Changes to Facebook: The New “Timeline”

On March 30, Facebook will automatically make a change to every page in its system that will give each page a new look. For the past few months, Facebook has made it optional to start using the new look, called Timeline, but now the time has come that the new look is going to be implemented on all pages.

 

Instead of a row of smaller photos across the top of your profile, you will get to choose a “cover” image that will fill up a larger space. Your profile picture can be a different picture, and it appears as an inset in the bottom left of the cover image. One major new feature is the option to “pin” important or noteworthy posts to the top of the feed for one week, and receive and respond to private messages from users. Users can also go back through time, so to speak, and adjust the privacy settings on old posts, to control what people see in the new look.

 

The first step to take is to take the preview tour, which Facebook is offering through a link at the top of your profile or page that you are an admin of, so that you can see how your new Timeline will look. When you are satisfied with how the new page looks, click the “Publish Now” button. You can upgrade anytime until March 30th, 2012, at which time Timeline will automatically become publicly visible for all of your Pages, whether you have opted in to the new look or not.

 

The information you provided about yourself and your business will remain the same, but the visual presentation is changing, which is a chance to really brand your page with a new look, and perhaps re-vamp your message!

 

 

 

 

 

The cover image is an 851 x 315 pixel image that displays at the top of your profile. In the screenshot above, the cover image constitutes both the green and orange images above the profile picture and the page name. This is the first thing that people see when they visit your profile, so the key is to pick an image that well-represents the branding or visual identity that you want to associate with your business or yourself. Facebook says that cover images can’t be used for calls to action, coupons, discounts, or other offers, so pick a visually interesting, high resolution image that is not overly promotional.

 

Below the cover image is your Page’s profile picture, It appears as an inset to the cover image, so this is an opportunity to contrast two separate but distinct images together. Choose two photos that go well together and that together really showcase your brand and your personality. Next to that is your name, your total number of Likes and the number of “people talking about this.”

 

The About section shows the description you entered for your business or brands and an address and contact info for local businesses. Clicking through the About link unfolds a map and any other basic info that has been entered.

 

If you created any customized landing pages for your Facebook profile, as HEROweb did for our Marketing Bites and Ecommerce Blog, these will be presented differently. The Apps have been relocated from the left navigation sidebar to the right of the about section. Previously, Pages could set a default landing tab that all non-fans would first see instead of the wall when they visited a Page. This is no longer what is being done. Instead, users always see the main Timeline view and have to actively click through to custom apps.

 

 

 

The red circle above shows where the custom Apps tabs we created to link to the Marketing Bites and the Ecommerce Blog were located in the old profile. In the new profile, they are to the right of the about section, as you can see below:

 

 

Posts can also be Highlighted to make them appear the full width of the page. For long-time users of Facebook, this may take a while, but if you go back through your old posts and photos, you can Highlight ones that you particularly like or that are still relevant. You can also go back and delete posts that you may not want anyone to see any longer. Highlight user posts that are especially positive, and hide negative ones before you make your Timeline visible to the world. In essence, you have a chance to write your own history!

 

This is an opportunity to highlight and celebrate important or significant milestones and events in your past. This following screenshot shows what the post looks like when you hover over the upper right corner to reveal the “highlight” and “edit or remove” buttons:

 

 

This is what the post looks like when the post is “highlighted":

 

See how it is bigger and covers both columns?

 

Once you get Timeline, you'll have 7 days before anyone else can see it. This gives you a chance to get your timeline looking the way you want it to before other people see it. Make sure that the images you’ve selected are high resolution, and complement each other.

 

While many people are frustrated when Facebook makes changes that they don’t tell users about, there are a lot of benefits for the business owner for marketing with this update. It’s an opportunity to reinvent how you present your business to your social media network. Up until March 30, you can switch back and forth between the two versions, but after that day, your Facebook audience will start seeing the “new” you!