Why you shouldn’t have a Facebook page

Facebook offers a lot of advantages to indie game developers. There’s a colossal international audience, it can be completely free to use and it’s a very strong driver for app downloads. However, these advantages will only become a reality if you use it efficiently.

Before you set up shop on Facebook you should think about if it’s actually worthwhile. Facebook might not be right for you at this time, and here are some reasons why:

It takes time and effort

Building a fan base on Facebook takes a lot of both. You need to reach new players, give them a reason to become a fan, and then give them enough quality content to retain their interest. It can be a hard slog, sf you have barely any time to spare you could be better off spending it elsewhere.

There’s no purpose

Lots of people have Facebook pages for the sake of it. They get set up with lovely profile and header images, a chirpy first post, then… nothing. There needs to be a reason to have a Facebook page for it to be worthwhile – both for you and your potential fans.

It’s not all about pages

There’s more to Facebook than profiles. You can still use Facebook to your advantage without building a page of active, loyal fans. Take yourself for instance, how many brands do you like on Facebook and how many of them are little indie studios? For example, you can still use paid ads to promote your game to new players without one.

It can drain motivation

Your game is most likely a labour of love and so a large part of its success will depend on your passion and willingness to make it happen. Doing Facebook badly feels will most likely be an unsuccessful venture and, in turn, will probably be quite demotivating.

It usually needs budget

At the time of writing, Facebook’s algorithm had made it increasingly difficult to get new fans through posting great content alone. More than ever, paid Facebook ads are needed to attract those new crowds and this requires money.

So in conclusion…

It’s not to say that indie developers shouldn’t consider using Facebook, but it certainly shouldn’t be done without good reason and method. Managing a good Facebook page can be a full time job (in fact for some people, it is). Just make sure it’s worth your time, effort and (possibly) money before you dive in.

If you are still keen to make one, check out our guides on how to set one up and what content to put on it.