Facebook Reaching Out to Suicidal Users

As reported a few months ago, Facebook may now reach out to check on you if someone reports that you may be suicidal. I can empathize that critics may think this is an invasion of privacy or that Facebook is overstepping. Maybe technology has no place in asking questions about your life but on the other hand, if it helps save some lives, is it really that bad?

Personally, I've been in the situation where I wish this had existed. Friends on Facebook that I can't remember the last time I've talked to face-to-face popping up in my newsfeed saying how they'd like to go lay on some train tracks. Maybe I'm not a typical desensitized Millennial because I was actually concerned for the person. It was obviously a cry for help. But when seeing this, I myself felt helpless. People that she was obviously closer to were already commenting and providing support. If they couldn't help, what could I do?

In this case, it would have been nice to be able to anonymously reach out and let them know that someone cares what happens to them. My hope would be that taking the face away from the concern, the person wouldn't feel at all attacked or embarrassed. The anonymity may also make them hope that it's coming from someone they were really hoping to hear from, maybe pushing them to actually seek support.

Anonymously,
MMM

Facebook Interest Lists

It seems that Facebook is changing something about their functionality or interface daily and one of my favorite new additions is that of interest lists. With proper utilization, these lists can be one of the easiest ways to find relevant and interesting content for clients or even for personal use.

How they work

On Facebook, there seems to be a page for anything and everything someone could be interested in. By searching a simple word or phrase, multiple pages that one can “like” and “follow” come up. After doing so, updates from that page will show up in that person’s newsfeed. However, because of the way Facebook sorts information, updates from pages you have liked may never make an appearance in your newsfeed and even if it does, it may get buried by all the other information and updates that are constantly being added by other pages, friends, etc.

Luckily, with the use of interest lists, this can be remedied! Through an interest list, you can choose multiple pages to all contribute to one list. Thus, when you go to view the list, all things that appear are from the pages you’ve assigned. For example, if I wanted a list dedicated to social media tips, I would assign all pages that I thought were relevant. Then when I check the list, I have a whole separate directory of just things relating to tips about social media.

How to set it up

To set up a Facebook interest list, simply scroll down and click on “interests” on the left sidebar. You should then be taken to a page with a button labeled “+ Add Interests”. After clicking that, you can either search for lists that have already been created, or create your own. To create one, click on “+ Create List”. You will then be taken to a place to search for all the interests you would like to add to your list. When you’re satisfied with your selections, click “Next” where you can name it. After you’ve done that, you’ve successfully created an interest list!

Staying current and relevant through Facebook pages is very important to keep members up to date and have accurate information portrayed. Interest lists are a great way to maintain engaging content and an active page!

Facebookingly yours,
MMM