As of March 30th, facebook is integrating the new timeline onto all business pages. This change is not just a change in the design layout, it is converting facebook into an entirely new way to do business online.
How can your business make the most of this change?
1st, design a creative cover photo for you page. This is the first thing that people see when they visit your page, so you’ll want to make sure that you take advantage of the opportunity to grab your visitors’ attention right off the bat.
Since your cover photo overlaps with your profile picture, you can blend them together to create a clever unified image. The Cover photo should be 815px X 315px.
If you’re doing this yourself, you can use a program like photoshop to design it. For photoshop tutorials, check out Lynda. We’ve provided a good facebook timeline cover photo template that is the right dimensions with guides for you to work off of.
You can also contact Design & Promote to see how we can help you with your Facebook graphic design needs.
With the change, comes some new guidelines from facebook as far as what NOT to put in your new cover photo:
- Don’t include price or purchase information
- Don’t include contact information in your timeline cover photo
- Don’t reference facebook features or actions
- Don’t include any calls-to-actions in your cover photo
- Don’t use deceptive or misleading images or text in your cover photo
Apps:
With the new facebook timeline, you have the ability to do so much more with apps. Apps are growing from 520 pixels wide to 810 pixels, which is in line with the Timeline’s overall increased emphasis on visuals.
With apps like static Static HTML: iframe tabs, you have the ability to create an entire website within facebook. Click Here To See How We’re Using Apps
In addition to showcasing your products and services with apps, you can also use them to gain subscribers to your blog, use them for sweepstakes and contests, and allow guests to RSVP to your events.
The thumbnail for these apps is now customizable. This means, rather than the typical icon for an app, you can create one that is 111X74px that is more of a call to action graphic that draws your visitors in.
Pinned Posts
Posts can be pinned on your timeline for up to 7 days. Direct potential customers where you want them to go by giving them a clear call to action. This can be done using images. Post image sizes are 404X404 and are great area to advertise contests, promotions, sales and more. With these, you can direct your visitors to pages on your site or within your facebook profile.