Get FREE Training Workshop from John Crestani
John Crestani has been recognized by Forbes, Business Insider, Entepreneur.com, and dozens of other publications for his success online. More importantly, he’s helped thousands of everyday people from around the world create success for themselves as well.
How does Facebook categorize Pages?
Facebook categorizes Pages to help users find relevant businesses, brands, or organizations that align with their interests. When setting up a Facebook Page, you select a category that best represents your business or organization. This category helps Facebook recommend your page to the right audience and makes it easier for people to discover your Page.
Here’s how Facebook categorizes Pages:
1. Main Category Selection
When creating a Facebook Page, the first step is to choose a primary category that most closely describes your business or organization. This primary category appears in your Page’s profile and helps users understand what type of business you are.
Common Facebook Page Categories:
- Local Business or Place: Used for businesses with a physical location or that serve a specific geographic area.
- Examples: Restaurants, cafes, retail stores, gyms, law offices.
- Company, Organization, or Institution: Suitable for companies, non-profits, educational institutions, and other types of organizations.
- Examples: Tech companies, universities, charities, government offices.
- Brand or Product: Used for product-based businesses or brands that sell products online or offline.
- Examples: Clothing brands, consumer goods, tech gadgets.
- Artist, Band, or Public Figure: Used by individuals or groups who are known for their creative work.
- Examples: Musicians, authors, artists, influencers.
- Entertainment: For pages related to movies, TV shows, musicians, sports teams, and events.
- Examples: Movie studios, sports teams, TV channels, entertainers.
- Cause or Community: Ideal for causes, clubs, and interest-based groups that focus on bringing people together or promoting a cause.
- Examples: Environmental causes, social movements, clubs, volunteer organizations.
2. Subcategories
After selecting the main category, you can choose subcategories that provide more detailed information about the type of business or organization you are. These subcategories further define your Page and can help with Facebook’s search and recommendation algorithms.
Examples of Subcategories:
- For a Local Business:
- Restaurant, Bar, Coffee Shop, Hotel, Beauty Salon, Fitness Center.
- For a Brand or Product:
- Clothing Brand, Tech Company, Beauty Product, Home Goods, Online Store.
- For a Public Figure:
- Musician, Athlete, Author, Actor.
These subcategories are optional, but they help specify what your Page is all about and can improve your Page’s visibility.
3. Page Category vs. Industry
While you can select categories and subcategories that best describe your business, it’s important to keep in mind that Facebook’s categorization is not the same as other types of industry classifications (like NAICS or SIC codes). Instead, Facebook uses categories that are more intuitive and user-friendly to help users find businesses based on what they are looking for.
4. How Categories Affect Your Page’s Visibility
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO): The category you choose can help your Page show up in relevant search results, both on Facebook and search engines. Selecting the right category and subcategory improves your chances of being found by the right audience.
- Targeting Ads: When creating Facebook ads, the category you select can help Facebook target the right users. Facebook will show your ads to people who have shown interest in similar categories.
- Page Discovery: Categories allow Facebook to recommend your Page to users who are interested in businesses like yours. The more specific your category, the more likely your page is to appear in search results or recommendations.
5. Changing or Updating Your Category
If your business evolves or you feel that the current category no longer fits, you can always update the category on your Page:
- Go to Settings on your Facebook Page.
- Select Page Info.
- Under General, you can update your category. You can even add multiple subcategories if your business fits more than one area.
Summary:
Facebook categorizes Pages into a variety of options based on the type of business, organization, or individual. When setting up your Facebook Page, selecting the right category and subcategory is key to ensuring that your page is visible to the right audience. It helps Facebook’s algorithms recommend your Page to people who are most likely to be interested in your business, making it easier for customers to find you on the platform.
