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Facebook Jails the Innocent

When people are blocked or banned from posting on Facebook or accessing their accounts, they are said to be in “Jail.” This is expected to happen as a result of infractions or spamming conduct, and it might result in the permanent deletion of a Facebook account.

But here's the catch...

Facebook can't regulate material accurately, which is why it makes 300,000 content moderation blunders...

... on a daily basis.

This is what happens:

About 3 million times per day, Facebook content moderators analyze posts, photographs, and videos that have been flagged by people or artificial intelligence. Facebook employs approximately 15,000 content moderators to do this. Each moderator reviews 200 posts per day, with 3 million posts to regulate each day. If they work 8 hours a day, that equates to 25 posts every hour, or 150 seconds per post to determine if it satisfies or violates community standards.

It only gets worse...

Consider how many of those 200 posts are 10-minute films. The moderator will now only have seconds to respond to some of the other posts. That is only a few seconds to make a decision that will effect your account, your business, and your bottom line.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, concedes that moderators "make the wrong call in more than one out of every ten cases." That means a mistake is made 300,000 times per day.

That is, no matter how cautious you are, you may still lose your Facebook Page or Group, and it will not be your fault.

Sherry Loucks, for example, has a breastfeeding Facebook page. She solely shares reliable stuff from credible sources, but Facebook blocks every page she runs and consistently blocks her Page for'spam.'

Rectifying an unfair Facebook ban can be practically difficult. Keep in mind that Facebook users are not considered Facebook customers. If you contact Facebook, you will most likely not receive a response. If you do get a response, it will most likely be something like, "We are looking into this and will get back to you," which they never do.

Facebook offers its online community to users for free, which implies they are not paying customers and cannot expect customer service from them. When you join Facebook, you agree to their terms and conditions, which essentially state (I'm paraphrasing) that Facebook is God and you are not. And because there are no regulations requiring Facebook to allow you to participate...

Getting out of Facebook jail might be nearly impossible.

How can you lower your chances of being banned from Facebook?

1: Display no evidence of adult nudity or sexual activity. Yes, this encompasses just about everything relating to the human body, including breast feeding. Just because you're in the right doesn't mean an underpaid and overworked moderator won't ban you for something completely decent in all circles save a medieval religious order.

2: Do not show any content that could be construed as violent or gory in any way.

3: Do not refer to harmful organizations, terrorism, or organized hatred, even if you are completely opposed to them. People have been barred for simply mentioning hate groups' names.

4: Avoid using hate speech. This, like everything else, is open to interpretation. If you are unsure whether it is hate speech, it most likely is to someone, so don't use it.

5: Do not post about 'drugs' or 'firearms.' To be safe, assume that these two terms have no exceptions.

6: Do not upload any form of child nudity or sexual exploitation of youngsters.

7: Do not post anything that could be construed as bullying or harassment. Someone said something horrible, and you want to respond? Don't get involved; simply report them and move on.

8: Avoid discussing suicide and self-injury. This one irritates me, but you should be aware that even saying something like, "If you are feeling suicidal, call this number for help," might potentially get you banned if the incorrect moderator sees it. Yes, I realize that's nonsense, but it's true.

After reading this, you could conclude that I despise Facebook.

I don't.

As an online marketer, I understand that Facebook is only one of many marketing tools that we can choose to ignore or employ.

If we choose to use it, we must be aware of its limitations and risks. Above all, while using Facebook for marketing, you must get your prospects off of Facebook and into your own website and email list as soon as feasible.

Because sooner or later, you may receive that dreaded message from Facebook informing you that you are no longer welcome on their site.

It's always a good idea to be prepared just in case.