Seniors' Guide to Facebook

Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms worldwide, with over 2.7 billion monthly active users. It’s a powerful tool for virtual connection, especially in a world where you may not always be able to visit friends and family or see them in person. You can make audio calls, send messages, share videos and do so much more all from your tech devices. But if you aren’t totally tech-savvy, there are few things you’ll need to learn before you can go on to enjoy all that Facebook has to offer.

Here, we’ve created a step-by-step guide to help you create your very own Facebook account and a few tips about how to make the most of your new account.

Step 1: Head to Facebook.com

The first step is actually the easiest — simply type facebook.com into your desktop or mobile web browser. Make sure you’ve gone to the right site as you’ll be entering personal information. 

Step 2: Create Your New Account

On the Facebook homepage, you’ll see an area prompting you to enter your login and password. Since you haven’t created an account, you’ll select the option that says “Create New Account.” A pop-up window will open asking you to share basic personal information like your name, email address and birthday. You’ll need to have an existing email address to create your account. Once you enter this information, you’ll be asked to enter a secure code that will be delivered to your email address. This is designed for added security. 

Step 3: Add a Profile Picture

After you successfully log in with your new account, Facebook may prompt you to add a profile picture, add friends and update your security settings. Adding a photo helps your friends and loved ones recognize that your account belongs to you. Whether you choose a selfie, an old photo or even a photo of your pet, make sure it’s something that they’ll trust. 

Step 4: Add Friends

Return to the homepage by clicking the icon that looks like a house. Next to it, you’ll see an icon that looks two silhouettes — this is where you’ll find your friends. Since you’re new to Facebook, you won’t have any yet, but you can use the search field in the upper left corner of the site that says “Search Facebook” to find some. Type in the name of your friends, families and even celebrities you’d like to follow. When you see the profile image that matches up with who you’re looking for, click the silhouette icon to the right of their name to send a friend request. For the profile of a public figure, TV show, news outlet or other non-individual page, that icon will appear as a thumbs up instead. 

Step 5: Update Your Settings and Privacy

Now that you have friends and pages you follow, you’ll be able to see their updates. If you’re concerned about who can see your updates and information, you’ll need to go to the Settings & Privacy tab. You can find this by clicking the icon in the upper right corner that looks like an upside down triangle. Click that icon and scroll down to the “Settings & Privacy” tab. Once you click the tab, you’ll be taken to another dropdown menu where you will click the icon that looks like a rotating gear that reads “Settings.” To modify who can see your posts, select the “Privacy” tab on the left side of the page next to an icon that looks like a padlock. Here, you can update things like who sees your posts, pages you’ve liked, your friends list and your email address. 

In the Settings & Privacy tab, you can also find more information about the data that Facebook collects about you and your activity on the platform and shares with other companies. Take a deeper dive into your Facebook privacy with a Privacy Checkup that walks you through your security settings and allows you to change them as you review.

Step 6: Creating a Facebook Post

Now, you’re ready to share some of your thoughts and photos with your friends on Facebook! Head back to the homepage by clicking the icon shaped like a house. At the top of the homepage you’ll see a gray bar asking you to share what’s on your mind. Here you can type your thoughts, share photos or videos, share links to articles and even tag friends in your updates by simply typing their name. After you type in your updates, simply click the “Post” button to share.

Step 7: Interacting with Posts

Liking, commenting and sharing Facebook posts is a great way to engage with your friends. If you see a post you like, you’ll see an option right below the post to do all three. You can even like specific comments and add photos and videos to comments, too. For added fun, you can also react to posts by holding down the like button that looks like a thumbs up. It’ll open up more reaction icons, like a heart to love something or a thumbs down to dislike it.

Step 9: Making Personal Messages and Calls 

To send messages to a specific person or people, use Facebook Messenger. Clicking the icon in the upper right corner that looks like a lightning bolt inside of a circle will take you there. Type the name of the person you’re trying to contact into the search field that reads “Search Messenger” and click their name. This will open a pop-up where you can send private messages, photos, audio call and video call.  

Facebook is an exciting tool for connection and there’s so much you can do while online, but this guide is intended to help you master the basics. To learn more, explore the site and watch this handy Facebook tutorial — and happy Facebooking!