Face it: Check what you send to see how it works

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A recent exploration of some applications reminded me of the need to check what you send upstream and gave me some new points to share with Facebook page owners.

The first time I saw a my6sense post on Facebook I clicked on the "see more" link to read it. Whoa. What a massive block of type -- the application ignored the call for paragraphs. Fortunately, if you click on the headline you go directly to the original article.

The second time I saw a my6sense post on Facebook it was mine. Two yucks this time.

The first was for the block of type (too bad you didn't hear my husband's groan when it appeared in his iPhone feed - he didn't get the option to click see more and the post filled several screens). The second was for the link back to my6sense.

I was intrigued by the idea of "your digital intuition," a program figuring out what I needed to, wanted to, read first from the Internet stream. I downloaded the app from iTunes, figured out the settings and was amazed at the how well the application was picking out what I wanted to read first. Soon, I shared a post on Facebook.

Later that day, I clicked on the my6sense link beneath the post and it took me to a Facebook page that hadn't been updated in months. And, yes, I left a comment asking why have a page you're directed to if updates are not part of the plan. A reply came 2 days later from Ilana Gurman, marketing director at my6sense: We update our fan page at facebook.com/my6sense. 

The reply inspired three reminders for me to add to my Facebook routines for page owners:

• If you give a web address on Facebook, make sure you hotlink it.
• If you answer a question, make sure the answer will get to the person who asked it.
• Act quickly - check the page at least once a day.

The second is important because I stopped being a fan when I didn't get an answer within 24 hours so I did not know someone had directed me elsewhere.

The only reason I knew about the reply is a Facebook friend liked a my6sense link and that took me to another my6 sense page that had lots of updates.  http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=138810560344#!/my6sense

I was intrigued enough to backtrack what I had done earlier in the week to get to the abandoned page and discovered the reply. Plus, I discovered I'm not the only one wondering why the company doesn't link to its active page.

Meanwhile, back to deciding if my6sense will occupy some of my iPhone space.

(A new development from the company is highlighted in the post I shared in the graphic at the top of this post:  My6sense Intros Attention API for Hyper-Relevant Web)