Facebook: An Introduction

Facebook emerged as a quasi-virtual yearbook for universities. When MySpace.com was the rage with the under 18 set, Facebook was where there older, educated peers congregated. Once Facebook went public (outside the .edu realm), people flocked to Facebook, a social networking site. Facebook is a Social Network that has been used in many ways by many people. In this workshop, we will discuss some basic ways to use Facebook for you.

Here's an example of Social Networking in Plain English

Why Should I Engage in Social Media? (Professional Focus)

Here's an overview video of Facebook that is relatively quick. It's more of an overview than a tutorial to use for basics within Facebook.

File created by VisualTutor

Anatomy of Facebook                               Home Status Friends Stream Info (Profile) Photos & Videos Notes Inbox (Facebook Mail) Chat Groups Fan Pages Applications Settings

The Purpose of Facebook from the mouth's of Boomers

So many people join Facebook for so many differet reasons that I talked with several Facebook Boomers. Here are their reasons for using FB.

• My church family uses it to keep up with family members who are on Mission trips
• For extended Mission placements in Afghanistan of year long placements
• For chatting online without records
• Keeping up with the kids that do not mind being seen by pictures, but have NO interest in actually talking to us "old geezers".
• I have found family and friends that once again would never have recognized but for their family names
• It is good to keep up with the nieces and nephews who are too busy to actually write, but they post on FB so everyone knows what is going on. 
• My parents are interested in uploading and sharing photos with family members who lived in different states.
• We just learned how to search alumni groups from high school and college.

Profile Creation

Are you ready to get started in Facebook? Click here for a simple step-by-step handout on creating your profile.

Then watch my video below on further editing and adding information.

Activities

• Start a Facebook Account
• Update your Info/Profile
• Find Friends
• Update your Status Stream
• Adjust your Settings
• Strategic Planning

Uploading photos

Part of Facebook is connecting with family and friends across the country or globe or reconnecting with school mates from years ago. Facebook has a robust photo uploading system that allows you to make albums, sort photos, and tag Facebook users who appear in these photos. Those "tags" are then linked back to their profiles as well.

Watch this short, well done video on how to upload and organize Facebook photos.

Posted on YouTube.com by yagglo on May 12, 2009.

Searching alumni groups

Chatting Inside Facebook

You can chat right inside of Facebook without leaving the webpage. These chats are not recorded. Please review the video below for exactly how to do this.

Facebook users are not young

A recent report done by iStrategyLabs suggests that Facebook users are older than they were even one year ago. There has been a 513% growth of new Facebook users who are over 55 year of age. Read the full article here.

Other Resources

• Develop a Social Media Strategy in 7 Steps
• Social Media Marketing Beginner’s Guide
• 9 Ways to Pump Up You, the Brand
• Make a Facebook Page for Your Small Business
• 32 Ways to Use Facebook for Business
• Is Facebook Really Better Than Twitter For Your Business?
• Women Are a Majority On All Social Networks Except One
• LinkedIn vs. Facebook, 6 Months Later
• With friends like these ...

Great video tutorial series from EHow.