Meta's social media giant, Facebook, continues to roll out features designed to enhance user connectivity and control. Among its most useful tools for customising your online experience is the 'Follow' feature. This function allows users to curate their News Feed by subscribing to updates from accounts they find interesting, going beyond the traditional friend list.
What Exactly is the Facebook Follow Feature?
When you choose to follow someone on Facebook, their public posts and updates appear in your News Feed. It's important to understand the distinction: you automatically follow everyone you are friends with. However, this feature also lets you follow public figures, brands, businesses, or individuals who allow public follows, even if you are not connected as friends.
Similarly, you can adjust your own settings to allow non-friends to follow your public posts. This is particularly useful for creators, influencers, or anyone wanting to share thoughts with a broader audience. Pages you 'Like' are also automatically followed. To help users identify authentic accounts, Facebook verifies notable public figures and large organisations with a distinctive blue badge next to their name.
How to Control Who Can Follow You on Facebook
Managing your audience is straightforward. Here is a simple, step-by-step process to adjust your follower settings:
- Click on your profile picture located in the top right corner of your Facebook screen.
- From the dropdown menu, select 'Settings and privacy' and then click on 'Settings'.
- In the left-hand sidebar, find and click on the option labelled 'Public posts'.
- You will see the setting for 'Who Can Follow Me'. Here, you can choose between 'Friends' or 'Public' based on your preference.
Viewing Your Follower List
If your profile is set to public, you can see a list of people who follow you but are not your friends. To find this list, navigate to your own profile. Click on 'Friends' just below your cover photo. Then, click on 'More' and select 'Followers'. If you have no followers or your profile is private, this option will not be visible. Note that this list only shows non-friend followers; you cannot see which of your Facebook friends follow you.
This granular control over following and followers empowers users to tailor their social media experience, balancing public engagement with personal privacy. For Indian users navigating the vast digital landscape, understanding these tools is key to a safer and more relevant Facebook experience.
