Facebook Groups vs. Group Email: Who Controls Conversation?

 Facebook Groups are controlled by Facebook. Email discussion lists are controlled by your organization. The difference determines who owns your community, your member relationships, and your communication.

Do you use Facebook Groups? Many people do. Users include businesses of all sizes, non-profit organizations, government agencies and public officials.


Facebook Groups (FBGs) started in 2010 as part of the Facebook platform. It evolved to what we know it today; a place to connect, share and discuss. FBGs seem to work well as most of us are already online so it’s easy access. However, regardless of who the FBG owner is , how much control do they really have over it?

Facebook Group administrator(s) cannot always do what they want with their group. Facebook determines how groups operate, what features are available, how things are displayed and what policies apply. When Facebook makes changes, and they often do, group owners must adjust to them.

While Facebook delegates day-to-day group management to group administrators, members must first have a Facebook account to participate. However, privacy settings, content moderation, and the ability to remove posts are ultimately controlled by Facebook. This adds to the complexity of using this platform.

Facebook seems more complicated to use with each update. For example, currently Facebook separates personal profiles, pages, business accounts, messaging, advertising, and community management across multiple tools and applications. And concurrently, in the background, feeds are prioritized by ads, and recommended content over Groups posts. As a result, important messages can be missed, as organizations have less control over how and when members see their content.

What has been around longer than Facebook Groups, remains stable and uncomplicate for group discussions – Email discussion lists. Group (discussion) lists provide a more direct approach, delivering messages straight to subscribers without relying on algorithms or changing social media interfaces.

An email discussion list works differently than FBG. The organization owns the member database, controls the communication policies, and decides how its managed.

Members can participate using their preferred email program without relying on a social media account.

And then there’s visibility. In a Facebook Group, members must visit Facebook to see discussions. With an email discussion list, conversations are delivered directly to members’ inboxes. This way participation is easier for many professional associations, universities, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations.

Email discussion lists also provide long-term stability. If a social media platform changes direction, restricts features, or declines in popularity, an organization’s community can be affected. An email list remains under the organization’s control and can move with the organization as technology changes.

Facebook Groups and email discussion lists both have their place. Many organizations successfully use both. However, when community ownership, member relationships, and long-term control are important, an email discussion list provides something social media platforms cannot: direct ownership of your communication channel.

The question is not whether Facebook Groups are useful.

The question is whether you want to rent your community—or own it.