Facebook Fan Page Overhaul Excites Marketers

Facebook has done it again: an update. But unlike previous updates, this one was a complete fan page overhaul.

As a business using Facebook fan pages, you probably liked quite a few features already:

•    Longer updates that include thumbnails, links and insights to views.
•    The option to add new customized tabs to look more like a webpage.
•    The chance to develop your own custom applications for more consumer click throughs and interaction.
•    The ability to easily share information from your website to Facebook through consumer updates and simple social plug-in installs.

The possibilities for marketers to reach their consumers on Facebook seemed endless. Then you realized your marketing was limited to Facebook advertising and your fan page, giving you no chance to interact, browse or use Facebook like a user does.

That large negative is no more.

Facebook now allows pages to interact across Facebook.  That is, the admin of the fan page can now surf Facebook as the page and “like” other pages, or the admin can be distinguished from the page and comment on their own fan page.  (Before the admin used to always be attributed to the page so they couldn’t comment on the page at all.)  How companies utilize this increase in interaction will be interesting to monitor in the coming months.

Facebook fan pages now resemble profile pages more so than the ‘traditional’ fan pages we are used to.  With the same updated photo viewing across the top of the wall, smaller profile picture and the tabs being moved to the left-hand column, you’d be hard pressed to know you’re on a fan page at first glance.

Facebook has once again given marketers an overwhelming reason to use their platform to market and connect with consumers.

We believe this is a great opportunity for businesses to become more engaged on Facebook.  Twitter has always been the platform for direct customer interaction, and now Facebook has inherited this ability plus the option to customize your page.  We’ll learn what will become the ‘social norm’ for fan pages.  Facebook will always continue to evolve over time, but this is the first major overhaul to fan pages in quite some time, and the new functionality is a true game changer.  As with updates, it will take time to see how this shapes Facebook for marketers moving forward, but we are excited to see the transformation and can’t wait to interact more with our fans on Facebook!