Hopefully you already have a fan page on Facebook for your business.  Ideally you have links to it from your website, your email signature and have the address printed on your business card.

So if you’re making all that effort to direct people there, you’d better make sure it looks good, right?  After all, you never get a second chance to make a first impression…

1. Set up a bespoke landing page
If you don’t have a landing page set up already, then new visitors will arrive to your Wall and you will have missed out on a great opportunity to make a dramatic first impression on them.  With the use of a simple app and a small change to your permissions, you can deliver a much more compelling reason for potential new fans to ‘like’ you there and then.

Landing pages can be all styles.  Here’s a couple we have created, plus another one of our favourites:


Aosta Valley Landing Page
Red Bull

2. Think about your Profile Image
This is the main image on the left hand side of your Page and a key opportunity to establish your branding and positioning.  The full space available is 540 x 180 pixels, although it isn’t necessarily better to use it all.   The design should also take account your thumbnail (see below). The examples here show how both full size and reduced can still work well:


KLM

Davos

 Switzerland Tourism

3.  Choose your own Thumbnail
The Profile Picture thumbnail is the image that appears next to all of your posts on Facebook.  It’s a chance to put your brand’s logo in front of thousands of people.  So don’t waste it and accept the Facebook default, which will select a thumbnail based on your Profile Image that will rarely be the best option.

4. Select your own user name
It amazes me how many businesses choose to accept the default option they are given rather than choosing their own. Embedded as a link it doesn’t make any difference, but try fitting http://www.facebook.com/pages/VERBIER-St-Bernard/118134771485 on a business card…!

5. Curate your Photostrip
Facebook pages can select the five images that appear at the top of their page, although the order they appear will always be random.

This offers another interesting opportunity for additional branding.  When done well, the Photostrip can create a stunning page design.  Certainly at the very least, the photos appearing should be curated, rather than relying on the most five recent photos (the default option).

Photostrip

Photostrip

 

For a full audit of your Facebook presence…
The above is a simple introduction to Facebook. Skipedia can advise and develop a social media strategy specific to your requirements. Simply contact us and we’ll get back to you promptly.

By Iain Martin