How To Use Facebook “Notes” To Get More Traffic

Posted February 26, 2009
55 Comments

Small businesses and non-profits that have a Facebook page can leverage the Notes application to drive web traffic to their sites. Facebook currently lets Profile users import one RSS feed from a blog into their Facebook wall using the Notes application.

Here’s why this is powerful:

  1. fish school under waterIf you have 30 fans who each have 100 friends, your blog post will be seen by as many as 3,000 people. These blog posts appear both on profile walls and on the Home Page news feed.
  2. The folks who have added your RSS to their notes have essentially endorsed you to their friends. This type social proof is a big part of what influences consumer buying decisions and which non-profits get support.

Three requirements for this to work:

  1. You must have a blog with an RSS feed (most blogs have this).
  2. Your content must be highly valuable. Again, the Notes application only allows for 1 RSS feed. Why should they choose yours?
  3. You must have at least a small group of raving fans on Facebook. Do you know who these folks are? If not, get to know them.

If you’ve met these three requirements, then you’re good to go.

Simply ask your raving fans to add your blog’s RSS feed to their Notes app on their profile. Easy, huh? If you have blog with kick-ass content and fans who rave about you, then it’s that easy. They love you and will do anything to support your cause.

How to make this easy request

Assuming that you already know who these raving fans are, and assuming that they are already a “Fan” on your Facebook page, simply send an “update” to your fans with the following instructions.

You have my permission to copy and paste. ;-)
1. After adding the Notes Application to your profile, click on “Import a blog” under “Notes Settings”.

notes1 How To Use Facebook Notes To Get More Traffic

2. Enter the feed URL of our blog.

notes2 How To Use Facebook Notes To Get More Traffic

3. Click continue.

notes3 How To Use Facebook Notes To Get More Traffic

4. Within your profile’s Applications setting page, click “Edit settings” next to the Notes application. Configure how you’d like the feed to appear on your wall.

notes4 How To Use Facebook Notes To Get More Traffic

5. Click “Okay” and navigate back to your wall to see the latest blog post.

notes5 How To Use Facebook Notes To Get More Traffic

Finally, do not take the efforts of your fans for granted. Send a thoughtful and personal (not via page update, for goodness sake) message of thanks. Heck – send a postcard!


Facebook for nonprofits charity

How To Use Facebook Notes To Get More Traffic

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  • Awesome! I was asked about this just yesterday and didn't have a decent answer but this is perfect- thank you!
  • Celina
    This was great! Super helpful! If I can only figure out how to link Twitter to our Museum Facebook. It keeps linking to my personal profile.
  • @Celina - I have a post on linking Facebook & Twitter. Just search my blog.
  • To get around the limitation of being able to only import one RSS feed into the Notes app, you could try setting up an aggregated feed using FriendFeed or SocialThing that tied together feeds from multiple nonprofits or business blogs and importing that feed into your Notes app.
  • @Steve - Excellent point - thanks you! Any feed can be used in Notes. It all depends upon where you want people to go - directly to the blog, or a choice of social sites.
  • Thanks so much. Very helpful and concise. I like the graphics also. Takes the guesswork out of it. I'll search your blog for the Twitter/Facebook connection info as well.
  • [Article] How To Use Facebook “Notes” To Get More Traffic #seo : http://is.gd/kWNk
  • John,
    Thanks so much for the information. By far, this is the most useful thing I've found all day!

    <abbr>Kathy’s last blog post..Curious One - Only $30.00</abbr>
  • How To Use Facebook “Notes” To Get More Traffic: http://tinyurl.com/dzvah3
  • @Kathy - Glad it was helpful. Feel free to post the link on your Facebook profile. ;-)
  • We are trying to add our blog to our Facebook page and apparently networkedblogs can't be used on "pages" and the notes feature can't either! Do you have any insight on getting our blog feed... feeding facebook?

    Thanks!

    <abbr>Lisa Kaneff’s last blog post..Independent Consultant, or Unemployed Poser?</abbr>
  • @Lisa - Notes can be used on Pages and Profiles. You have to add the application first, then add the RSS feed.
  • Awesome. Just added my family blog rss feed to my facebook notes. No more double entry. Got the idea from here: http://tinyurl.com/dzvah3
  • Hmmm... use that for my blog

    <abbr>Matt’s last blog post..Dr. Joe's Tips on How to Attract a Mate</abbr>
  • Thanks! I was looking for how to do this...

    From how it appears to me on facebook, I am able to see my blog feed but none of the pictures. Is that because I upload my pictures through blogger? Or does it have to do with my type of rss feed? I am using feedburner. Or is there something I can do within facebook to have the pictures appear?

    Thanks!

    <abbr>Ashley @ Domestic Fashionista’s last blog post..Pillowcase Apron</abbr>
  • @Ashley - My notes published pics to Facebook through my RSS feed just fine. It could be Blogger.
  • How to use Facebook "Notes" to get more traffic... http://www.corporatedollar.org/2009/02/leverage...
  • How To Use Facebook “Notes” To Get More Traffic: http://bit.ly/iVBGf
  • green
    In Step 4, how come I dont see any Wall tab in my Edit Note Settings?
  • I have the same issue as Ashley and Green -- I use Blogger and my pictures do not come through to my Wall. I also don't have a Wall tab on Notes Edit page. For me, some of the pictures are critical to the story. I will keep reading to see if there is another solution...
  • Switch over to WordPress. :-)
  • MeepMeep
    I have Notes setup on a page, the issue I am having is not all my notes are being displayed onto the wall. The Notes Box picked up the initial posts upon submitting my RSS feed, as well as any new posts I added into my feed (within and hour).

    The wall on the other hand only picked up four Notes upon initial submission of my feed, and one of the Notes was actually replicated, so technically it only picked up three. The wall hasn't updated with any new notes within a 24 hour period. I was under the impression that Notes would be posted on the wall as well, or was I wrong in this?

    Thanks for any input.
  • Good question. What did the folks say in the Facebook forum?
  • txlegz
    I found everything except the WALL tab on Edit Notes Settings ... They must have deleted it ... Is there any other way to shorten the blog and add the url so that viewers click on the link? p l e a s e advise... thanks!
  • I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "shorten the blog"?
  • txlegz
    Thanks for following up.

    I found out how to do it in wordpress because I found in fb the
    removed that option.

    I meant .... only send in the feed 2 sentences of the blog with a link
    so that readers would click and go back to the blog site. I was
    having comments on my blog ... but it was on facebook instead of my
    blog site.

    There is a feature in WP where you write an exerpt or short summary
    teaser and then under admin you can choose to send the entire blog or
    the expert with link.

    YAY figured it all out ... but I do really appreciate your follow up!
    Thank YOU!
  • txlegz
    Thanks for following up.

    I found out how to do it in wordpress because I found in fb the
    removed that option.

    I meant .... only send in the feed 2 sentences of the blog with a link
    so that readers would click and go back to the blog site. I was
    having comments on my blog ... but it was on facebook instead of my
    blog site.

    There is a feature in WP where you write an exerpt or short summary
    teaser and then under admin you can choose to send the entire blog or
    the expert with link.

    YAY figured it all out ... but I do really appreciate your follow up!
    Thank YOU!
  • nice man! but i think notes no longer has the option to show only a preview. it shows the whole thing now ~
  • Vinni - I'm confused. Did I say that notes only shows a preview?
  • Ray
    Thanks for the detailed instructions on how to make this work. I'll try this out for sure. Many thanks.
  • You're welcome, Ray!
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  • Great way to expose your feeds on Facebook, thank you John:)
  • Thanks, James. Glad you found it helpful!
  • Great post, thanks. I found it just in time for a Nonprofit Social Media presentation I gave last week to a group of volunteer coordinators. I shared the link with them since it's applicable to both Facebook and blogging questions.

    In case it would be helpful to others, in August I posted a step-by-step guide to setting up a nonprofit Facebook page: http://www.blazingmoon.org/news/2009/08/create-.... I've updated it with reference to your post.
  • Tanks, Andy. I'm sure people will find your post useful!
  • alandmei
    Okay- I am an idiot and did this for my PERSONAL page, not the FAN page- I don't want my NPO's blog running through my page (honestly can only give so much!). How do I undo this for my Personal Page? Got it to work on the Fan Page (great post, thank you!)
  • Just remove the app in settings. ;-)
  • Name
    seriously, this is driving me nuts, how do you reach step 4 application settings. When i get there it allows me to edit the settings of he notes application setup on my personal profile, not the one on the page... How do you get there? I hate FB navigation
  • Make sure you're using the right search box for apps...
  • Name
    My feed is showing up in the Notes section of the Facebook page but not on the Wall. Any suggestions?
  • Go into the app and edit settings.
  • Hi there,

    I am importing my blog to my Fan Page but the links are not live. There is nothing to click on and nothing to click on to even get to the blog post itself. Any advice?
  • Make sure you're using the RSS feed and not the URL to your blog.
  • Awesome idea! Very creative and I never thought about this. I don’t do a large amount of social media marketing, however I love your tips and ideas to help myself and my clients benefit from additional traffic sources.
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