Facebook page types: which is right for me?

Facebook page types: which is right for me?

Facebook page types: which is right for me?

When creating a brand new Facebook page for your business, organisation, product or brand – it’s important that you select the correct Facebook page type.  

It’s a good idea to read through all the different options available before selecting one so that you can be sure to choose the page type that offers the information boxes that are applicable to your business. This is important to get right because each page type will present different information boxes to complete while you’re getting all set up (and you cannot change it halfway through).

For example, if you’re a business that is selling women’s clothing, you’ll want the page type that allows you to list the items you have available.

Getting started

So, you’ve clicked ‘Pages’ from your Facebook home screen, and then hit ‘Create Page’:

 

creating a facebook page

 

But now you’re stuck on this screen:

 

 

Facebook page types: which is right for me?

Now for the inevitable burning question: which Facebook page type is right for me?

There are four main Facebook page types, each with their own benefits. Let’s break down each one:

 

1. Business or Brand

facebook page type - local business or place

Business

This is meant for brick and mortar locations where customers can come into the business – be it a shop where they can purchase products, or maybe an office location where they can come for an appointment.

After selecting this page type, a range of categories can be selected to further identify your business.  Categories include things such as Restaurant/Cafe, Movie Theatre, Real Estate, Book Store, and more.  If you can’t seem to find one that fits what you do, select Local Business.

Opening hours, address information, and car parking information for your business’ location can (and should!) be added to the page to enable people to easily find your location –  customers are then also able to “check in” to your location.

Real-life example: Digital Marketing AOK

 

Note: Business pages can also be modified after they’re created by adjusting the page template in Page Settings under Templates and Tabs, so if you make a mistake here, don’t worry! You can always change it later on.

Options include pages for; Films, Business, Venues, Non-profit organisations, Politicians, Services, Restaurants & Cafés, Shopping, Video and Standard. Before committing to making the switch, you can also preview your new page to ensure it looks the way you want and customise the tabs.

Company, Organisation or Institution

 

If the company is operating in multiple physical locations, or doesn’t have a physical location at all, or has a physical location (but you don’t want to attract foot traffic), this category is best for you. This may be suitable for a franchise, or an organisation with offices in multiple states, or a pure-play eCommerce business.

Categories that you can select include Church, Insurance Company, Legal/Law, Non-Profit Organisation, and more.

Real life example: Bupa

Facebook page types business - BUPA

Brand or Product

 

This is best for businesses that sell their products at multiple locations and/or through various resellers.

Categories that you can select include Clothing, Health & Beauty, Pet Supplies, and more.

Real life example: Coca Cola Australia

facebook page types - business coke

Artist, Band or Public Figure

Fancy making yourself famous? This is the page for confident individuals. From sportspeople to writers, this Facebook page is about self-promotion.

Politicians, musicians or artists would all use this type of page.

Real life example: Malcolm Turnbull

 

Entertainment

 

A page to display individual achievements of an artist, i.e. a music album, a collection of artwork, or a film.

Alternatively, an amateur sports team, a library, radio station, sports venue, TV channel, or fictional character may also fall under this category.

Real life example: Norwood Football Club

 

Cause or Community

 

The final page type and the most expansive of them all, the cause or community page type is used to create a page for those with similar ideas, interests, or characteristics that define them.  Unlike its predecessors, this page type has no list of categories to select from.

This includes: people who went to a certain high school, people who follow a certain political value, or people who follow different religions.

If you’re a non-profit organisation, this is NOT the ideal selection for you.  Go back to Local Business or Company, Organisation or Institution and see what category underneath these may suit your organisation.

Be warned: The Facebook algorithm does not shine favourably on the cause or community page type as it does not have categories. Exhaust all other options before trying this one.

 

Five Quick Tips for Facebook Page Mastery:

  • Get the right dimensions for your cover photo!  820 pixels wide by 462 pixels is ideal.
  • After finishing your page, check on a desktop computer and a mobile phone to make sure that the cover photos and profile pictures have correctly formatted to the screens. 
  • Keep the details you want in your cover photo central – when Facebook displays on mobile the cover photo is chopped from the edges. Design for the larger size, but if you have key elements (such as text) on the image, make sure it fits within the smaller frame.
  • Keep your page updated!  A potential customer visiting your page and seeing just 3 posts from the year 2014 gives the impression that this business is no longer active. At the bare minimum, post three times a week to show customers that your business is active.
  • Attention to detail. Ensure that your address, telephone number and opening hours are all correct as some people use this information when planning a visit to your premise or the like. Fill out the About sections and the “our story” section for potential customers to learn a little about your business. Keep it simple, informative, and brief.

If you need any further help with your Facebook page – be it working on an existing one or creating a brand new one, just get in touch with the SMAOK team.

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Simone Douglas

Simone Douglas

Simone is co-founder and Senior Principal Solutions Architect of Digital Marketing AOK. Simone offers over 17 years in corporate management roles encompassing generalist HR recruitment and development of small to large teams across multiple sites, industry sectors and states. Experienced in a variety of social media platforms and their complimentary applications, social media strategy, risk management, disaster recovery and associated HR policies and processes.