How to turn Facebook into your happy helper this Christmas

MANILA, Philippines — While Christmas for Filipinos is associated with moments like shopping and feasting, it’s the time spent reconnecting with loved ones that gets everybody excited. Being the digital-savvy and socially connected people Filipinos are today, the experience wouldn’t be complete without the benefits of social media this holiday season.

According to a new Festive Season data from Facebook, there is a spike in usage of the social media platform during the festive season. Filipino users in particular share 30 percent more videos and 20 percent more photos.

In the Philippines, 84 percent of Facebook conversations during the season revolved around greetings and activities.

From reaching out to friends, to posting holiday moments and photo albums, the Christmas season is constantly recorded on social media. Beyond sharing updates and exchanging greetings, there are many other amazing ways Facebook can help you make it a memorable holiday season.

Reconnect with families members a Facebook group

For many, the holiday season is almost always synonymous to the arrival of “balikbayans.” Whether it’s a cousin who lives in New Jersey, USA or an uncle working in Doha, Qatar, chances are someone from somewhere is coming home for the holidays. Gather the entire clan in a Facebook Group and keep up with news on everybody’s arrival. Groups are private spaces where you can keep in touch with your family members by sharing updates, photos or documents.

Organize parties using Facebook events

You can also use Facebook Events to organize that long awaited reunion or barkada Christmas party. Events is a feature on Facebook that lets you organize gatherings, respond to invites and keep up with what your friends are doing. Create an Event and send Facebook invites to the gang to RSVP in an instant.

Get your Christmas inspirations by visiting sites that provide creative ideas

As you plan that yearly get together, use your Facebook account to connect to sites that will get your creative juices running such as Pinterest, StumbleUpon and Etsy. Browse through hundreds of Christmas-inspired recipes and decoration ideas that will impress and add holiday cheer to your guests. While you’re at it, use your account to sign into streaming platform Spotify to begin creating that Christmas playlist.

Immortalize memorable experiences

Another great Facebook feature allows you to upload and create photo albums of your most memorable holiday moments. Facebook is a great place to both store and share your important photos with family and friends, and this includes the many snapshots you’ll take during your family reunion or barkada Christmas party. Don’t forget to let your family and friends add their own favorites too by clicking on “Make Shared Album,” when using your Facebook on your desktop.   

For those who prefer to keep things low key, download the Moments app (free on iOS and Android) to quickly and easily share batches of holiday party photos privately with the friends who are in them.  You can then choose to share them to Facebook and Instagram, or simply store them in Moments to keep the blackmail offline.

Holidays are the best time to make new bonding memories with your family and friends. Make Facebook your fun and flexible helper in creating, capturing and sharing every moment. — Alixandra Caole Vila