As a business owner, staying on top of incoming messages on your Facebook page is crucial for providing good customer service. Facebook Messenger allows you to communicate directly with customers and clients, but it can be easy to miss notifications if you aren’t checking it constantly. Fortunately, there are a few different ways to ensure you get alerts every time someone messages your business page on Facebook Messenger.
Set Up Notifications in the Facebook App
The easiest way to get notifications from your business Facebook page is directly in the Facebook mobile app. Here’s how to do it:
- Open the Facebook app on your mobile device.
- Go to your business page profile.
- Tap the “…” icon in the top right corner.
- Select “Turn on notifications” from the drop-down menu.
This will make sure a notification pops up on your device anytime someone sends a message to your business page through Messenger. You can customize the notification settings by choosing if you want a sound or vibration alert.
Use a Third-Party Notification App
If you don’t always have the Facebook app open on your phone, you might miss some alerts. Using a dedicated third-party notification app is a great way to ensure you never miss a message.
Apps like Notification Pro and Metta connect to your Facebook account and send push notifications to your device whenever you get a new message. Most also let you respond directly from the notification without having to open the Facebook app.
Third-party notification apps provide more customization options too. For example, you can:
- Set up different notification sounds/alerts for messages, posts, reviews, etc.
- Designate “priority” senders you always want alerts for.
- Only get notifications during certain hours of the day.
- Receive digest/summary notifications instead of individual alerts.
The top third-party Facebook notification apps include:
| App | Platforms | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Notification Pro | iOS, Android | Customizable alerts, direct reply, Facebook post scheduling |
| Metta | iOS, Android, Chrome, Firefox | Works across multiple platforms, message snoozing |
| Social Report | iOS, Android | Analytics and insights, team collaboration features |
Forward Facebook Messages to Your Email
You can also get Messenger notifications by setting up email alerts whenever someone sends a message to your Facebook page.
On the desktop Facebook site:
- Go to your page profile.
- Click on “Messages” in the left sidebar.
- Click the gear icon at the top.
- Select “Notifications”
- Check the box next to “Email me notifications about new messages”.
This will send you an email containing the content of any new message sent to your page’s inbox. It’s an easy hands-off way to stay on top of incoming messages.
However, there are some downsides to relying on email notifications:
- There may be a delay between when the message is sent and when the email arrives.
- You don’t have all the context and info you would in the Facebook app.
- No way to respond directly from the email.
Email alerts are better used as a backup option if your main notification method fails for some reason.
Use the Pages Manager App
Facebook offers its own official app just for managing business pages called Facebook Pages Manager. It provides notifications about page messages, comments, reviews and more.
Pages Manager has some benefits compared to the main Facebook app, such as:
- See notifications from all your pages in one place.
- Separate business notifications from personal ones.
- Get alerts for reviews and comments in addition to messages.
- Pre-written replies you can instantly send to common questions.
The downside is that Pages Manager isn’t quite as fully-featured as the main Facebook app. But it’s optimized specifically for business owners and makes it easy to stay on top of all your incoming messages and notifications.
Use a Social Media Management Platform
Social media management tools like Hootsuite, Sprout Social and Buffer allow you to manage all your social profiles from one dashboard. Most also have options for getting notifications when you receive new messages on Facebook.
Benefits of using a management platform include:
- Get notifications from all social platforms in one place.
- Team collaboration features.
- Analytics for optimization.
- Scheduling and publishing social content.
The notification capabilities vary across platforms, but most allow you to get email or push notifications for new Facebook messages and comments. The experience is generally optimized for social media managers rather than individual business owners.
Using a robust platform can be overkill if Facebook is your only focus. But they provide the most powerful notification features across multiple networks.
Set Up Notifications on a Desktop Browser
If you frequently work on a desktop rather than a mobile device, you have a couple options for getting notifications when someone messages your page on Messenger.
Use the Facebook Website in Chrome
If you access Facebook through the Chrome browser, you can enable desktop notifications:
- Go to your page profile.
- Click on “Messages” in the left sidebar.
- Click the “Notifications” icon in the top right corner.
- Select “All notifications” from the dropdown.
This will make Chrome display notifications whenever you get a new message. You can also enable sound alerts through Chrome’s notification settings.
Install the Facebook Messenger Desktop App
Facebook offers desktop apps for Messenger and Workplace Chat. You can install the Messenger desktop app on Mac or PC to get notifications from your business page’s inbox.
Benefits include:
- Pop-up notifications for new messages.
- Dock badge icons when you have unread messages.
- Keyboard shortcuts for common Messenger actions.
- Syncs between desktop and mobile apps.
The desktop Messenger app provides the best experience on desktop for managing your Facebook business messages and notifications.
Use Apps Like Franz or Station
Apps like Franz and Station aggregate all your messaging apps into one desktop interface. You can connect your Facebook Messenger account and get notifications when people message your business page.
Benefits of using these apps include:
- See messages from multiple platforms in one window.
- Get native desktop notifications from each platform.
- Keep Facebook conversations separate from personal chats.
- Customizable interface and themes.
Franz and Station are ideal if you regularly communicate with customers across multiple channels like Facebook, WhatsApp, SMS, Instagram, etc. They provide a unified messaging experience across different networks.
Use Browser Extensions/Add-Ons
There are various browser extensions that add Facebook notification capabilities:
- Social Sidekick – Get desktop notifications from Twitter and Facebook.
- Social Box – Similar features for Facebook and Twitter alerts.
- FB Notifier – Chrome extension just for Facebook notifications.
Extensions like these are lightweight options if you only need basic message notifications. They aren’t as fully featured as dedicated apps, but provide simple alert functionality.
Set Up Text Message Alerts
Services like TxtSignal and IFTTT let you set up SMS text message alerts triggered by a Facebook action like receiving a new message.
For example, you could create an IFTTT applet like:
“If I get a new Facebook message, send me an SMS.”
This will text your phone whenever someone sends a message to your Facebook business page. It ensures you get a notification even when you don’t have a smartphone on you.
Text alerts are also a solid backup option if your primary notification method goes down. Just keep in mind you may be charged per text by your carrier.
Conclusion
Keeping up with Facebook messages is crucial for good customer service. The right notifications setup ensures you never miss an incoming message to your business page.
Mobile push notifications in the Facebook app provide the most seamless experience. But third-party apps allow for more customization options. You can also get alerts through email, desktop notifications, SMS texts or unified messaging apps.
Experiment to find which option(s) fit best into your workflow. Staying on top of messages will help you build lasting relationships with customers on Facebook.