Facebook 101: 25 Tips and Tricks

Now you want your Facebook page to excel from others on the web. Here are 25 tips and tricks!


1. Use a current profile picture

While Facebook allows you to post as many pictures as you like, and tag yourself in pictures that your friends have taken, the Web site only allows you one profile picture, so make it count. You may very well have some potential suitors on the Web site, so be sure to portray yourself as accurately as possible. A clear, well-lit picture of you will help you to put your best foot forward, particularly if it's a portrait or captures you in the midst of one of your favorite activities. And you might ought to refrain from using one of the pictures from that New Year's Eve party, as your profile picture is accessible to everybody on Facebook, even with the privacy settings engaged.

2. Don't overdo your 'Interests'

With your 'Interests' section, you really have two routes lying before you. Taking the first route would be to fill this space with some kind of witticism, since asking somebody to sum up what most interests him or her in life on a Facebook profile is slightly ridiculous. A decent example would be to respond, "Facebook," for instance. The snarkier, the better, really. The second route would be to list the interests that best differentiate you; it's understood that you enjoy "chillin' with friends" and "reading a good book," so get more descriptive. Instead of "chillin' with friends, say, for example, "eating fried chicken livers while watching football with the boys." Instead of "reading a good book," respond with, "Victorian British literature."

3. Don't underestimate the importance of your 'Favorite Music' section

As any self-respecting music geek knows, one's musical taste says a lot about somebody, so be judicious in listing your favorite bands in your profile's 'Favorite Music' section. A thorough music section, mentioning your appreciation of Gene Vincent, might make the difference in whether or not that cute rockabilly girl (or guy) responds to your message. Don't be yet another one of those people that says, "I like pretty much everything." Get specific, giving artist names (and, if you're up to it, album titles). One tactic that seems to be popular is to sort your iTunes according to the "Play Count" or "Last Played" tabs, and then copy down what you find. These tips – save the last one of course – also apply to your Favorite Movies and Books sections.

4. Invite All of Your Actual Friends (and Family)

For those of us who grew up in the pre-Facebook era, it's sometimes tough to reach out to old friends and say (in a smarmy voice) "will you be my Facebook friend?" But it's something we should all get over, because the flurry of social-networking only starts getting good when you have a size able community of folks you know and like that are also out there making new friends and contacts. it just means you'll get more cool stuff in your in-box, and also means you're more likely to hear from some random person you went to grade-school with (or maybe an old flame), which, to be honest, is kind of the most moving thing about social-networking (reconnecting with long-lost folks, that is). This writer is even getting to know far flung members of his family that he wouldn't otherwise have much rapport with if it were not for Facebook.


5. Don't add random friends

We have a hard time understanding the mindset of wanting to send friend requests to perfect strangers in faraway places, but plenty of people do it. If it happens that you stumble across somebody on the Web site whose profile piques your interest, it is best to send that person an introductory message. You wouldn't ask a stranger to lunch without speaking with them first, would you? Thanks to Lee Bains. Continue here