Sick of “Ghost Groups” and Facebook Jail? You May Need a Facebook Fast.

Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.

A few days ago I was on Facebook. I was sharing a new post I’d written in a few groups I felt would be relevant to the topic of my post. I was doing this manually because, personally, I think sharing in groups is a social thing. I like to check out what other people are posting in the group… leave comments, like stuff etc.

While I was doing this I noticed something that made me stop and think.

In fact, it made me stop so quickly I posted this little question on my page:

I always like to think about the purpose of what I’m doing.

What am I doing? Why am I doing it? How does what I’m doing move me toward my goals?

I started asking these questions when it comes to posting in facebook groups. There are many many people who have told me to do it, in fact, I’ve told my team to do it.

However, online business is an ever changing thing… and sometimes you have to stop and reevaluate the way you’re spending your time.

My purpose for sharing in groups is this: To get to know people I didn’t know before… and to provide information, education or entertainment for them through my posts.

If everyone else in the group is posting via a tool, and not actually IN the group… it isn’t really serving my purpose to spend my time doing it. Yeah, I could message people in the group… and get thrown in Facebook jail, which I’d rather not do.

Someone asked in that fanpage post how you know if this is going on in your groups…

Here’s how:

If you see the majority of posts are coming via hootsuite, or another tool, the posts rarely, if ever, have comments or likes on them… chances are this is really a ghost group.

It looks like there are thousands of people in the group. It looks like you have the opportunity to connect with thousands of other people, most of whom you don’t currently know, but the truth is… no one is there. It’s a ghost group.

So what do you do when you find you’re a member of a bunch of ghost groups?

That’s what I’ve been thinking about for the last few days.

Here’s what I came up with.

1. Look at the groups you’re part of.

You will find that most of the ghost groups are related to business… network marketing, wahm, work at home etc. These groups are filled with marketers, using marketing tools to do business on facebook on a daily basis.

Therein lies the problem.

If you’re actually looking for real people to connect with… you aren’t going to find them in these “business” groups.

2. Look at yourself. 

You have interests. You have hobbies. (come on, I know you do). Start looking for groups that are related to things that interest YOU! That’s where the real people hang out… in places where they can talk about things they love and are interested in.

It could be pottery, or photography, or parenting, or (can I come up with another P word here lol)… paleo diet LOL. It doesn’t matter what it is, but you need to start looking in places where you can be part of the group. A group of real people interested in a real thing.

3. Realize Facebook is NOT the only network  in town on the internet.

Facebook is familiar. Facebook is easy. Facebook is like an old comfortable friend. Yes, I get that… it is for me too. However… there are other places on the internet where people are actually having conversations. Where groups of people are actually gathered to talk about real things, and are interested in meeting other people interested in the same.

You may have to look for groups OUTSIDE of facebook to find an active group of people, and they ARE out there.

Funny thing is.. if you venture outside of facebook, you may actually find some “business” groups where people are actually talking about business, and how to grow yours.

I’m contemplating going on a Facebook fast, which is about as scary as thinking about going on a wine fast… but the more I look at other places, the more I see they are much more ALIVE than facebook. They are inhabited by REAL people who are truly looking to connect with others, and be social.

I also believe that part of the problem is Facebook is so comfortable… it takes some getting used to when you start connecting on a new platform. It takes a bit of time to get comfortable, and to learn the ins and outs somewhere new… and it’s hard to put in the time when you can just pop back over to comfie little facebook.

But… it’s worth it.

It’s worth investing the time and energy to learn a new space, especially if that’s where the real people are hanging out.

What do you think?

Do you need a facebook fast?

Do you need to spend some time getting to know another platform, so you can get to know new people?

PS. If you notice me MIA on Facebook you’ll know I’ve decided to take on a Facebook fast of my own… you’ll be able to find me on Google + (feel free to add me to your circles!) and Pinterest.