Making the most of Facebook’s timeline for businesses

Small business owners using Facebook as a part of their social media strategy have a new way of engaging prospective fans. Last year, the Palo Alto-based company announced Facebook Timeline, the new profile layout that enables users to view their friends’ content from years ago.

Now, the social network is in the process of converting brand pages to the same format. On Wednesday, Facebook announced it would be giving companies the option to adopt the new layout to their fan pages. Eventually, the format will become standard, as has been the case for all of Facebook’s profile updates.

Naturally, the new profile format means that small business owners have a bit of design work that needs to be done – if they are trying to create an engaging, aesthetically pleasing page, they must consider refreshing their profiles to take advantage of the new elements. Moreover, new features provide small business owners with more insight into how their followers are engaging with them, which may help entrepreneurs fine-tune their social media strategy.

Making the most out of the new Facebook page

Proper planning is the key to any social media strategy, but this is especially true when it comes to Facebook’s new page layout. Timeline enables brands to convey important dates in company history, and their Facebook profile should make note of these times in their chronology. Businesses should start by compiling a list of pivotal days, such as the date their companies were founded, {or when} they launched their first product, opened a second location or partnered with another company.

Macy’s has already converted its profile and should act as a model for others to follow. For the company, the key was leveraging Facebook to tell a story – not just its history, but of its relationship with its customers as well.

“Storytelling is such an intrinsic part of Macy’s DNA, and Macy’s Facebook page allows us to give our fans a platform where they can share their own stories and memories about their experiences at Macy’s – whether shopping for a special outfit, visiting Santa or watching Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with family,” Martine Reardon, chief marketing officer at Macy’s, told Internet Retailer.

When it comes to design, the first thing companies need to do is come up with a new cover image. This picture extends almost the width of the screen and will often be the first thing consumers see. That said, it’s important that businesses get creative – an 850-pixel by 315-pixel logo picture likely won’t make as big an impact as an image that shows the company’s products being used in an innovative or interesting way.

“Because of the large size, this image has potential to work as an effective call to action for brands leveraging the new layout … try and get creative,” All Facebook explains. “This space will be the first chance you have to impact the minds of new viewers.”

There are a variety of new features to take advantage of. For example, the new layout’s tabs are bigger, the friend activity section highlights what a user’s connections are saying about the company and the ability to anchor specific status updates or calls to action at the top of the profile.

How does your company plan to use Facebook’s new profile layout? Which features stand out to you the most?

This entry was posted in Beginner, Social Media. Bookmark the permalink.