I have for a long time felt very guilty “Ignoring” someone’s friend request on Facebook. Have you?
Clicking that Ignore button felt like a total rejection to people who were interested in connecting.
Now the “Subscribe” option eases that guilt because I do not have to cut others off from me.
Since I am all about networking, meeting new people, cultivating new connections and overall widening my circle of influence, subscribing simply makes sense. If you are using Facebook for more personal connection with people you know only, then turning on the subscribe button on your account would have no use.
What Does Subscribing On Facebook Mean
Subscribing is a way to let non-friends see your public updates in their News Feed on Facebook. This is similar to “following” someone on twitter or subscribing the RSS feed of a blog of your choice. This totally takes the pressure off accepting friend requests from everyone who asks. Theoretically, they want to be friends so they can keep up with you. If you’re like me, you may not have the bandwith to interact and keep up with everyone and so, they will be best served if they are subscribed to your public updates.
If you activate the Subscribe feature on Facebook, and you simply Ignore a friend request, that person is automatically subscribed to your public updates. This is very nice for anyone who wants to follow the updates of someone who is already maxed out in friends and cannot accept any more friend requests.
By the way, ALL of your friends are automatically subscribed to your updates as whether you turn on the Subscribe feature or not. Friends being able to see what you post is the purpose of being Facebook friends.
You do not have to activate your subscribe button in order for you to subscribe to non-friends. You will only be able to subscribe to those non-friends’ updates who have turned on the subscribe feature in their Facebook account. If you are already friends with someone, you are automatically subscribed. You do not need to click the subscribe button. However, you will see the Subscribe button on their timeline/profile.
If you hover over the Subscribe button on any of your friends profiles, you will see a variety of types of posts you can unsubscribe from. This must be done per friend or person you’re subscribed to. So if someone has too much going on or posting things you’d rather not view, you can essentially turn them off. Facebook allows you to filter the kinds of updates you see from your friends by individually going to your friends timeline/profile and adjusting these settings. Your subscribe filtering choices include eliminating any of the following:
All, Most or Only Important Updates (according to Facebook)
Life Events
Status Updates
Photos
Games
Comments and Likes
Music and Videos
Other Activity
As well as Unsubscribe (you will remain friends if already friends)
How To Active The Subscribe Feature on Your Profile
Adding the Subscribe button is completely optional for your Facebook account. To do so, you can use this link and follow the instructions to turn on the subscribe feature for non-friends to subscribe to you: https://www.facebook.com/about/subscriptions/
Facebook has a step by step tutorial for you here
https://www.facebook.com/publicfigures?sk=app_233284656721555
Here is a Great FAQ for the Subscribe Feature
https://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=246210718757459
How To View Your Subscribers and Subscriptions
If you’ve allowed subscribers, you can see the people who have subscribed to you by clicking the Subscribers or Subscriptions link on your profile on the left (or Subscribers box in your timeline). Then you will have the option of viewing (links at top) Friend Subscribers/Subscriptions or Public Subscribers/Subscriptions
Friend Subscribers: Friends are subscribed to you by default, this means they may see your posts in News Feed.
Public Subscribers: These are people you’re not friends with who subscribe to your public updates.
How To View, Manage Notifications and Block Subscribers
When you allow anyone to subscribe to your public updates, you’ll get to choose notification settings. If you do not edit your settings, you will only receive notifications when friends of friends become your subscribers. https://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=216792731707396
If you don’t want a specific person to subscribe to you, or want to disconnect from a specific subscriber, you can block them at any time from within your Privacy Settings.
- Click the account menu at the top right of any Facebook page and choose Privacy Settings.
- Find the Block Lists section and click Manage Block Lists.
- Enter the name or email address of the person you want to block and click Block. People will not be notified when you block them.
If you can’t find someone using this method, try going to the person’s profile (timeline) and selecting Report/Block This Person from the dropdown. More: https://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=168009843260943
