Good Idea to Read Facebook's Terms to Avoid Being in Violation

If you've been participating on Facebook actively for a length of time, you probably have heard horror stories of Facebook "disappearing" someone's profile page for an apparent violation of which the profile page owner was totally unaware.

This is why it is a good idea to read those Facebook terms every so often to remind yourself of what is and what is not allowed on Facebook.

In the Registration and Account Security section are some very explicit rules about your personal profile, which is required to be under your actual name.

If someone sends you a link to a page with a company name and you see "Add as Friend" at the top of the page, you will instantly know that this person is using a personal profile page in violation of Facebook's terms.

At this writing (Facebook does make frequent changes), you "add as friend" on a personal profile, you "join" on a group page, you "like" on a [business] page.

Bonus tip: Make sure to add at least one other administrator besides yourself to a Facebook [business] page. This way, if you unexpectedly get dumped from Facebook, you'll have someone else to administer the page.

This tip also goes for group pages. And if you are the only administrator but there are other officers of the page, these other officers will still not be able to administer the page if you get unexpectedly banned.

In conclusion, Facebook is a social media site that offers a world of opportunities for personal and business connections. But it is a world owned by Facebook, and you must abide by Facebook's rules.

BREAKING NEWS: Just after I finished writing this post I glanced down at the front-page of my copy of today's Wall Street Journal. The top story headline is "Facebook in Privacy Breach: Top-Ranked Applications Transmit Personal IDs, a Journal Investigation Finds." Read the Journal article now.

© 2010 Miller Mosaic, LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) and her business partner Yael K. Miller (@MillerMosaicLLC on Twitter) are committed to taking the mystery out of social media so that individuals and companies can utilize the power of social media to attract more business. See their Quick Start Social Media Track.