your links page and copy the address. This address will be used later on your WordPress blog.

Another RSS feed that you can subscribe to is your Facebook notifications. Click on the “Notifications” icon on the top of the page next to the search field and choose “See All Notifications“. Then on “Your Notifications” page, right click at the “Via RSS” link to copy the subscription address.

Please note that I did the walkthrough using Facebook’s new profile. If you are still using the old profile, you could upgrade to the new one by visiting the “Introducing the New Profile” page and click the “Get the New Profile” button.

To add the RSS to your blog, go to the Widget area by clicking the link under the “Appearance” sidebar menu in your WordPress admin area.

Locate the RSS widget and drag it to the Widget area on the right and fill in all the necessary data, including the RSS feed URL that you’ve just copied.

After clicking on the “Save” button you will see the content appear in the widget area of your blog.

This method is applicable to all elements of your Facebook account. You can use it even if you are using the WordPress.com service and not a self-hosted WordPress blog.

Use Plugins

As Facebook becomes more and more popular, you can expect to find more and more WordPress plugins related to Facebook. If you do the search, you’ll find tons of them inside the plugins repository. One of the recommended plugins is “Facebook Social Plugins“. You can easily search and install the plugin from within your WordPress plugins area.

After installation, activate the plugin.

The plugin will add its own setting link under the “Settings” sidebar menu.

Among the settings, you can customize many aspect of the plugin. But the first thing that you should do before customizing anything is to get a “Facebook Application ID“. Click the “here” link.

Then you can customize each aspect of the plugin, such as: the “Layout” and “Color Scheme“.

Don’t forget to click on the “Save” button after making changes to the settings.

As for getting the application ID from Facebook, clicking the “here” link will bring you to the “Create an App” page on “Facebook Developers” site.

All you have to do is to verify your account by providing your mobile phone number or credit card number. After that you will have your “App ID“. Insert the set of numbers on the “Facebook Application ID” field on the “Facebook Social Plugins” setting.

After activating the plugin and doing all the necessary customization, you will have the additional “Like” button (or “Recommend” button according to your setting) on the locations of your blog that you’ve specified.

And you will also get several additional Facebook related widgets that you can put on the widget area.

There are other ways that you can use to integrate Facebook to WordPress blog, but these two are the easiest method that I could find. If you know other methods, please share them using the comment below!

Results: What is your realistic expectation??

Welcome (back) to Source Blogger.

Sometimes you just feel compelled to write the truth. A lot of what we do as bloggers involves marketing… internet marketing, social media marketing, etc. Sometimes I’m taken back at all of the “Marketing Experts” I come across online.

It appears that social media is a booming business for people who seem to have exhausted the SEO market. It’s a hip, new product to sell. And the best part is, it’s another medium where results are difficult to track and the finger gets to be pointed at who is managing the social media campaign on the company level as opposed to how it was created…or more importantly, why it was created. (OK, so maybe I won’t be the most popular blogger in the blogosphere after this article…*shrugs*)

Today, we’re going to look at Facebook and what it means for your business. Source Blogger is not primarily a blog on social media, but I do encourage you to read the Facebook category here on Source Blogger.

Why does your company need a Facebook Fan Page anyway?

Most likely you use Facebook. As do most of the people at church, your kid’s school and your investment club. Facebook is a great way to connect with old friends, classmates, even old co-workers.

So, you heard about this guy who claims to have success with helping businesses push their brand, create an online identity, and establish a more interactive way for followers to interact with your business. Perhaps you want this  feedback from web users.

The social media marketing pitch about Facebook

So, all the company’s decision-makers file into a little conference room and this is the “push”…

• 350 Million Global Users and Counting

• 100 Million U.S. Users

• Average Facebook User Spends 55 Minutes Per Day

• Average Facebook User Has 130 Friends

• Average Facebook User “Fans” 2 Pages per Month

After a few meetings…followed by a few more meeting with the social media company…and of course, a few more meetings, the decision is made to move forward.

You decided to buy the entire package! Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, YouTube, Flickr, Wikipedia…and yes, Facebook, as the primary target! (After hearing all those stats, why wouldn’t you be excited about Facebook, right?)

What the social media company didn’t tell you about Facebook

1) Facebook is a fortress — We’re all aware of the user stats for Facebook. Here, take a look: These are the stats that Facebook makes public for all of us to read. It’s not a secret.

“The reality is even the full-time bloggers and “internet marketing gurus” have problems creating value from their Facebook Fan pages…so, as a business, without our type of background, how are you going to overcome our challenges?”

2) The psychology behind Facebook use — Facebook users are very loyal to their personal social networks — unlike Twitter, where a lot of the discussion is with people you have never met or never plan to meet. Most Twitter accounts are set up so that I can follow someone automatically — unlike Facebook where I have to ask permission. Because of this, there has to be some personal recognition.

On Twitter, there’s often a natural reciprocation of “you follow me, I’ll follow you.” Remember what the social media company said in its presentation…that the average Facebook user has 130 friends? It’s not that difficult to have 5,000 to 10,000 followers on Twitter after a few years…with some effort…and automation.

“The bottom line here is exposure. Facebook insulates its users from pervasive advertising, internet marketers, and maybe even us bloggers! So, how is your company going to overcome those challenges?”

3) Facebook is not a “buying environment” — Meaning you can spend an average of an hour a day on Facebook (remember, the average Facebook user is on for 55 minutes a day) and not feel inclined to buy ANYTHING.

Facebook is not eBay, Amazon, Overstock.com…or even the For Sale section of CraigsList — meaning the user is trained to either play games, look at photo albums, share links of YouTube videos, or chat.

“Facebook users are not in “consumer mode” when they log in. What does that mean for your business? Are you personally going to change the mindset of 300 million Facebook users with your little Facebook Fan Page?”

What following/ “fan”-ing / subscribing to something in the social media world really means

It just means there is a mild interest in you, your blog, your company, your brand, your product, your concept, etc.

Many web users who interact with your direct and indirect pagers, you will never see or hear from them again. The internet is constantly in motion with people changing their profiles, user IDs, even buying new computers. It’s very difficult to remember your web use from day to day. Plus, what you felt strongly about yesterday, may not be such a priority to you today.

So, I ask you, what is the true value to your business to those that ‘fan” your Facebook page? Do you think it might be a little overrated?

4) Consumer Reaction+ Sharing Opinion — We all love feedback. We all like to be able to gauge our progress. We all need to know “the score”.

But, on the internet, those that are typically the most vocal are those who are frustrated, angry, and generally despondent. You want to create a social, interactive environment on your Facebook Fan Page, but the results could be extremely counter-productive. It’s really no different than what we do as bloggers, to screen/monitor the comments on our own blog for something offensive, hostile, or mean-spirited.

What if one Facebook comment turns off the current environment of contributors of your Facebook page? Are you prepared to deal with that? What if you receive some bad press? Do you really want to answer for it from your social media pages? You could be exposing more negative aspects about your company than positive ones!

5) Content + Search + Geography

The ugly truth about social media is that you can create a campaign, but you can’t guarantee its success. Why? Because online users are driven by content. Content that you must continually churn out — just like a blogger. You can’t compete with us!

Note: Although many of us favor capitalism to a certain extent, we don’t trust you. And we know, in the end, what motivates you, what your agenda is, and what you’ll do to reach your goals. Your content is an extension of you. And consumers are becoming less and less trusting of this propaganda. We’re also becoming more immuned and more suspicious of feeble attempts to network to us. So, what is your plan?

If you are a business services company in my community, ask yourself…

• Why the hell would I even want to be on your Facebook Fan Page?
• What could you possibly be saying that I would find interesting  or even remotely engaging?
• Why would I want to return — what’s the benefit to me?
• The internet is doubling every 5 weeks… how am I even going to find you in search? And why would I be looking for you there as opposed to simply using the online Yellow Pages?

I live outside of Philadelphia, and your business is Kentucky. I found your page by accident. How are you going to overcome the geographical challenges of targeting consumers in your operating region? And what benefit is it to you that someone from India just “Fan’d” your page an hour ago? I’ll tell you: “Nothing!”

In Closing

Save yourself the time and money required to commit to your own social campaigns. I’d even make the argument against having a company website for many businesses.

You are smart enough to get to where you are in life. And you have gotten there based on results. Sure, the potential is there with social media, but realistically the results will be be extremely disappointing and not worth your investment. Results that SEO and Social Media will never truly be able to guarantee. And definitely not worth the big price tag.

If you truly want to some type of social integration, bring on a few young, interns. There,  I just saved you thousands. And you deserved the truth.

My name is Jeffrey Baril. And this is Source Blogger.

As we’ve discussed many times on Source Blogger, the trend to intertwine social media into our blog activities is imperative for adding reader functionality and reaching new markets.

Because of this, more and more Bloggers are discovering clever tools to integrate Facebook and Twitter activity…together. As you know, manually updating your Facebook Fan Pages is not very convenient, is it?

Recently, I discovered an app(lication) called SmartTwitter that allows bloggers to update their Facebook Fan page’s wall from their Twitter account…every time they tweet! Yes!

However, be mindful it will not copy twitter updates that don’t belong on Facebook like retweets, @replies, or #hashtags.

Let’s get right into the short tutorial that is: “How To Add Your Tweets From Twitter To Your Facebook Fan Page”

How To Add The SmartTwitter App

• Go to Facebook Smart Twitter page, sign-in to your facebook account and click ‘Allow‘ button to add the app.

Choose your Facebook Page, click ‘Set Twitter Account‘ and add your twitter screen name.

• Give permission to the application by clicking “Allow” buttons when prompted.

You are…done!  Your Facebook Fans will now start seeing your Twitter tweets appearing on the Facebook Fan Page!

OK, Source Blogger, Now What?

• How To Customize Your Facebook Fan Page URL
• Are Facebook, Blog Catalog, and NetworkedBlogs Stealing Your Adsense Earnings?!
• How To Integrate Networked Blogs With Facebook And Your Blog
• How To Create A Facebook Page For Your Blog
• How To Expose Your Blog To The Explosive Market That Is Facebook

Facebook, the largest social media site in the world, with a conservative estimate of 500 million users, has the potential to take your blog traffic levels to levels far beyoned your wildest expectations. Over 50% of our active users log on to Facebook in any given day and the average user has over 130 friends! (Source: Facebook Statistics)

What could you do with that even a small percentage of that kind of volume? Many of those users are “non-bloggers” and completely unaware of marketing tactics or CPC ads. How could you capitalize on that kind of opportunity?

So, what are you waiting for? Let’s take a quick look at the resources you are currently using and then we’ll turn it up a notch! Shall we? Let’s go!

Well, the first thing we should look at is what resources, as bloggers, that we have at our disposal.

1) The Facebook Fan Page

The Facebook Fan Page is better for brands, businesses, or bloggers who want to interact with their fans or customers without having them connected to a personal account, and have a need to exceed Facebook’s 5,000 friend cap.

A Fan Page lets you grow as big as you want, send updates to an unlimited number of people, and keep the focus on the organization without revealing the administrator (unless you want to).

2) Networked Blogs

NetworkedBlogs.com is an extension of the NetworkedBlogs Facebook Application to make our user-generated blog directory accessible outside Facebook and provide more exposure to blogs of that network.

This web site is still in it’s early stages. And, currently, it only provides a subset of the information that is offered inside Facebook.

3) Facebook Commenting System

Facebook is rolling out the new features which will have the power to transform Facebook’s commenting platform for third-party websites — which is currently a very simple affair — into something far more advanced! (See screen shot below!)

The Sobering Truth

At this point you are most likely very involved in growing your Facebook Fan Page and integrating more use out of Networked Blogs.

So, what else?

Nothing. No other strategies come to mind. A vast, global market of active users that bloggers may never be able to tap into!

Even with some of the minimal changes that Facebook rolls out every few months, it isn’t enough. Some bloggers with large following on Facebook and Networked Blogs…wait, you look puzzled. Yes, you have a Facebook Fan Page and a page on Networked Blogs that allows users to follow your blog via Networked Blogs too. (Click on the links to see my pages for examples.) Seems a little redundant doesn’t it??

As I was saying, some bloggers with large followings on Facebook and Networked Blogs see little results from their efforts. Let’s see why:

Facebook: Fans and Followers — Behavior

Let me share you with you the dark reality that is blog stats, particularly with Facebook and NetworkedBlogs.

Large numbers of followers and fans RARELY equate to conversions and new readers. As bloggers, we tend to over-analyze our analytics. When we do, we see 3-4 blog updates before a reader, any reader, pays our blog a visit from Facebook/NetworkedBlogs.

Why is that? Why do readers follow and subscribe to so many blogs, yet fail to become active participants? Why is NetworkedBlogs so passive in their partnership with Facebook especially involving advising users of their (purposely-limited by Facebook) services?

As I have mentioned before, I would prefer to interact with the “Source Blogger Community” within the confines of Source Blogger, anyway.

The Explosive Market That Is Facebook?

Well, there it is. Facebook still remains very insulated from marketers, advertisers, and bloggers. The potential is there, but the path is not. I will still remain active in developing my Facebook Fan Page and developing my following on Networked Blogs.

What successes have you discovered while using Facebook? Are you using Facebook Groups with any level of success? Are you finding participation and reader interaction to be…well…practically non-existent too? Hey, how do you successfully tap into the 500 million-strong Facebook market?

OK, Source Blogger, Now What?

• How To Customize Your Facebook Fan Page URL
• Are Facebook, Blog Catalog, and NetworkedBlogs Stealing Your Adsense Earnings?!
• How To Integrate Networked Blogs With Facebook And Your Blog
• How To Create A Facebook Page For Your Blog

As a blogger, we are always trying to find an easier way to integrate our blog into large social networks. With Facebook, that’s somewhat of a daunting task since it appears the typical, daily Facebook user is insulated from a lot of outside marketing — especially advertising.

Therefore, we have to make the most of the tools that Facebook provides…like the Facebook Fan Page! (Or “Like Page” as some may refer to it.)

Many bloggers have questioned the relevance of maintaining a Facebook Fan Page since conversation and interaction is done away from the blog’s normal surroundings. I feel that Facebook users do want to access your blog within your blog’s true environment and that integrating my blog within the sanctity of someone’s Facebook experience is non-threatening and yields conversions back to my blog. What do you think?

Today, we will customize your Facebook Fan Page to make it more memorable, professional, and user-friendly.

When I originally set up my Facebook Fan Page, the site appeared in search and in the address bar as: www.facebook.com/pages/Source-Blogger/127829344235. That wasn’t the look I was going for, nor would I expect readers to remember the site’s URL  structure. Plus, try putting that on a business card!

Fortunately Facebook allows you to customize your Facebook Fan Page URL more to your liking!

• Log in to your Facebook account and after you have logged in, type facebook.com/username (exactly as shown) in your browser’s address bar. You will be directed to the page to customize the URL.

• The page will automatically show your Facebook profile URL (your username) and the link for you to customize your fan page URL.

• After you click on the Set a username for your Pages a drop down menu will appear showing all your fan pages.

• Select one of your fan pages and a box (Enter desired username) will appear next to the page name. *Note that this option appears only to be available if your fan page has more than 25 fans. (If you are sitting on 24 fans at the moment, let me know – wink!)

• Enter your desired username for the page and check the availability. This action can be done only once so choose your username (URL) very carefully.

• When everything is done your page URL should look like this: facebook.com/yoururl.

The Finished Product!

Now, the Source Blogger Fan Page’s makeover is complete and we are left with…www.facebook.com/SourceBlogger.

Ok, What’s Next?

Read: How To Create A Facebook Page For Your Blog

Read: How To Integrate Networked Blogs With Facebook And Your Blog

It probably never dawned on you that Facebook, Digg, Networked Blogs and Blog Catalog would be in collusion to steal your Adsense earnings, did it?

Thanks to the recent upgrade to Digg, the Iframe toolbar was (finally) retired!

Unfortunately, the Iframe toolbar is still a reality for readers who access your blog through Facebook, Networked Blogs, and Blog Catalaog.

Does this mean they are laughing all the way to the bank? No… although, they are diverting your revenue and preventing you from cashing in.

Still in disbelief?

Let me explain… I’ve done a little research on this.

Are Facebook, Blog Catalog, and Networked Blogs Stealing Your AdSense Earnings?

The dreaded framed page.

If you are a frequent (or infrequent) user of Facebook, Digg, and Blog Catalog, do you remember clicking on a link that successfully brought you to the desired page, but it was framed?

I can tell by that blank look on your face, you either don’t remember or it’s not sunk in yet.

Digg.com

Let me show you. Here is an example of Digg’s Framed Page: See that toolbar?

This is at the top of your page when viewing an article. It’s almost like a built-in toolbar with many user interfaces.

Take a closer look:

This is how your blog URL appeared to the legions of  Digg readers:

Does that look like your blog’s URL? Of course not! Would anyone even remember your blog after viewing it? So, remember that flood of traffic you used to receive with Digg? Guess what…

This shouldn’t look all that foreign to you. You probably just never realized the repercussions of this and whet it meant for your blog.

Blog Catalog

That’s the framed section of the page for Blog Catalog.

And the URL?

Yikes! Does that look like http://sourceblogger.com to you?

You say you get a significant amount of traffic from Facebook ,Blog Catalog, and Networked Blogs? But are these REAL 100% pageviews and hits? Well… now that things are being made more clear to you, How does this make you feel now? How did this impact your traffic and your earnings? Think about it, my friend.

Facebook

In addition to the framed page on Facebook, you get screwed penalized in many other ways!

The fans who signed up for your blog’s Facebook Fan Page can go to the Notes tab and read your complete blog article without having to visit your site.

If it was a summary that enticed the reader to click a “Read More” that brought them to your site, that would be OK. But, the whole article?

It’s no secret that Source Blogger is on record as being publicly opposed to access to blog content that exists away from my blog pages – including many article marketing sites.

Is there anything worse than having to compete with your own off-page content that is nesting in other larger, more visible, and well-SERP’d locations that is like a magnet for Google? That jazzy little article you wrote is buried on page 6 of the search results, while the same article placed on Facebook is showing up on the first page. The Google keyword search user goes straight to that page, via the ‘Notes” tab… and leaves!

There’s no way to subscribe, leave a comment, or even get a CPM zone view (or potential CPC or CPA click) from the visit! Right?… Damn!

Networked Blogs

OK, you’re going to be slick here. You deleted the ‘Notes” tab in Facebook and intend to replace it with the ‘Blog” tab. Brilliant! The Blog tab shows a snippet of your article (from NetworkedBlogs) and the reader must click on the title of the article to read more.

Wait! Not so smart. Here is how a recent article on Source Blogger appeared to NetworkedBlog readers:

That sure doesn’t look the permalink that I assigned! http://sourceblogger.com/dealing-with-emotional-reality-of-shutting-down-blog

The Effects of A Reader Viewing Your Site Within An I-Frame

1.  Steals traffic – Blog Catalog,  Networked Blogs, and  Facebook  double their traffic by showing your content in its frame and redirecting the shortened urls back to their site instead of to your site.

2. Steals links – By creating shortened urls whose sole purpose is to redirect the viewer back to the parent site.

3. Steals content – Your content is essentially being “hosted” through the framing structure

4. Steals potential revenue – By either blocking your content/ads or by stealing ad impressions/clicks

The Solution

Since your website then is inside of a “window” type frame, your site is not getting the actual traffic from that click, Digg and/or Facebook are.

Let’s prevent your blog from displaying the frame!

There is a way to stop this from happening to you, and it is so very simple. This script is actually quite simple, you just paste a few lines of javascript code into the HEAD section of all the pages in your site EXCEPT the index page:

The code is as follows:


<script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript">

if (top.location != self.location) top.location.replace(self.location);

</script>

This will prevent your website from being framed in the future, and will prevent any loss of traffic and or revenue from ad providers such as AdSense or AdBrite.

Some of you may be in shock over this. I know, I know… no one has ever explained this to you. Take a moment. Catch your breath. Now type your response in the comment section below. I want to hear what you think!

I have been using Digg, Facebook, NetworkedBlogs, and BlogCatalog for years now! Say it isn’t so!

What is Networked Blogs?

NetworkedBlogs.com is an extension of the NetworkedBlogs Facebook Application to make their user-generated blog directory accessible outside Facebook and provide more exposure.

Make the Most of Your Partnership With Networked Blogs

First, add your blog to the directory so others can find it.

Visit the app’s home page and click on “+ Add a New Blog”.

2) Import your feed and push it to the stream for all your friends and fans to see.

This is one of the best ways to promote your blog. Make sure your posts show on your wall and in the news feed of your friends and fans. NetworkedBlogs provides several options to do that. On your blog page, click “feed settings” to enable this feature. And if you have a Facebook page, you can use this feature too through your page’s ‘edit page’ menu.

This is an example of how your article will appear to readers brought by your RSS feed:

3) Invite your friends to follow your blogs.

Your friends most likely want to follow your news and read what you write.

On your blog page, click “invite friends to follow”.

4) Add the NetworkedBlogs tab to your profile

Do that from your Facebook profile page as shown below:

5) Add NetworkedBlogs to your profile Wall and Info tabs

Visit your NetworkedBlogs profile page and click on “Add to Profile” and “Add to Info” as shown below:

6) Add the NetworkedBlogs widget to your blog.

The widget will allow your readers to follow your blog directly from your blog.

7) Use the news reader on the app’s home page.

Use it to find the latest news, and make sure to vote the good posts up. When you vote on a post, your picture will show next to that post for everyone else to see. You help the best posts get exposure, and people tend to click on pictures of those who recommend good articles to see what else they’re up to and might choose to follow your blog as well.

In Closing

It’s very important that you become comfortable with how Facebook and Networked Blogs relate, particularly in navigation and taking advantage of all the resources that are available to you.

Facebook provides a great opportunity to access a demographic that traditionally may not use other social networks, social book marking sites, or blogging communities.

Facebook has become an everyday staple for many internet users. And the easier you make the option to interact and integrate your blog into these reader’s everyday lives, the better for you and your blog.

My name is Jeffrey Baril, although you may know me as Source Blogger. I am determined to make you a better blogger.

I want you to consider becoming a subscriber to Source Blogger and joining the growing Source Blogger community here. Thank you!

Facebook is the #2 site most popular site in the world and #2 in the United States.

At first glance, Facebook appears like a very sanitary choice for communicating with family members, co-workers, and reuniting with people you went to High School with back in the ‘80’s. Well, it is.

But, it’s much more than that. It’s actually an excellent opportunity to market and promote your blog to the type of demographic that may not frequent blog communities or social bookmarking sites. Fortunately, Facebook has worked to incorporate functionality of users other interests into Facebook. Other interests like… your blog!

Think of a casino. There are no clocks. No windows. They don’t want you to leave or even consider the world outside. The goal of Facebook is very similar. Keep the Facebook user engaged on Facebook pages – away from having to go off-page. And if you must go off-page, it is only to integrate their interests back to Facebook.

Facebook – Going Viral

I assume you already have a Facebook account and are using Facebook to some capacity? If so, then you have probably shared your blog with either some or all of your contacts. If not, not to worry, I have included a link below to get you started, no problem.

Your goal is to expose your blog beyond your small, inner circle to the remainder of the masses.

Facebook provides many of the tools necessary for bloggers and Facebook users to converge. You want the Facebook user to integrate his/her daily interaction to include your blog and its updates.

This will also provide the potential to broadcast your blog into the networks of other users further expanding your blog’s coverage. Other users in this persons network will be able to detect their Facebook’s friend’s interaction with your blog and will follow suit. In addition, there are pages on Facebook that show the user the blogs that their friend follows.

The reality is that not all readers will access your blog directly. But, this is OK. Any method that allows even the possibility of a reader returning or remaining engaged with your blog is definitely a plus for you! Isn’t it?

Benefits of a Facebook Page for your blog:

• You can set up your RSS feed so your new posts appear on your fan page. Facebook members can then become a “fan” of your posts and comment on your posts inside Facebook.

• Create a mini community of loyal blog readers inside Facebook that you can interact with! What an incredible way to “brand” yourself. You can sell to this network and encourage them to refer their friends! Friends who already use Facebook! No new sign-up required! (Is this is a affiliate marketer’s dream or what?)

• Encourage them to click through to your blog and sign up for the proper RSS feed.

So, are you interested in getting your page set up?   If so, here’s how to get it set up quickly.

1) Sign up on Facebook

First you have to have a free Facebook account. If you are one of the rare few who are not using Facbook, go here and set one up.

2)  Creating Your Fan Page

Click on this link to get your Fan Page going. Here is the page that will appear:

If you are creating a page for a blog / website, you will need to choose “Brand, Product or Organization”.   From the drop-down list, select “website”. Enter the name of your site in “Name Of Other Business”, click “I am authorized to create this page”,  enter your name under “Electronic Signature” and then click “Create Page”.

3) Customize Your Page

You will now be taken to your page for further set-up and customization.

Here are some of the things you can do to customize your page :

Customize your image:

The first thing your page requires is an image.  For blogs, the first image you should consider is using your logo. To upload an image, just point your mouse to the image area and a menu will pop up with various options.

You can either upload a photo, take a picture with your webcam or choose from a Facebook album.

Customize your site information:

In the “Info” tab, you can type detailed information about your site such as the URL, the “overview” (This would be a good place to enter any tagline or motto that your site has.) Source Blogger’s tagline is “Determined to make you a better blogger!”

You can also enter information such as when you started the site  and if you have any “products” you’d like to talk about.

In short, use this section to provide greater insight and more detailed insight about your site.

Set up your blog RSS feed to show your new posts in Facebook

This is definitely one of the most important aspects of a blog fan page.   If you are unable to show your new posts, how can you possibly persuade people to come to your site and sign up for the RSS feed?

• First, click on the “notes” tab at the top of the page.



• Select “Import A Blog” in the Notes Setting section. You can only import from 1 RSS feed at a time. Simply “Stop Importing” if you want to change the RSS feed.



• Enter the RSS URL in the box provided. Check the box next to the statement that you actually own the content. You cannot import RSS feeds from websites that are not your own or that you do not have permission to reproduce.

• Enter the RSS URL in the box provided. Check the box next to the statement that you actually own the content. You cannot import RSS feeds from websites that are not your own or that you do not have permission to reproduce.

• Click the “Start Importing” button. Facebook will import the content of the RSS feed for you to preview. If everything looks OK, then go ahead and press the “Continue” button. Your RSS feed will now be automatically imported into your “Notes” section.

• After that, everytime you publish a post on your blog, a summary of the post along with a link will appear on your Facebook page.

4. Publicize Your Page

Now that your Facebook page has been launched, all that remains to be done is to publicise it to your readers so they can “fan” you. (Note: Facebook has recently changed the terminology from “fan” to “like”.

Methods to make your readers and subscribers aware of your new Fan Page

• Writing a blog post about your new Facebook page.

• Putting a prominent link at the top of your blog or in the sidebar. I’d recommend you use the Facebook Social Widget. An example of this appears on the right sidebar of Source Blogger.

• Sending out an email to all your Facebook friends and telling them about your new fan page.  If they were interested enough to become Facebook friends with you, I’m sure they will be interested in your blog too.

• Facebook allows you the option of “suggesting” a page to your friends & contacts. Use it!

• Did you know that Facebook also has Discussion Boards?

Do you have a Facebook fan page for your blog?  If so, how successful is it in getting new RSS subscribers for your site?