If you haven’t created a business page for your company on Facebook, do it now. Open a new tab in your browser and go to https://www.facebook.com, then use the set up wizard to complete all the necessary steps (you always edit anything later). Seriously. It’s far more important in today’s world than you’re probably guessing.
Already have a Facebook business page? That’s great. The information in this article can help you make sure you’re optimizing your template and monitoring activity as best you can. Luckily Facebook makes it easy to switch things up if you find that there’s a better template or tool set to fit your needs. So, there’s no harm in starting somewhere and fine tuning later.
Why have a business page in the first place?
Most important: Verify that you are who you say you are, and you do what you say you do
This applies to the Big 3: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. If your company is Business to Consumer (B2C) or manufactures goods, then it’s also important to add Instagram to that list. But for the purposes of this article, we’ll stick to Facebook. Keep in mind that with all of the misinformation and social engineering (a tactic that cyber-criminals use) that’s out there, it’s very easy for anyone to claim they do anything. And as your market becomes more educated about the risks, they become more inclined to properly vet your company before working with you. Yes, that goes for Business to Business (B2B) companies as well.
Provide an interactive platform that conveys your brand, values, and personality
You’d be surprised how much personality plays into people’s decisions about who to support, especially for local businesses. After all, wouldn’t you rather buy from or work with a company that you like? One that you identify with or provides a sense of ease and fun? Since your website is the core of your online presence and shouldn’t be changed much (except for things like rotating products and blogs), it’s much easier to communicate these things on a platform that allows for changing content that that your audience can interact with passively (liking and sharing) or actively (commenting or contacting).
How to use Facebook Page Templates
Even if you have a business page, you may not be familiar with templates, but they’ve been around since 2016. They aren’t touted much since setting up a page doesn’t necessarily push you to select one. They have some advantages, though, so selecting the right one can make sure you’re getting all the free tools that you’re entitled to.
Types
The standard template which is what you get by default will typically show the following tabs:
- Home
- Posts
- Photos
- Videos
- Community
- Reviews
- Groups
- Jobs
There’s a lot here, and not all businesses need them all or may need something different. This is where templates come in.
Standard
Explained above and as mentioned, this is the default template applied to a new page. It’s designed to provide the most ways to interact, providing the content is created.
Services
Specifically designed to showcase service-based businesses, allowing the visitor to understand what you offer quickly. Aside from that, the layout is very similar to Standard expect it has an additional button that is set as the primary: ‘Call now.’
Business
This is for general business use and includes the ability to add and change special offers (think of a $5 off your first order coupon from a local florist). This is great if you frequently use deals to entice customers to shop.
Venues
This is specifically for spaces that are available for events, including meeting rooms, workspace, photo studios, large event and dining halls, etc. You can set locations and hours and use the Eventbrite connector to handle the basics of event management.
Non-profit
This template integrates a donate feature that appears as a button which can be shared to other pages and users. It also provides an easy way for you to highlight specific causes or initiatives.
Politicians
Designed to help reach a constituent base and communicate to them regularly. Like the Services template, it also has a new primary button. This one is ‘Send message.’
Public Figures
Just like the Politicians template, but it’s for personalities and VIPs who are not elected officials, but whose “product” is themselves.
Video Page
Designed to showcase pages that focus primarily on video content, such as training websites and videography services.
Restaurants and Cafes
This one focuses more on photos and important information about your business hours. It also provides a Menu tab which can hold your standard or sample menus and has its own primary button: ‘Call now.’
Shopping
This one is an up and comer that should see some significant updates in coming months. Facebook is putting a lot of resources into developing this area which allows you include a full collection, helping customers find the right product as well as the right company.
How to change your Page Template
This is easy. Log into your Facebook page and go to ‘Settings’ at the bottom of the left column menu, then ‘Templates and Tabs.’ At the top under Templates, you’ll see which template your page is currently using, and you can click the ‘Edit’ button to change it.
Don’t worry! By changing your template now, you don’t lose a thing. Facebook just reshuffles the layout a bit and changes which elements are most prominent to offer your visitors a more targeted look at your type of business. You can change it back in an instant.
More customizations…
You can always customize your tabs simply by clicking and dragging one to change the order. And if any aren’t necessary, it’s a good idea to remove the clutter by clicking the ‘Settings’ button on the tab you want to remove and switch it off. You visitors will thank you for a more streamlined experience.
We love helping our fellow small businesses succeed. So even though we don’t support Facebook, we hope that small guides like these help you get the most out of all the free promotion tools you have available. If we can help you with any of your business tools, like email or document management, just contact us at [email protected]. We’d love to talk about how a better set of solutions can accelerate your company’s growth!