How (and why!) to Tag on Facebook

It’s time to clear up the mysteries and myths about Facebook tagging. Tagging is when a user makes a link to another profile or page. This tag can be in a post, photo, video, or any of the other Facebook apps. Whenever you are typing a post or description, anytime you type a word beginning with a capital letter, the default assistance of Facebook assumes you are typing a proper noun and it offers prompts to assist you to choose which of your friends that you’re typing. For instance, if you mention in a post that you’re “taking a workshop with Annie Strack,” Facebook will offer prompts as soon as you start typing “Annie.” As you type more letters of the noun, the prompts become even more specific, until they completely match the name. Make sure you select the right prompt, as that will be the tag that will attached. Don't panic if you make a mistake, just delete it and try again.
 
Facebook has certain restrictions regarding tagging. Members and pages can only be tagged IF they allow it. So if you really hate being tagged, you can adjust your settings so that it can’t happen.  Another thing, you can adjust your privacy settings to control who is allowed to tag you, and you can also adjust who can see those tags. But should you do this? No, and here’s why: Other folks can still type your name in posts or attach it to photos. But the difference is, if you don’t allow tagging – it will not link to your page or profile. So your name will still be in that post or photo, and you just won’t know about it! If you allow tagging, you can receive notifications every time you’re tagged. Then if you don’t like being associated with a particular post or photo, you can always remove any unwanted tag at any time. Tags are a way for users to communicate with each other on Facebook. For instance, I have a lot of friends, fans, and subscribers, and I can’t possibly see every post from everbody.
I have no way of keeping track of conversations that involve me, unless I’ve been tagged in them.  

Tagging a Page on Facebook is slightly different. Both ‘Profiles’ (the personal page of a user’s profile) and ‘Pages’ (what used to be known as ‘Fan Pages’ or ‘Business Pages’) can tag Pages. In order to tag a Page (or Group, App, etc.), you must already ‘Like’ that Page.
Next, you have to use the @ symbol to tag a Page. So if, for example, you want to tag my page -- Annie Strack -- in your post or photo, you first need to ‘Like’ my page (if you haven’t already!), then simply type @Annie Strack. Using the @ symbol will bring up the prompts for tagging, and when you select one a prompt the @ symbol will be replaced by a tag.

Do you have a Page? Your Page can tag other Pages in the same way as your Profile – your Page must Like the Page you’re tagging, and you must use the @ symbol. A Page can’t tag a Profile, however, except when it’s in a response. In other words, if a Profile posts on the wall of your Page, or comments on one of your posts, your Page can tag that Profile in a comment on that post. Again, the reason for using the tag (and the reason why it’s allowed for this) is so that all the parties involved in the conversation can stay in communication with each other. Without the tag, the other person might not ever learn that you replied to their comment or post.

It’s all very simple, so go ahead and give it a try right now. If you have any questions about this, leave a comment here or on my Facebook Page and I’ll help you through it.