Online Advertising/Social Media Marketing Blog | Mike Marino | ReachLocal NYC

BREAKING NEWS: New Look for Facebook Business Pages - Facebook Timeline Now Available!

Recently posted on the ReachLocal Blog:

This week, Facebook announced a major change to how brands – including small businesses – can use Facebook to share their stories on the site. Facebook Timeline has been rolled out to individual user profiles, but now, businesses will also have the new look on their pages. As of this week, businesses can turn on Timeline; otherwise the changes will be automatically rolled out to all pages on March 30. But before you turn on Timeline, it’s important to understand all the changes that are coming.

So, what does Facebook Timeline for brand pages mean? We tuned into Facebook’s recent live marketing event on what’s new with Facebook for brands, so here’s a rundown of some of the major changes you’ll see.

Updated Layout, Experience, & Page Content Types

The first thing you’ll notice when visiting a business page using Timeline is the new look and feel, characterized by the use of two images featured prominently at the top of the page. There is also a new layout for business information and page apps, a new interface for content posted to the page, and new types of content that can appear on your business Timeline.

Here’s an overview of these elements.

Cover Image – This is a large, banner-style photo that is prominently featured at the top of your page. This 851 x 315 pixel image is intended to set the visual tone and identity of your page and should showcase the life of your brand. For example, a cupcake shop might show a colorful photo of a display of cakes or pastries in this image. One thing to keep in mind with the cover image is that you cannot add promotional text such as offer information, business hours or locations, or other calls to action. This type of content should be displayed in the “about” section of your page or in a status update.

Profile Photo – This image is a small, square image that is basically the profile photo for your page. This photo will show up as your business image when fans see content posted in their feeds. Facebook recommends to use your brand logo within the profile picture, and to keep it simple. This image will be displayed as small as 30x30 pixels in some portions of the site.

Updated About Section & Placement - The “About” section has a new placement below the cover image rather than in a sidebar. This will showcase a business description for brands or the address and contact information for local businesses. It links to a more in-depth About page containing more details about your business.

Page App Placement & Changes - Next to the “About” section is a place to feature different page apps your business may be using. This is also where the number of “likes” a page has is displayed. A local business can use page apps like maps, videos, events, and offer landing tabs to promote content that’s not displayed directly on the Timeline. Four app modules are featured on the page, along with a dropdown so users can easily navigate to other apps.

Another change related to apps is that you can no longer select a tab or app to be the default landing page whenever a Facebook user visits your page through the site. However, you can still link visitors to your apps or landing pages from places like your website, emails, or even from Facebook ads.

Timeline Content Layout – The content posted to your page also has a new look and feel that’s similar to the Timeline look that has rolled out to user profiles. The layout is two columns of content that are divided by a line, combined with the ability to outline historical content in the format of milestones, like company founding, product launches, and other interesting company information. A floating timeline shortcut allows users to navigate easily to prior years to learn more about your business and see old Facebook activity from your brand.

Content Types – Now, the content shown on your page Timeline will also be different from the previous iteration of a brand’s wall. The default setting for content shown on your Timeline includes your page’s posts as well as posts from page fans and random users (those who have not “liked” your page but mention your business in a post). Plus, your page will pull in content about your business that has been posted to user’s Timelines, not just posts added directly to your own Timeline. Brands do have the ability to adjust this default setting under the “manage permission” option and can select an option that only allows posts from the brand and its fans to show up on the Timeline until the post has been reviewed by an admin.

Friend Activity Feature – There’s a new place where “friend activity” is showcased on your page. Previously, this was a sub-tab, but it’s now front and center, just below the About section of your page. This feature will show visitors to your page the activity their Facebook friends have taken with your brand, such as likes, check-ins, and other brand-related content activities.

New Content Labeling & Feature Options

In addition to these look and feel changes, there are also some changes with how Facebook admins can interact with and feature content on their Timeline.

Pinned Content - A page admin can now pin a native post to the top of their page so that fans can see the featured content above the fold for up to seven days, or until new content is pinned. Only one post at a time can be pinned at the top of the page, and the pinned content is marked with an orange flag.

Allowed Content – Page admins will be able to mark content posted by users to the page as “allowed” content, allowing it to appear on the brand’s Timeline.

Starred Content – You’ll also be able to mark content as “starred,” which will feature that prominently on the page in a double-wide layout, bringing it more attention on your page Timeline.

Back-dated & Milestone Content – Now, brands will be able to back date content in order to post items to the history of your brand’s Timeline, along with the ability to designate some types of content as “milestones” which will be featured prominently in the Timeline interface.

New Private Messaging Option Between Fans and Brands

Another new feature Facebook is launching with Timeline is the ability for fans to reach out to your business privately through a message that your brand can respond to privately. This enables a user to initiate a private exchange with a brand for a variety of purposes. Messages may only be initiated by users or fans, not from the business; however, this opens up a new opportunity for customer help, inquiry, and support.

New Admin Panel & Reports

In addition to these changes, the admin panel and reports for Facebook page administrators is also changing. This feature will aggregate all the data about your page and its performance together and is also where you will be able to access messages from your fans. This panel will feature details about users who like or tag your brand in a post in addition to the new “likes” your page has received so you can easily look at who your new users are. Also, the Facebook Insights information will all be available from this admin panel.

With one month to get ready for these changes, now is the time to be start thinking about how to get your business page ready for the March 30th automatic rollout of Timeline. It’s more than a matter of simply enabling Timeline and updating your business images. It’s important to understand what all these changes mean for your business, from customer service to page management to overall strategy.

Has your business switched to Timeline? What are you looking forward to with the new changes, and what are your concerns? Share your thoughts in a comment, and stay tuned for more information on Facebook Timeline for small business brands.

About the Author
Tiffany Monhollon shares practical tips and insights about reaching consumers across the web. Follow her on Twitter and Google+

 

Mike Marino is an Internet Marketing Consultant for ReachLocal NYC. He helps savvy business owners implement online marketing initiatives; resulting in new business, online word of mouth referrals, and a robust social identity for their brand. Contact me today at (212) 643-4300 x183 and schedule an initial Web Presence Evaluation for your business. ReachLocal NYC is located at 112 W. 34th Street, New York, NY 10120.

New Review for Mike Marino by Dr. Gulotta!

Create a Business Profile on Pinterest. What is Pinterest You Say? | ReachLocal NYC

Pinterest, an online bulletin board for your favorite images, launched in 2010 and is already experiencing wild growth. The site registered more than 7 million unique visitors in December, up from 1.6 million in September. And it's driving more traffic to company websites and blogs than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined, according to a recent report from Cambridge, Mass.-based content-sharing site Shareaholic.

Entrepreneur's Jason Falls recently blogged "Move over Facebook, Twitter and Google+. Another social media site is stepping up as a valuable marketing tool for businesses."

Pinterest allows you to organize images -- maybe pretty sunrises or wines you've tasted -- into boards for specific categories. When you "pin" something new, your followers will see it. They can like, comment or re-pin it to their boards. Like Facebook content, your Pinterest pins can go viral.

If Pinterest indeeds turns into another social media giant, wouldn't you like to be involved from the ground floor?

Here's some reasons to get your business on board now:

1) A virtual photo catalog for your business: Perhaps the most powerful business application is the ability to post images of your company's products on your Pinterest board and link them back to your website. It works as a sort of virtual store catalog.

But savvy social media users know not to get too promotional. For example, Whole Foods Market pins pictures of delicious-looking food, food art and images of recycled or reused products to inspire customers to be environmentally responsible. Daniel Gordon, who runs Samuel Gordon Jewelers in Oklahoma City, pins pictures of his rings and watches, but he also has a board for images that make him laugh and other types of products he loves.

2) Drive Sales: Pinterest already is driving buyers to some websites. In the last six months, the retail deal site ideeli.com has seen a 446 percent increase in web traffic from Pinterest and sales resulting from those visits have increased five-fold.

One thing is clear whether you're on Pinterest for personal or business reasons: the best images -- be they funny, beautiful or thought provoking -- attract the most attention and followers.  And what I have been preaching regarding any social media effort is brand engagement.  In order to promote brand engagement, you have to make the first move and put yourself and your business out there to be found and interacted with. 

If you're looking for a professional to manage your social media marketing and brand engagement, give me a call or send me a note and I'll provide you a free web presence assessment.

Mike Marino is an Internet Marketing Consultant for ReachLocal NYC.  He helps savvy business owners implement online marketing initiatives; resulting in new business, online word of mouth referrals, and a robust social identity for their brand. Contact me today at (212) 643-4300 x183 and schedule an initial Web Presence Evaluation for your business. ReachLocal NYC is located at 112 W. 34th Street, New York, NY 10120.

If You Hire an Intern to Handle Your Social Media, You Get What You Pay For! So Just Don't Do It!

Top ReachLocal Orlando consultant George Tsafonias, posted the below and I had to share as it really hits home when I hear business owners tell me they have their son or daughter or niece or nephew "doing their social media".   They could be very skilled, but most often they have no idea how to manage a social media campaign for businesses.

Gary Vaynerchuk author of the Thank You Economy and social media realist (@garyvee) he says it like it is. He says "if you hire a 22 year old intern to manage your social media you are making a huge mistake and you are an idiot". Social media is about execution work with social media people that have executed social media.

Learn more about what makes the man tick in this interview from Mashable

Please consider hiring a social media expert or a team of experts like the one's ReachLocal deploys as part of our ReachCast service for local businesses.  Contact me for a demonstration!

Mike Marino is an Internet Marketing Consultant for ReachLocal NYC with the goal to provide the right solutions to address his clients' immediate and long-term marketing objectives. Contact me today at (212) 643-4300 x183 and schedule an initial Web Presence Evaluation for your business. ReachLocal NYC is located at 112 W. 34th Street, New York, NY 10120.

Veterinarians Using Social Media Are Getting a Paw Up on the Competition | ReachLocal NYC Blog

According to a recent post by Rachael Whitcomb of DMV NewsMagazine, a recent study examined 44 veterinary practices who have embraced utilizing social media as part of their long term marketing goals.  Most of the practices surveyed were companion-animal practices that have been using social media for six months or less.  And the feedback those practices gave in regard to the return on investment speaks volumes. 

The veterinary practices surveyed report greater client engagement, more client referrals and higher search-engine rankings.  Almost half of the survey participants reported spending two to six hours per week on social media.  Owners and practice managers were the least active according the the survey versus staff members.  And this makes sense because typically the veterinarian or office manager are busy doing what they do best.  So it absolutely makes sense to hire a social media manager or consultant to not only manage your social media, but excel that writing, creating content, engaging with consumers and monitoring the web for reviews and social comments.

According the the survey, Blogging is underused even though it could generate a lot of traffic to a practice's website by using key search-engine words that pet owners in the area are looking for.

Another critical area is that while practices are good at generating and posting content, they aren't always successful in seeding that information.

"Without making connections with other people and businesses, content doesn't get an audience," Warren says. Practices that "tweet" something on Twitter will not have their content go far with only a few followers to see it. By engaging other businesses and organizations in the community, the content can be re-tweeted to a much larger audience.

Another critical area is that while practices are good at generating and posting content, they aren't always successful in seeding that information.

"Without making connections with other people and businesses, content doesn't get an audience," Warren says. Practices that "tweet" something on Twitter will not have their content go far with only a few followers to see it. By engaging other businesses and organizations in the community, the content can be re-tweeted to a much larger audience.

Be social and share information that will make interacting with the practice an enjoyable experience for clients and potential clients. Photo contests are a very popular way to capture an audience.

It can be extremely costly to hire an in-house social media expert, therefore it makes sense to look into a professional company that offers social media assistance as well as other online advertising opportunities like Search Engine Marketing and Banner Advertising products.

ReachLocal offers a one-of-a-kind Social Media & Online Reputation management service called ReachCast.  The following are just a few Veterinary Practices & Animal Hospitals currently benefiting from this award-winning service:

http://www.hudsonveterinaryny.com/

http://www.heartofchelseaanimalhospital.com/

http://www.rbvh-nj.net/

To view a brief video overview about how ReachCast can help grow your practices social media presence, CLICK HERE.

Mike Marino is an Internet Marketing Consultant for

=placepage-link&resnum=1&ved=0CDEQ4gkwAA" target="_blank" title="ReachLocal NYC Google Place Page">ReachLocal NYC with the goal to provide the right solutions to address his clients' immediate and long-term marketing objectives. Contact me today at (212) 643-4300 x183 and schedule an initial Web Presence Evaluation for your business. ReachLocal NYC is located at 112 W. 34th Street, New York, NY 10120.