Your Facebook page has been unpublished… not the kind of notification you want to receive on Facebook at any time!
Yep, that is the notification that I received a couple of weeks ago on a Friday evening… what a nightmare! Belonging to a few Facebook groups, I knew that this was not good to see. This issue crops up a lot, with group members asking for help because their page has been unpublished or removed. Unfortunately, there seems to be little success in getting things rectified.
I immediately clicked on my Facebook page, which I could still see as admin. At the top of my page was a banner saying my Facebook page had been unpublished. I could appeal the decision by clicking the appeal button, which I did. A pop-up acknowledging my request to appeal appeared, and that was it.
Why would your page be taken down?
Here are some of the reasons that Facebook will unpublish your page:
- Not all your admins have an authentic profile
- Your page has admins that have gone against Facebook’s community standards
- The page has a misleading name
- Your page has been reported by someone
- You post content that is misleading to people who follow your page
For more information and guidance, check out this article on the Facebook Help Centre. Why would my Facebook page be taken down or have limits placed on it?
So, what to do next?
After clicking appeal on the top of my page, I started searching in Facebook groups for tips and advice. I also did a few Google searches for additional advice. It was disappointing to see so many posts experiencing the same issue. They all seemed to not get a response from Facebook or success in retrieving their page.
I also completed this form https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/164405897002583?show_form=pages_bug Although I didn’t receive a response from Facebook, it is worth trying a few times.
I also went through my page settings and checked the Page Quality. This is something you should do regularly, as it can flag any issues with your page. Even though my page status was unpublished, the page quality said there were no restrictions or violations. I was hopeful that things would be resolved and my page would be published.
Other steps to take
I have had my Facebook page for over 10 years. If it was going to be deleted, I would need to start again… frustrating and annoying, but I hoped it wouldn’t be necessary. I did create a new Facebook page but did not put any branding or content on it and left it unpublished, as I did not want Facebook to choose this page over my existing page.
I was prepared and ready to start afresh. I have social media calendar boards in Trello so I had a lot of created content at my fingertips.
As we don’t really “own” our social media accounts, it is important to have other options available such as a mailing list, website, blog and other social media platforms. This will enable you to contact your audience and customers and keep them informed of the situation.
Page published
5 days after my Facebook page was unpublished, I received a notification saying after reviewing my appeal, my page had been published.
I didn’t receive an email, so I have no idea what flagged my page to be unpublished. It may have been maliciously reported. I am relieved that the appeal was looked at favourably as that is not the case for many others.
Should this happen to you, I suggest you click appeal, complete the form a few times and hope for the best!
