'Liking' something on Facebook is as simple as clicking a button. Many people do it without even thinking because their friends expect them to form Facebook opinions of everything from the beauty spa in Edmonton you went to last week to the photo of a friend's new haircut. But what are you really doing when you like something on Facebook? Most people have no idea. If you're going to use this button, however, you should. This applies both to ordinary Facebook users and businesses.

At the simplest level, when you like something on Facebook you are announcing to the world that you are a fan of the content. After you click the button, your like is added to the total tally of people who like the same London, Ontario animal hospital and displayed on the page. Your name may also be displayed on the page if someone you know on Facebook visits. Additionally, a post will automatically be made on your wall and an entry will appear in the Likes and Recommendations section of your profile, creating a permanent record of everything you've liked.

That's not all, of course. Whenever you like a Facebook page, you're sending information to the website or company you liked. They now have access to your name and contact information as well as your age and gender and other things about yourself that you've posted on Facebook, such as the fact that you're a Toronto eye doctor and you live in Cabbagetown. Many people don't know this, so you should always be careful about liking a page. Make sure it's for an organization or company that you trust and want to be publicly connected to.

So what happens to the information that you send out? Well, most websites only use it to collect statistics. For example, a school that teaches English as a foreign language might want a report of which countries the users that like their page come from so they can focus their advertising and recruiting campaigns. Other companies might want to know which ages and genders their page is most popular with so they can be sure they're hitting the correct niche.

That's not all people can do with your information once they have it, however. Since they now have access to your contact information, you may notice that you have started to get updates on your Facebook wall or in your email from a company or organization that you liked. If you'd rather not let businesses and organizations know what you did over the weekend at your Coboconk cottages, you can simply click the like button again to un like it. This will stop the updates but may not erase the information they've already collected about you.