Over the years Facebook has come a long way. It began in the early 2000s as a social networking site for college students to interact. 17 years later it maintains its top spot among social media outlets with its 2.7 billion active users. These days it is used for a lot more than posting status updates and tagging friends in embarrassing photos. In 2016 Facebook shifted its focus toward marketing their groups. If you have a hobby, goal or business chances are there’s a Facebook group out there to connect you with thousands of like-minded people from around the world. Here’s why you should be joining Facebook groups.
Until recently my participation was limited to groups that I was invited to like alumni and family groups. My new enthusiasm for the Facebook group community began with the Aldi Nerd Community which has 1.4 million members. In the group they share Aldi finds that they come across while shopping. One popular item that took off on the page is their “red bag chicken”. When paired with an Aldi brioche bun and all the fixins’ it has been referred to as a Chick-fil-a sandwich dupe. This group has been known to cause a stir even causing popular items to sell out in stores at times. The best thing about the group is that everyone (for the most part) is supportive and happy to share their new found treasures. That has been my experience in most of the groups that I’m a part of.
What groups have I joined?
Aside from light hearted shopping groups there are many groups that provide valuable resources related to various topics and industries. Stock Market for Beginners, Empowering Women in Real Estate and Clean Eating Recipes and Support are all groups where members exchange valuable gems daily. A few of my favorites that I have joined are Free Your Stuff West Philly, Black Girls Do Bike and Boss Girl Bloggers. Free Your Stuff West Philly is a group where members post items that they want to give away for free. I have seen members list everything from food to furniture. They have this type of group in every city. Black Girls Do Bike is a space where black women plan rides together, ask questions and generally share all things cycling related. Boss Girl Bloggers is a group for women who blog and want to ask questions and share tips and resources. All of those groups help their members in so many ways. They all bring people together for positive interactions.
Social media is more than just your news feed!
There are so many Facebook groups that it would be nearly impossible for me to list all of the categories. I’m sure that many of you reading this may have already joined your fair share but for those who haven’t I hope that this has opened your eyes to the resources you have right at your fingertips. If you would like to save money there are groups for that. If you want to learn how to paint, you guessed it, there are groups for that. Social media can be an amazing tool if you look beneath the surface.
