Timeline haters: ready your pitchforks.
Facebook has just launched the new-look version of pages, meaning Timeline will soon be everywhere, all the time.
If you’re a page admin, the next time you view your page, you’ll see a message that encourages you to check out the Timeline preview. Once you’ve clicked through to the preview, you can take a tour of the new features.
Here’s how Timeline looks on Facebook’s own page:
As with Timeline for profiles, page admins have a grace period in which they can make any desired changes to the page before publishing it. While all pages on the site will be switched over to the new design by the end of March, you’ll be able to push Timeline live on your page whenever you’re ready.
Aside from the different look, one of the most significant changes to pages with the new design is the fact any Facebook community member will be able to directly message a page admin through the page itself.
To help showcase how Timeline for pages can help brands, Facebook has released a demo video that highlights some of the new features.
Timeline aims to help you connect with brands on a more visual level. Brands can now add a cover image to the top of their page, while Timeline posts can be pinned to the top of the page to highlight significant events. Milestones in a brand’s history can also be added.
One of the first major brands to make the switch to Timeline is The New York Times, which just launched the archival Tumblr, The Lively Morgue. The Facebook Timeline, however, will be able to order key moments from the paper’s history in chronological order. Take, for example, this photo of newsroom activity on the night of the 1928 presidential election.
There may be a slight drawback for brands here in that they’ll no longer be able to display a custom app as the first thing users interact with when they visit the page. This could, for instance, have an impact on the number of people who take part in contests brands run on their Facebook pages using a custom app. However, brands will still be able to pin apps to the top of the page to make them more visible.
Already, community members have weighed in with their thoughts on the new-look pages.
“Just seen the new Facebook page design,” wrote photographer Kevin White. “YUK! Why do they have this timeline thing fascination? Some of my new projects won’t be on Facebook!”
“Fuck timeline on our band page,” commented Josh Keiller of the band Depths. “It’s fine for personal ones but it totally fucks with the pictures n shit.”
Paul Calvy, on the other hand, was a fan of Facebook’s move to make pages and profiles more consistent: “Facebook Fan Pages changing over to the Timeline layout.. I like it!!”
Nadeem Javaid was also among those who were “excited about timeline for pages.”
If you’re a page admin looking for details on the changes and how to use the new features, check out Facebook’s help center.
One thing’s for sure though: if you really hate Timeline, there’ll soon be nothing you can do to avoid it. Other than just interacting with pages from your news feed or quitting Facebook altogether, that is.
Photo by jimmiehomeschoolmom
