Facebook Timeline for Your Business – What you need to know

It’s like cilantro – you either love or hate the new timelines for Facebook. Regardless, prep yourself because everyone, including businesses will have the new timelines starting March 30th! I know, we all like to resist change and jump on the “hater” bandwagon, but Facebook really has added some cool new technology to its site, and as a business owner, you should be thrilled! Let me tell you why:

1. The cover photo. This is great for businesses as you potentially get a billboard for guests arriving on your page! (851×315 pixels) Get creative and design yours to attract the clients you want! (NOTE: Facebook does has some stipulations on what you can have in this photo):

*Cover photos cannot include:
A. Price or purchase information, such as “40% off” or
“Download it at our website”.
B. Contact information such as a website address, email,
mailing address, or information that should go in your
Page’s “About” section.
C. References to Facebook features or actions, such as
“Like” or “Share” or an arrow pointing from the cover
photo to any of these features.
D. Calls to action, such as “Get it now” or “Tell your
friends”.
Covers must not be false, deceptive or misleading, and must
not infringe on third parties’ intellectual property.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL PAGES PRODUCT GUIDE BY FACEBOOK

2. You can toggle between your personal page and your business page.
How many times have you tried to make a comment or post on your business page and it would only show as you yourself posting? It was one of my biggest pet peeves! But not anymore! Now you are able to toggle between pages, and even have personal “likes” versus “business likes” so you can keep everything separated (or combined if you choose) depending on your mood! (NOTE: Facebook doesn’t count “business likes” as “likes” on your own page, so if you are wondering why your numbers are increasing but you have pages “liking” you, this is why.)

3. Pinned Posts.
Now you are able to anchor stories to the top of your page for up to seven days. Say you have a big event coming up, or The New York Times covered your business in the paper – now you can anchor your story to show at the top post on your page for viewers for up to seven days.

4. Milestones. A cute new way to show your fans when you hit monumental strides in your business—reaching 40,000 fans, winning the Pulitzer Prize or winning the upcoming presidential election.

5. Interaction with Fans. Well guess what – you’re able to message fans again! YAYYYYYY! The new admin layout allows you to see your notifications to keep your post likes and comments in check, message fans and watch your insights, which means you can gauge your interaction on posts and use the data to analyze how best to connect with your fans (for us research addicts).

I am sure there will be more changes to come in the near future, but these little updates will help your business page thrive if used consistently! So get over your hissy fit on Facebook changes, and start using these to your advantage!