It’s been over three years since we did a poll here on MissPres. That one asked how readers accessed MissPres–by laptop/desktop, smart phone, or tablet. Back then, desktops ruled the day with 89% of the vote. Around that time, we also debated whether we wanted to have a Facebook presence that would allow Facebook users to follow and see the newest post in their newsfeed. At the time, we decided we didn’t want that because it seemed like it would create two different conversations, one which everyone on the World Wide Web could see and the other that only Facebook users could see. Three years on, though, we’re revisiting that second topic since many people today don’t seem to use email as much as they do Facebook. Although we have more email subscribers than ever, it does seem like the number of views per new post has stayed constant in the last couple of years, so we wonder if the shift away from browsers and toward apps like Facebook is a root cause.
Please take a few seconds to play in this poll, and leave comments if you desire. You can check up to two boxes. I hope this will help us understand how our readers are finding us, and, if needed, shift to where they are. This doesn’t mean that we would stop blogging with WordPress or that the email subscription would go away, just that we would also add a Facebook page where links to our daily posts would go and to which Facebook users could subscribe. One thing I’ve noticed with a Facebook page that I administer is that Facebook doesn’t send every post out to all subscribers like WordPress does with the emails, so that’s another potential drawback if that becomes the primary way you interact with the blog.
Categories: Asides
Preservation in Mississippi 
Depending on the poll results, maybe a Facebook page that highlights different stories than the blog. I get your updates via email and twitter now, would be much easier to share with Facebook folks if you had a page.
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Another blog I subscribe to has a Facebook page. Plus, I subscribe to it via email. This works great because I don’t miss a post by getting it via email but I can also share each post much easier by using Facebook. I have shared links to this page via Facebook and many of my friends enjoyed those posts, though they probably wouldn’t have seen them otherwise.
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Personally I do not look at face book every day as it tends to be too addictive however I do check email on a dailybasis.
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I’d like to participate in the poll, but don’t see a link in this post. What am I missing?
(My answer would be that you definitely need a Facebook presence, if only for ease of sharing. But that Facebook presence should simply advertise links to the blog, with teasers. Comments could be disallowed on Facebook so that the conversation remains archived on the blog.)
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Not sure why you’re not seeing the poll–it’s embedded in the post. Could be a browser issue? Let me see if I can find a direct link.
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It’s working now. Strange… Earlier, the checkboxes were inaccessible on my iPad browser, even after refreshing. But now I’m able to take part.
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So far, I’m fascinated by the low Facebook results–only 14% of readers! More people check the blog daily?
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Well, I voted for email because I don’t want to miss a post. That said, I’d greatly welcome a Facebook page. I wouldn’t worry about conversation since Facebook has made it easier to find old posts. You’ll probably even get comments you wouldn’t get otherwise without the Facebook page since it’s a much wider audience, and it would most likely increase traffic to the blog. Pardon my millenial mindedness but I just don’t see the downside of having a Facebook page.
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Please, no Facebook. No need to put up with the advertising and security issues. The present blog is great!
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I like the possibility of adding Facebook. You could create a group page where those interested would request being added to the group. The administrator would approve (after vetting😉) if concerned about any and everyone commenting. Guess it depends on the purpose! If it’s to increase viewers and users, then social media is the way to go. I personally like all of our options!!!
Love the blog!
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I love Preservation as it is but agree with Betsey Hamilton about closed group page. I enjoy two groups immensely but they more social than your educational, photographers, etc. When I discovered Preservation, I was not aware of just how interesting and instructive it is. The emails suit me just fine. I have a folder with special saved ones which I revisit from time to time.
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Thanks to all for your comments. Some of you have suggested a closed group page. I had been thinking of just a regular ol’ organization page that people could “Follow” and WordPress would automatically send the daily post link to. Something like this: https://www.facebook.com/Preservation-in-Mississippi-blog-118260971526721/
But I’d like to hear more about why you think a group page would be better and why it should be closed? My concern with a group page would be that it seems like it would definitely create two Preservation in Mississippi groups, one that interacts with the blog posts, which are more long-term to my mind, and one that is on Facebook and seems more ephemeral (since Facebook is constantly changing their settings, people can delete their comments or just delete their entire profile, etc.) Plus, it seems like a group page would involve more moderation time than just a regular page. But, I also see that such a page might create more of a sense of community, even if it is ephemeral. I welcome your thoughts!
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Remember, one problem with Facebook is that they claim the usage rights to everything that is posted on the site. They could use Preservation in Mississippi posts and photographs for whatever they please, theoretically, as long as it is used just on Facebook. Plus, I just do not like the company. Of all the big tech companies, it seems like the worst one, with an ownership and culture of ethical bankruptcy.
Of course, since I am not on Facebook, anything posted on there would lack my cheerful, polite comments. And wouldn’t that be terrible. (sarcasm)
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