How to Install and Setup Facebook Comments in WordPress
Are you looking to add Facebook comments on your WordPress site? Facebook is the largest social network in the world. That’s why top sites like TechCrunch use the Facebook comment system instead of the default WordPress comments. In this article, we will show you how to install and setup Facebook comments in WordPress.
But before we get started, let’s take a look at why would anyone want to use Facebook comments instead of default WordPress comments.
Pros and Cons of Using Facebook Comments in WordPress
One obvious benefit of using Facebook comments is that it increases your site’s visibility on Facebook’s huge network. When users are leaving comments on your website, they can check the box to share their comment with their Facebook friends which has huge potential for additional traffic.
Another benefit of using Facebook comments is that it removes the anonymity factor, so users are less likely to leave spammy comments because it’s tied to their Facebook profile.
However, this also has a major downside. Often users don’t feel comfortable leaving a comment using their Facebook profile because they like the sense of anonymity.
Unlike other commenting systems like Disqus, Facebook comments are not stored or synced to your WordPress comments. They replace WordPress comments altogether. If you have older posts with WordPress comments, then those comments will appear before or after Facebook comments.
Now that you know the pros and cons, let’s take a look at how to install Facebook comments in WordPress.
Video Tutorial
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Installing Facebook Comments in WordPress
First thing you need to do is install and activate the Facebook Comments plugin. Upon activation, you need to visit Settings » Facebook Comments to configure the plugin.
In order to use Facebook comments on your site you will need to create a Facebook app. If you have previously created an app for your site, then you can use that app ID here. Otherwise, you will need to create a new app.
Simply visit the Facebook Apps page and click on the create new app button. You will need to provide a name for your app and click on the Create App ID button.
Facebook will now create a new app for you to use, and it will redirect you to your app dashboard. You will notice your app ID displayed there.
You need to copy and paste this app ID into your plugin settings. But before you can do that, you would need to configure the app to work on your website. Click on the Settings link and then click on +Add Platform button.
A new popup window would appear on the screen. You need to click on website to select it as your platform.
This will add a new ‘Website’ section in your app’s settings page where you can enter your WordPress site’s address.
After saving your settings, you can now copy the app ID and paste in the plugin’s settings page on your WordPress site.
This WordPress Facebook comments plugin comes with a comprehensive set of options. The default settings should work for most sites. However, you can go through the settings to see if there is something that you would like to change.
Once you are done, click on the ‘Save Changes’ button to store your settings.
That’s all, you can now visit your website to see Facebook comments in action.
Moderating Your Facebook Comments
As the admin of the Facebook app, you will get notifications for new comments when you login to your Facebook account. You can also go to plugin’s settings page to find the link to your Facebook comment moderation tool.
You can also add new comment moderators by clicking on the settings link in the Facebook comment moderation tool.
We hope this article helped you install and set up Facebook comments on your WordPress site. You may also want to check out our guide on how to add Facebook open graph meta data in WordPress.
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