At the end of this month, Facebook Fan Pages will have the new format with the cover photo, just like the personal pages. I was soooooooo waiting for that change! You know why? Well, my degree is in marketing, so my mind is always working on some way or another to get messages across. So what does Facebook grant us? A billboard to advertise what we wish! Here are the ways that we can use the new Facebook Fan Page layout to our advantage…
(You will need some sort of photo editing or simple graphics tool to do this quickly and easily. Photoshop has an affordable option for the tablet or iPad.)
1. Advertise a superior blog post that you have just written. Take the photo that you are using as the main one for your blog post, add some text, and voila… you have an ad for your newest content.
2. Reserve the space for one or more advertisers and get more exposure for the brands you represent. You can provide the space by the day, by the hour, by the week, by the month – it is up to you! That isn’t ideal for businesses who are only selling their product, but it is great for bloggers who are brand ambassadors, and want to provide a novel way of promotion to their clients.
3. Bloggers with Etsy shops, and other products that they sell can use the cover photo to introduce new products, promote a sale, advertise a discount code, etc.
4. Foster blogger relationships by using conference photos as your cover photo, and tag other bloggers in it.
5. Advertise upcoming events that you are hosting by creating a flyer and using it as your cover photo.
The cover photo size should be 850 pixels x 315 pixels. You can use any photo, but keep in mind that not all of it may be showing.
If you try it out, let me know how it works for you!
P.S. Remember, if Facebook thinks someone may be able to circumvent their advertising, they get funny and start changing things (ie. Not being able to send messages to your fans anymore as of September, 2011) so brands and bloggers – use it while you can.. until they decide to change up again… 
