Build Them Bigger and Faster
Groups give you the ability to create a tight community faster than Fan pages. Group pages also make it much easier to communicate with members.
One of the biggest advantages groups have over Fan pages is that you can contact the whole group quickly. With Like-driven Fan pages, your latest page updates are thrown in with the rest of a fan’s News Feed. If the fan happens to miss your notice, she doesn’t get the message.
However, groups let you do united messaging directly into the mailboxes of everyone in the group. You send a single Facebook email and it reaches every member of the group.
 | DEFINITION |
United messaging is the process of contacting everyone within a group with a single email.
For instance, suppose you want to tell your group about a new line of products you’re launching this Fall. Go to Facebook Email, type the group name, and create your message. You have quick access to everyone in your group! You can even attach pictures of your new products to your messages or send along information sheets.
Group Documents
One great way to collaborate within a Facebook Group is by creating a group document. Why make an item available within the group? It’s an excellent way to collaborate on a specific document. Here’s how you do it:
1. Go to your group page.
2. Click Create a Doc on the right column.
3. Type in the document title and body.
4. Click Create Doc in the upper-right corner (see Figure 8.3).
Facebook makes the document available for the group to read and edit.
Facebook Doc has several features similar to a basic word processing program such as Microsoft Word. Starting from the left, the icons are as follows:
• Bold
• Italic
• Numbered list
• Bulleted list
• Add picture
Group Events
You can also use groups to announce events. If you’re hosting a special promotion or an event that really needs lots of attendees, setting up an event and publicizing it through your Group page definitely gets more attention than the average Facebook Event invite (see Chapter 11 for details on Facebook Events). An event can promote discussion on the group Wall, which will facilitate interest in the event. Furthermore, people are more apt to attend an event if they see familiar faces going as well. The chances of these faces being familiar are much higher when you’re working within the context of a group.
 | FRIENDLY ADVICE |
The group setup makes it much easier to get people involved in what your business is doing. When it comes to united messaging, you can attach files, pictures, and other details. In fact, a Facebook Group may be useful to you not only for external communication, but internal discussions, too. Imagine your employees joining a private Facebook Group where they could discuss issues and concerns. The group messaging makes it even more appealing.