When I tag someone on Facebook it sends a message?

Tagging someone on Facebook can send a notification or message to that person depending on your privacy settings and relationship with the person you tag. When you tag someone, you connect that person’s profile to a specific post, photo, or comment. This article will explore when and how tagging sends notifications or messages on Facebook.

What Happens When You Tag Someone on Facebook

When you tag someone on Facebook, a link to your post or photo will appear on that person’s timeline with your name on it. For example, if you tag your friend John in a photo, it will show up on John’s timeline as “[Your Name] tagged you in a photo.”

In addition to this timeline tag, the person you tag will also get a notification that they were tagged. This notification will show up in their notifications tab on Facebook with a preview of the content they were tagged in.

So in summary, tagging someone on Facebook does two main things:

Puts a tag on their timeline
Sends them a notification of the tag

When Does Tagging Send a Message?

In most cases, tagging someone will not directly send them a Facebook message. The notification shows up separately from Facebook Messenger messages.

However, there are two cases where tagging can also trigger a message:

Tagging in a comment – If you tag someone in a comment on a post, they will get the tag notification and that comment will also show up as a message in their Messenger inbox.

Tagging in Messenger – If you tag someone directly in a Messenger group chat or message, this will send them a message notification just like a regular chat message would.

So unless it occurs in a comment or directly in Messenger, a tag will not also send the person an actual private message. It will only appear as a notification.

Who Gets Notified When You Tag Someone?

Whether someone gets notified of a tag depends on your relationship with them and their notification settings:

Friends and Public Posts/Photos – If you tag a friend in a public post or photo, they will always get the tag notification.
Friends and Private Posts – If you tag a friend in a private post limited to certain friends, they will still get the tag notification even if they aren’t one of the friends it is shared with.
Acquaintances and Public Posts/Photos – If you tag an acquaintance in a public post or photo, they will only get the tag notification if their settings allow tags from “people you don’t know.” If they limit tags to just friends, they won’t see it.

Acquaintances and Private Posts – If you tag an acquaintance in a private post, they will not get any notification since they are not one of the friends it is shared with.

So in summary, friends will always be notified of tags from you on both public and private content. Acquaintances will only be notified of tags on public posts if their settings allow for it.

How to Turn Off Tag Notifications

If you don’t want to receive notifications when someone tags you on Facebook, you can adjust your notification settings:

Go to the Settings menu and select “Notifications.”
Under the “Posts” section, find the setting for tag notifications.
Switch the toggle off for “Notifications when you’re tagged in a post.”

You can also limit tag notifications to just friends if desired.

Turning off tag notifications means you won’t see it when friends or acquaintances tag you. The tag will still appear on your timeline, but you won’t get a notification for it.

How Tagging Works for Friends vs. Acquaintances

Facebook makes a distinction between “friends” and “acquaintances” when it comes to tagging. This affects what kind of notifications each group will get:

Tagging Friends

You are connected as friends on Facebook.
They will always get notifications when you tag them, regardless of post privacy.
You will always get notifications when they tag you.

Tagging in comments sends a Messenger message.

Tagging Acquaintances

You are connected but not friends on Facebook.
They will only get tag notifications from public posts if their settings allow it.

You will only get notifications if your settings allow tags from “people you don’t know.”
No messages sent from comment tags.

So in summary, Facebook allows more open tagging between confirmed friends. Tagging between acquaintances is more restricted unless notification settings are adjusted.

Relationship to Messenger Messages

The notifications generated by tagging someone are separate from private Facebook Messenger messages in these ways:

Tag notifications appear in your notifications tab, not your messages.
You can’t reply directly to a tag notification.

Tag notifications don’t open a message thread with the person who tagged you.
The only tags that create Messenger messages are those done in comments or directly in Messenger.

So generally, tags do not create new Messenger message threads or conversations. The notification will just alert you to new content you’ve been tagged in.

Other Social Media Tagging Notifications

The ability to tag people in posts and photos is common across most social media platforms. Here is how notifications from tags work on some other popular social sites:

Instagram

Tagged users get notifications in their Activity tab.
Notifications have a preview of the post or photo.

Lets you easily navigate to the tagged content.
You can turn off tag notifications in Settings.

Twitter

Creates a link to the tweet on your profile page.

Sends a notification of the tag with a preview.
Can reply directly to a tag notification to respond.
Option to disable tag notifications.

Puts post w/ tag in your notifications tab.
Tagged member gets notification icon by their messages.
Lets you control if you’re “Mentionable” by connections.

So while notification methods vary slightly, the ability to tag connections and followers is very common across social platforms.

Proper Etiquette for Tagging Users

To avoid bothering people with unwanted tags, here are some best practices to follow:

Only tag people who are directly relevant to the post content.

Avoid tagging strangers or vague acquaintances.
Ask permission before tagging someone in a potentially sensitive post.
Double check spelling of names to avoid tagging the wrong person.

Respect it if someone asks you not to tag them in future posts.

Overall, be selective in who you tag and make sure it’s someone who would appreciate the notification and relevance. Never tag random people solely to try and grab their attention.

Benefits of Proper Tagging

When done appropriately, tagging users can have some benefits:

Increased Engagement – People often respond to tags from friends leading to more likes and comments.
Tag Backs – Recipients may be more likely to tag you in their future posts.
Relevance – It shares content specifically relevant and interesting to the tagged person.

Exposure – Tags can help get your post in front of friends of the person you tagged.

Overall, when used properly, tagging is a great way to share meaningful content with the right people on social media.

Conclusion

Tagging someone on Facebook creates a notification that appears in their notifications tab along with a tag on their profile timeline. Direct messages are only sent if the tag occurs in a comment or directly through Messenger.

Facebook allows open tagging between confirmed friends. For acquaintances, tag notifications can be limited based on privacy settings. Most social networks have similar tag notification functions to help users connect relevant content with their friends and followers.

When tagging etiquette guidelines are followed, it can be an effective way to increase engagement and reach the right audience. But tags should always be relevant and thoughtful to avoid bothering people with unwanted notifications.