My Facebook account was disabled just a month after it was created. It was, and still is, an incredibly frustrating experience.
Background
Outside of a LinkedIn account, I don’t use social media. So the idea of using social media as part of the marketing strategy for Moto Woodworks wasn’t high on my to-do list. It seemed like a lot of unnecessary work given that Moto Woodworks is a local business built on personal interactions and referrals.
But then I read about how Facebook and Instagram (both owned by Meta) could be managed with very little overhead using an app called Buffer. The free version of Buffer looked sufficient for my needs, so I decided to give it a shot.
Creating a Facebook page
I really just wanted a page for Moto Woodworks, but you can’t create a business page without first creating an individual account. So I created a Facebook account for rick@motowoodworks.com. No problem there.
Now logged into my Facebook account, I went to create a business page. The help page for this process is very simple as there are only two fields to complete. The business name is Moto Woodworks and the category is carpentry. I don’t consider myself a carpenter, but you have to choose from one of the categories in the list and carpentry was as close as I could get to general woodworking. The rest of the fields are optional and can be filled in later.
I clicked “create” and was quickly told that my page violated Facebook’s community standards. I wish I had taken a screenshot of this, but I didn’t realize at the time this was the beginning of something I wanted to blog about. I read the community standards and it’s difficult to see where I might have gone wrong. This was a freshly created Facebook account – I hadn’t posted anything, connected with any friends, run any adds, etc. The only thing I tried to do was create a business page called Moto Woodworks.
Submitting an appeal
Thankfully, there was an easy way to submit an appeal. But how do you appeal a decision when you weren’t told how the decision was made? I explained that Moto Woodworks was a real business and provided the articles of incorporation. I clicked “submit” and got this message:
Results of my appeal
I checked back maybe a dozen times over the next few days and nothing changed, so I sort of gave up. Then, a week or so later, I remembered to check again and was given this message:
It sure seemed like the suspension was the result of my first appeal, but now they’re giving me a second chance to make a stronger appeal. I was too frustrated at the time, so I let this sit while I cooled off. About a week later, I carved out the time to try again and clicked the “appeal” button. I was fully prepared to make a more impassioned plea for a business page named Moto Woodworks. But instead of another appeal form, I got this message:
WTF Facebook! I tried downloading my information, but got another helpful message that said “something went wrong.” Honestly, I think it’s because I don’t have any information to download. Again, the account didn’t have any activity.
I also tried reading more about account integrity. But clicking that link takes me to this helpful message:
I tried to troubleshoot this for longer than I should have. Eventually, I found a Facebook help center page that basically confirmed what I already knew. Once your account is disabled, you cannot submit any more appeals or request another review. The decision is final.
Life goes on (without a Facebook account)
If Moto Woodworks were more than a side hustle, I’d be outraged. Facebook can and should do more to explain why it’s suspending and disabling accounts. And what misguided AI thinks a business page for Moto Woodworks is a violation of community standards?! If you’ve run into a similar problem with Facebook, I’d love a comment to hear how you resolved the issue – or didn’t resolve the issue.
But Moto Woodworks is a side hustle and, as I already shared, the business doesn’t need Facebook or Instagram to succeed. It will continue to generate business from existing clients and word of mouth. Maybe this is a good thing in the sense that I don’t have to worry about managing a social media presence. Onward!
PS – A similar thing happened with my Google Business account, but that had a happy ending.
