Just to confuse everyone further, Facebook have announced that they’ll be implementing new templates for Business pages, starting on the 23rd August 2018.
If, like us, you received this notification…
…you may too have been tempted to bite the bullet and click ‘Apply Template Now’. However, we felt we needed to check out how exactly this change of template will affect how the content on our (and your) page will be displayed, and what we need to prepare to amend.
The Big 10
The new templates are designed to better demonstrate the services a business offers, for instance, the page will show the most relevant information to the user depending on the industry. This has included the introduction of 3 new templates; ‘Movies’, ‘Non-Profit’ and ‘Video Page’.
There will now be a total of 10 templates to choose from, each with their own purpose:
- Standard
- Services
- Business
- Venues
- Movies (new)
- Non-Profit (new)
- Politicians
- Restaurants & Cafes
- Shopping
- Video Page (new)
So, what exactly are the differences between the 10 templates? The quick answer to that question is: not an awful lot. Most of the differences you will see are the order of the tabs on the left-hand side of the business page and/or the call to action will change depending on the industry template you have chosen.
It comes as ‘Standard.’
The ‘Standard’ template is essentially no different to the current template most pages on Facebook have already adopted. They include the following tabs (all of which are present on any other template you may choose):
- Home
- Posts
- Reviews
- Videos
- Photos
- About
- Community
- Info and Ads
This template is the one-size-fits-all option. Any page that hasn’t specified a template yet is likely to have this one. It’s best suited to businesses that have a page on Facebook purely to have an online/social presence to gain brand awareness, and don’t have any real goals to be achieved through this medium.
However, it’s not as if it doesn’t allow for any customisation, as there’s still the option of adding a Call to Action (CTA) button that’s of relevance to the business, such as ‘Call Now’. But if the overall aim of the Facebook page is to achieve a set-out goal, they may want to consider one of the other templates that are more relevant to their business to ensure their (potential) customers have an easy user experience and can easily find exactly what they’re offering as a business.
It’s Strictly ‘Business’
For most businesses, a ‘Service’ or ‘Business’ page template, dependant on whether they provide a service or not, is likely the best option.
The ‘Business’ template offers the following additional tabs:
- Offers – to list the current offers the business has on
- Events – listing any upcoming events
- Jobs – listing any job openings the business may have
With the ‘Services’ template also offering:
- Services –to list what services your business offers
- Shop – to show what products the business sells
One of the benefits of creating an easier user experience, is to provide customers with a direct point of information. So rather than having to crawl through a page to find a website, to then trawl through that, to then find an email and so on, they can simply find all the information they need on the Facebook page and can contact the business directly from that. Shortening the overall user journey.
Not So Niche?
Although all three of the above could quite easily work with any business structure, if a business falls into one of the additional template industries, then it’s worth choosing the relevant template to take advantage of the additional features each offers.
The new ‘Non-Profit’ template being a good example. Designed to highlight a cause and encourage people to fundraise and donate. For any charity or organisation with the aim of raising awareness and achieve donations, this template should prove to be a great amenity for them.
There’s also the ‘Movies’ and ‘Videos’ templates, designed to highlight showtimes for audiences and showcase video content on your page.
If you need any help in deciding on the perfect business page or template or are interested to find out more information, feel free to call us on 01743 344 911.
Want to know more? Get in touch :)
