Last Friday, we let you know that the new Timeline on Facebook wouldn’t be the end of the world and that you can actually benefit from the new features. It really is as simple to set up as the original layout. Just in case you don’t believe us, we’ll walk you through the basic setup just to ease your nerves a little more.
Facebook makes it pretty simple by presenting you with a guided tour. If you’re an administrator to the page, you’ll want to click the green “Start Tour” button to get started.
Steps 1: Cover Photo and Profile Picture
You must first select a cover photo that best conveys who your company is and what you provide to customers. You should make it visually appealing if you can, because this will be the main focus of your page. The dimensions for the photo are 851 x 315 pixels, so select accordingly. There are rules, however, that you must abide by when it comes to selecting a cover photo. The cover photo can’t include:
- Price or purchase information
- Contact information-this goes in your “About” section.You can’t have anything suggesting users “Like” or “Share” your page or even hint to the idea.
- No calls-to-action
- The photos must be your own and must not be false or misleading.
You must secondly select your profile picture. This will be shown throughout Facebook: whenever you post anything or customers/users access any part of your page. Usually a company or brand logo is the safest choice since customers/users are most likely more familiar with your logo. The image size should be 180 x 180 pixels and will be scaled to 32 x 32 pixels, so make sure it’s easy to make out.
Step 2: Views
At the top of your page, your photos, likes and apps are organized underneath the cover photo. While you can’t rearrange the photos from being in the first spot, you are able to rearrange the rest (up to 11 more) in order of importance or preference.
Step 3: Star, Hide or Pin
You are able to adjust stories in your timeline by hovering over them with your cursor. You are able to make them wider, highlight them as important with the star icon, hide them with the pencil icon or delete them entirely. You’re also able to pin a certain story to the top of your timeline for up to 7 days if it’s something you want to highlight, calls-to-action, promos, etc.
Step 4: Admin Panel
Admins are able to track activity on their page from the Page Insights (analytics), respond to page comments, edit the page, create new ads, etc.
Step 5: Messages
If you’re an admin, you can receive messages from users or customers in personal messages if you choose to. It’s useful when you want a private conversation that won’t be shown on your page.
Now you should have the basic set up of your Facebook business Page. There are other features on Facebook that you will be able to include for a more well-rounded and informative page experience, but we don’t want to overwhelm all at once.