Why you DON’T want to convert your profile to a Page

Written by Mike Mueller in Facebook Pages on March 30, 2011

Breaking news in Facebook is the new ability to convert your profile to a page.  Sounds great.

Except…

  • you’ll lose every post, image, video you had on your profile.
  • the only thing that will convert is your profile image and the friends you had will become LIKES
  • your new page will not be the normal variety of page but what is termed a “business page”

Oh yeah and then there is this…

http://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=19693

Business accounts are designed for people who only want to use Facebook to administer Pages and run ad campaigns. For this reason, business accounts do not have the same features as personal accounts. Business accounts have limited access to information on Facebook-when using a business account, you can view all the Pages and Social Ads you own, but you will not be able to view profiles or content owned by other people. Business accounts cannot be found in a search, and the owner of the account will not be able to send or receive friend requests.

 

UPDATE:  Make a mistake and now want to go back?  There’s a form for that!  https://www.facebook.com/help/contact_us.php?id=189265951117017

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Mike Mueller

Mike builds the custom Apps that create the Tabs that make Custom Facebook Pages special. He builds Discount WordPress Blogs and shoots commercial high def video. He's an avid hockey fan, rides a motorcycle (a really fast one), loves strong beer and good red wine.
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6 Comments - Leave a comment!
  • http://jasonwheeler.biz/FreeBook Jason Likes Sharing Stuff

    I use my pages and my profile for almost completely different goals and reasons. I’ve found my profile is very useful for really connecting and letting people in on my passions hobbys and personal life. Many that get to know me choose to “like” me when the learn the value that I have to share there.

  • http://www.rerockstar.com Matt Stigliano – @rerockstar

    But Mike isn’t this a great thing for all those people who never created a business page, but are conducting business like activities on their personal profile? I just think this is the beginning of a warning to move business off of the personal side (which they clearly have intended all along).

    I’d just hate to see people find themselves deleted one day because they’ve been in violation of TOS for so long.

    • http://AreWeConnected.com mikemueller

      Wouldn’t it be better for them to start a fully functioning Page from scratch? Start that page, ask your friends on the profile to LIKE the page and then delete the profile.
      FB’s answer here adds little value – converting the friends to like but the tradeoff is you end up with a lousy FB business page.

  • http://twitter.com/sweetmd Matt Sweet

    Isn’t Facebook offering this as an option for all the people who broke rule number one of facebook (creating a personal profile under a business name and then behaving like a business under that personal profile)? Nice of them to offer such a thing but it sure would be a bummer to lose all the content you’ve worked so hard to cultivate. But then again, maybe that’s what rule breakers deserve!

  • Rhondahurwitz1

    Mike,

    I can’t believe they did this and made it a Business account and not a regular, functional page. Are we reading it right?

    Rhonda