Social networking giant Facebook has announced that by the end of March, the Timeline feature will be rolled out across all business and brand pages. As a company using Facebook pages, you now have a whole host of new tools at your disposal, but what do the changes actually involve?
Before the new layout is applied to all pages, it would be wise to familiarise yourself with the new features and what impact Timeline will have on your social media marketing:
Cover Photos
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(image: https://www.superdream.co.uk/wp-content/oldblogs/2012/03/cc-coverphoto-300×138.jpg alt: Cover Photo Example from Coca-Cola)
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The cover photo feature is a great opportunity for you to ‘brand’ your page. The unique header image, which measures 850 pixels by 315 pixels, lets you inject your brand identity onto your Facebook page.
Facebook has given users a number of guidelines detailing what your cover photo can not contain:
– Price or promotional information such as “40% off” or “Download from the website”
– Contact information such as web addresses or emails – these are confined to your page’s “About” section
– References to interface elements and Facebook features, such as encouraging Likes or Shares
– Calls to action such as “Get it now!”
Custom Landing Pages
**(link: https://www.facebook.com/cocacola text:
(image: https://www.superdream.co.uk/wp-content/oldblogs/2012/03/cc-custompages-300×135.jpg alt: Custom Landing Pages Example)
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Custom landing pages have proved popular with Brands of all shapes and sizes as they add personality to your business page. However, when Timeline is rolled out all brand pages will use the standard Timeline landing page.
Users can’t change the default landing view to a customised page, but these will be visible below your cover photo. You will however, be able to direct customers to this specific page URL from your website or other social media pages.
Pinned Posts
**(link: https://www.facebook.com/cocacola text:
(image: https://www.superdream.co.uk/wp-content/oldblogs/2012/03/cc-pinnedpost-300×144.jpg alt: Pinned Posts Example)
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Each week, you will be able to feature one key post at the top of your Timeline. This will be the first thing visitors to your page will see, so it is a great marketing opportunity. These pinned posts will be visible for seven days and then return to their normal place on the Timeline.
To pin your latest blog entry or news article to the top of the page, you simply hover-over the pencil icon in the top right and select ‘Pin to Top.’ You can change your mind and unpin a post at anytime. This means you can pin your key information, and show visitors what you want them to see.
Private Messages
As with personal profiles, your brand will now be able to have one-on-one conversations with your followers. This adds a whole new way of interacting with your audience and could be a very important feature for many brands.
Milestones
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(image: https://www.superdream.co.uk/wp-content/oldblogs/2012/03/cc-milestone-300×186.jpg alt: Milestone Example)
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Timeline is ‘the story of your life’, and for brands it is no different. You can now highlight important moments for your brand such as when you were founded and share these with your followers. Milestones are a great way to add a personal touch to your page and highlight your defining moments.
Visible Data
While your current business page data is only visible to page admins, Timeline makes this public. This means the number of new likes is easy to access by anyone that follows your brand. In terms of PR, you will no longer be able to cover up anything from the past so it’s wise you do a quick clean up now.
Timeline is looking like it could be a huge boost for brand pages on Facebook and transform the way we communicate with our audiences. If you’re not a social media wiz, it may be a lot to get your head around. But like it or not, Timeline is coming.
Check out some brands like (link: https://www.facebook.com/cocacola?ref=ts text: Coca-Cola) and Bulmers who are using the Timeline feature.