10 tips to get started as an admin of a new Facebook Group
As you may know, I have been running my own local Facebook community group since 2013. In 2015, I connected my group to an website – an online business – as a side hustle… and then about six months later, when I got unexpectedly laid off, it became my main hustle.
Starting a Facebook group can be a great way to connect a community and to make money while doing it. That being said, being an admin is not always a walk in the park. I learned many of my admin tips the hard way, and I’m sharing my best ones with you here.
Here are a few tips to get you started:
1. Have rules and enforce them
A suggested first rule might be your version of The Golden Rule – be nice, be kind, be empathetic, treat others as you’d like to be treated. You could also include “no hate speech/no bullying.”
If you only start with one rule, this one’s great because it can encompass many things – and you can delete posts or comments based on this rule alone.
If your group will be monetized (either right away or in the future), you should also have a rule prohibiting self promotion or free advertising. Even if you aren’t ready to monetize yet, it is easier to have this rule in place right away than it is to allow advertising initially – and take it away down the road. It’s a battle you just don’t need!
5 essential Facebook group rules
2. Take full advantage of the group membership questions
Make sure one of the questions grabs people’s email address (people giving you their email address optional) – it’s helpful if you can offer them something in return (lead magnet, newsletter subscription, etc.) that is not sales-y.
The five types of Facebook group membership questions to consider.
3. Turn on Post Approval
Start with your group on post approval (meaning you need to approve all posts that come into the group). Trust me it is so much easier to start this way than it is to turn it on later!
As you progress along your admin journey, you will learn what types of posts result in drama and admin stress. How to turn post approval on in your Facebook group.
4. Offer a mix of good, useful content and engaging posts.
When you first start out with your group, it can feel a little “quiet.” Don’t be surprised if the group doesn’t immediately have a ton of conversation. You’ll need to engage your members with a mix of content.
For example, if your group is about camping, offer useful tips and information about camping combined with posts whose main purpose it is to get people to comment, which will help to get your group bumped by the algorithm.
5. Make sure the group’s branding looks professional
If you want your group to be taken seriously and to be viewed as a professional place, you’ll want it to look the part, too. Brand the group nicely with a quality header
(Not a graphic designer? Check out Snappa, Canva, or have your header designed for you on Fiverr).
6. Be a leader
Don’t be afraid to be relentless as an admin. Enforce your rules and make very few exceptions. You’ll need a thick skin, but if people give you flack, remove and block them from the group AND your personal profile.
In the early days of my group, I was too invested in wanting people to like me.
Not everybody will like you and that is okay. You and your group are simply not for everyone. If people are causing problems in your group – and especially if they are “in your head” and causing you stress – they need to go.
It’s key to also block troublemakers from your personal profile as well if you do not want them viewing your information or private messaging you.
7. Connect your group to a Facebook page
Connect your group to a Facebook page and post as the page at least on occasion in order to get likes and to allow yourself to post as the page, which can be wonderful if you crave anonymity.
When you post as the page, you are not putting your personal profile “out there” and you therefore have a less personal connection to the group. You can also add multiple admins to post as the page, which is helpful if you need additional admin help down the road.
When you post as the page in the group, you can also get likes to your page. This is a big plus if you’re trying to grow a Facebook page audience – and even if you’re not, you should because you can only advertise from a Facebook page. You cannot advertise from a group.
So, down the line if you ever want to post Facebook ads, it will be ideal for you to have some page followers.
How to connect a Facebook page to a group.
8. Don’t tolerate blocking
Members will block you. Don’t tolerate it.
Make sure you let people know in the rules that people who block the admin or the sponsoring Facebook page will be removed (and then, remove them right away.)
What to do about Facebook group members who block admins
9. Take a good, hard look at your personal Facebook profile
Consider what is publicly viewable on your personal Facebook profile because you better bet, people will be checking it out. You might want to tighten up what you share publicly. (View tips on how to update what’s publicly viewable on your your personal profile.)
10. Editing and pivoting are okay
Don’t be afraid to change up the rules or make pivots in the group. Communities can be unpredictable and admin’ing is an iterative process. It’s okay to modify your rules and the way you run your group accordingly. I would advise being transparent about any major changes that you make, but you don’t need to alert everyone every single time you make a minor change.
One thing to note – whenever you make a change to the group description (or the group’s header, for that matter), your group followers will be alerted. So, if you are making multiple changes to the description, try to make them all at once so you don’t annoy your group members with multiple alerts.
What are your top admin tips?
Are you already a group admin? Share your tips in the comments!
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