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Yesterday I wrote about what a Facebook Page is and how you can build one. I’ve got a lot of positive feedback as well as a follow up question. “What’s the difference between a “Facebook Group” and a “Facebook Page”?

You see, in addition to profiles and pages, you also have the ability to create a Facebook Group.

What’s a Facebook Group?
Facebook Groups are older than Facebook Pages and were created so that Facebook members could build a community. Like Pages, they come equipped with the ability to create discussion boards, add photos, videos, notes, and links. You can also send messages to your group members, however unlike Pages, your Facebook Group messages appear directly your member’s Inbox. In addition, unlike Page messages which appear to be unlimited, there is a 5,000 message limit to the amount of messages that you can send to your Facebook Group.

Another difference between Groups and Pages is that with Groups, you can invite your friends to join your Group. You don’t have that ability with a Page, however you can “share” your Page with your Facebook friends. That means that your Facebook friends don’t get directly notified that you have a Facebook Page. They have to see that you’re a fan of a certain page by looking at your profile or news feed.

Also, the layout of a Group is pretty much the same as a Profile, you really don’t have the option of customizing it like you do with a Page. Unlike Pages, you aren’t able to add any Facebook Applications to your Group. And Pages are visible to people outside of Facebook while Groups are only visible to logged in Facebook members. But on the other hand, you also can control who becomes a member of your group if you decide that you want to restrict your group membership.

So what’s better? A Group or a Page?
Whichever you decide to build is really up to how you plan on using it. Here’s a few tips to help you decide:

Build a Facebook Group if you…

  • Want to build a community around your product or company
  • Want your group messages to land directly in your group members’ Inboxes
  • Want to make it easier to for group members to invite other potential members
  • Want to create an exclusive membership
  • Prefer the “Profile” look for your group page
  • Expect that you’ll have less than 5,000 members that you want to contact at the same time

Build a Facebook Page if you..

  • Want to build brand rather than community
  • Want your pages to be seen by people outside of Facebook as well as inside
  • Like stats on how many people visit your Page and demographic data
  • Prefer the cleaner “look” of a Page
  • Want to use Facebook Applications on your page
  • Don’t want any limits on how many people you can contact

Or you can have both. You have the ability to create as many Groups and Pages as you want!

So which do you prefer? Groups or Pages? Let me know what you use to build your Facebook presence.