Mark your calendar!

Beginning March 11th, several major upgrades to Facebook are coming to a page near you!  The improvements include new page layouts and admin controls to better manage communication with your fans and increase engagement.  Your page Admin will be able to opt-in to these new features until March 11, after which they will be automatically transitioned for you.

To help you prepare for the upgrade, here are some key things to note:   

What will Change?

  • Use Facebook As Your Page:  You’ll now have the ability to Like and comment on other Pages (as your Page) and receive Page notifications. In addition you can view a ‘Pages I Like’ News Feed for your Page.
  • Most Recently published photos: This new feature will live at the top of the Page and display the five most recently-published photos on top of the Wall.
  • Mutual Friends and Interests:  People visiting your Page will see the friends and Pages they have in common with your Page.
  • Left-nav formatting:  Tabs are moving to the left just like on the new profile. FB is migrating the “blurb box” to the Page’s Info tab. Profile pictures will change dimensions from 200x600 to 180x540.
  • Smart “Everyone” Wall filter:  Pages now have two Wall filters for users:  Posts by Page and a new Everyone filter, providing a new way for people to see the most interesting stories first.  As an admin, you’ll have additional filters  
  • Email notifications: You can now choose to receive notifications when users post or comment on your Page.
  • Featured Pages & Admins:  Choose to feature the other Pages liked or specific admins of the Page in the left-navigation.
  • iframe Tabs Now Enabled: Facebook will now support iframe based tabs in order to provide developers with more flexibility and the ability to use standard web technology including Social Plugins, Facebook Login, and the Graph API.

Tips To a Smooth Transition:

  • Update your photos:  With the new photo layout (displaying your most recent photos), it becomes even more important to keep your photos fresh and up to date.
  • Revisit your Applications: Come March 11th, you will no longer be able to create new FBML apps or make updates to existing ones. So, consider transitioning to an iframe-based app if you wish to continue making changes.  (NOTE: If you have already installed a static FBML application, it will continue to work.  You will, however, not be able to make updates.).
  • Notifications:  The new upgrade will allow Admins to receive notifications when users post or comment on your Page. If you find yourself getting bombarded, change these settings from the new “Your Settings” area within “Edit Page.”

Last Minute Reminders:

  • There is a site-tour available for all Admins that want to take a tour of the new changes on FB Pages.  This will be viewable at the top of your Page.
  • Once you make the decision to upgrade your Page, there is no way to revert back to the old design. So, make sure you have everything in place before you make the transition (or before March 11th). 

If you have any more questions about the upgrade, please contact Kevin Dando (mailto: kdando@pbs.org) or your program manager.