Social media comprises some of the great channels that can really help when it comes to business promotion. Social media allows you to promote your blog posts as well as other valuable content by sending people to your website which in turn can make them buy your products and services. However, the challenge comes with creating your posts.
Many people usually face challenges especially on matters to do with Facebook marketing. In fact, many marketers are clueless about what kind of Facebook posts can yield better results and increase engagement.
Are you aware of what you should be doing while creating Facebook posts?
It is important to note that there is no single right way to create a Facebook post. However, there are some proven practices that have been tried and made Facebook posts more successful.
In this post, we will delve into what could be the ideal Facebook post for your business, how long it should be, how to post and the ideal images sizes to incorporate.
An ideal Facebook post must be short
Expert internet marketers say that shorter Facebook posts can increase engagement. In fact, Facebook suggests that post should contain 80 characters or less. Posts with 80 characters get 66% more engagement than those that are more characters according to Kissmetrics.
Why should your Facebook post be short?
Many people on the internet particularly those using their cell phones while on the go usually have no time for longer posts. Facebook posts that are too long to be truncated will receive fewer readerships.
An ideal Facebook post must have a clear goal
To have a successful Facebook post that will increase engagement, you must ensure it has a clear objective and the reason why you are publishing your post must be clear.
Do you wish to send traffic to your website? Do you want it to be shareable? Do you wish to spark a debate on your Facebook post? If so, make your post clear.
A Facebook post with a clear objective is more effective but you should have an obvious objective. If you want your Facebook post to attract people to click so that they can read your blog post, use an appealing headline.
An ideal Facebook post must not contain #hashtags
Facebook posts with #hashtags receive less interaction. In fact, people think that when you publish posts with #hashtags and @symbols they are not original Facebook posts but copied from other social media channels like Twitter. This has been seen when you use social media marketing tools like Hootsuite to write a single post on several social media channels. It is advisable to write separate posts for each social media platform when using post scheduling tools like Hootsuite or SurgeSocial.
An ideal Facebook post should contain Emojis
Social media posts with emojis usually get more engagement than those without, therefore ensure your Facebook post contain emojis. However, it is important to note that emojis used should be appropriate for your brand’s image and the tone of your post.
An ideal Facebook post should include images/photos
Social media professionals say that posts with images/photos receive more engagement that those without photos. Kissmetrics also states that posts with photos can get up to 53% more likes, 104% more comments and 84% more click-through rates. The reason why this happens is that photos are more attractive to the human eye which makes them to want to spend some time to scroll. However, it is advisable to upload photos that are unique, photos that have never been used on Facebook before. This means that you should avoid picking photos from the web.
Your Facebook post should be valuable
Your Facebook posts should be valuable to your followers. It should provide extreme value to your audience and possibly generate an Aha moment. It should tell them why you are the best at what you do, and what is in for them. For the entertainment industry, posts should be entertaining.
Create your ideal post at the right time
For your Facebook post to get more engagement, it should go live at the right time. The ideal time to post is when your followers are online. Find out what time is the ideal time to publish posts. It is good to analyze insights to know the best times to post. Social media experts advise that posts should be published 2 times per day, seven days a week, 10:08 a.m. and 3:04 p.m.
The Ideal Facebook Image Sizes
Facebook has more than 2 billion monthly active users making it the world’s largest social media channel. The images you choose to use are crucial. Choosing a bad image can hurt your engagement. It is advisable to choose dimensions based on the post you want the majority of your followers to see them.
A. Facebook cover photo size
A Facebook cover photo is the large image that appears at the top of the timeline. It’s bigger than the profile picture thus allowing more space to select something attractive. You can use your real picture or your brand’s In your profile picture.
How to choose the right Facebook cover photo size
The ideal Facebook cover photo should appear at 820 pixels wide by 312 pixels tall on a desktop. Note that on cell phones it will appear at 640 pixels wide by 360 pixels tall. Having the right cover photo is the first step of portraying your brand’s image on social media.
However, it is imperative to note that using an extremely large photo makes important parts of your content to get cropped out, and a smaller photo will appear overstretched
Facebook cover photo guidelines
- It should appear at 820 pixels wide by 312 pixels tall on desktop
- An image should have a minimum size of 400 pixels wide by 150 pixels tall
- Should display on smartphones at 640 pixels wide by 360 pixels tall
- Should not display on feature phones
- For better quality image upload a sRGB JPG file below 100KB.
- If you choose images with logo or text it is best to use a PNG file
- Facebook Business Page dimensions are no different from personal accounts.
It is imperative to understand that most people today use mobile phones to access their Facebook, therefore, ensure your content is displayed in full and none is cropped out when viewed on different devices.
Tips to select a Facebook cover photo
Abide by the Facebook rules
Social media has its own rule that every user must follow, however, many users tend to overlook these rules and follow their own. Ensure:
- Your cover photo does not mislead your followers
- Select an enticing cover photo that will be liked by a wide audience
- Your cover photo should be unique
You Facebook cover photo must be clean and simple
Avoid using a cover photo that doesn’t have a clear meaning, something that will take more time for your followers to figure out what the photo depicts.
It should reflect you or your brand
Ensure to use a photo that is relevant to your brand. It is advisable to use a cover photo that will engage your audience and attract their attention before they start reading your posts. Make your cover photo show what your brand does. Your cover photo is the first thing your followers come in to contact, therefore make feel they are on the right page immediately they land on your page.
B. Facebook profile picture size
A Facebook profile picture is the small square box that appears on the left side of your cover photo. Your profile picture will be shown when you comment, like or post to other people’s timeline. Regardless of the picture shape, you upload, Facebook will crop it to a square. A profile picture could be your face or your band’s photo.
Profile picture guidelines
- Must appear at least at 180 pixels wide by 180 pixels tall (display on a page at 170 by 170 on a desktop)
- The photo will appear at 128 by 128 pixels on smartphones and 36 by 36 pixels on most feature phones
- Appears at 16 pixels from the left and 176 pixels from the top of your cover photo on a desktop
- Profile picture appears at 24 pixels from the left and 24 pixels from the bottom, 196 pixels from the top of your cover photo on smartphones.
C. Business page profile picture size: 180 × 180 (Displays at 170 × 170 on a desktop)
Facebook made some changes recently where the business page profile picture is placed on the left side of the screen. This is a move aimed at ensuring Facebook pages appear different from personal accounts. Fortunately, this has not changed the dimensions, however; the photo is placed differently from the profile picture of a personal account.
Facebook Business page profile picture guidelines
- Appears at least 180 by 180 pixels
- On a desktop, the photo will appear at 170 by 170 pixels on a page, on smartphones at 128 by 128 pixels and on most feature phones at 36 by 36 pixels.
- A Business page profile picture will also be cropped to appear in a square figure.
How to make a better profile picture for your Business Facebook Page
It is said a picture is worth a thousand words. A picture will attract your customer’s attention as well as your business partners. A good profile picture will attract your follower’s eyes, whereas a poor picture will send them away.
Use a Facebook business picture that is recommended by Facebook.
Facebook recommends a clear and not blurry, full 180 by 180 pixels. Making it clear will make your followers understand quickly what your brand is all about.
Use professional editing services
You may decide to seek services from a professional photographer to have your picture edited expertly. You may also use Canva photo editor online to edit your photo before using it as your business profile picture.
A business profile picture should represent your brand
A viewer should be able to connect between your picture and your brand. You may decide to use your business logo as your profile picture.
D. Shared Facebook image
How you share your image whether horizontally or vertically will define the dimensions Facebook uses to display it on your timeline. Also, shared images appear on your followers’ News Feeds. Facebook recommends sharing images with dimensions at 1200 by 630 pixels, although this is a huge file which could make it impossible with low-resolution images.
The recommended aspect ratio is 1.91:1. However, if you decide to upload smaller images, the recommended dimensions are 600 × 315 pixels, these dimensions are best when displayed on mobile but on a desktop they are displayed at 400 × 2009. No larger than 8MB image sharing.
E. Shared links: 476 x 249 pixels
Sharing a link to Facebook together with an image, the image is usually displayed in multiple ways but this depends on the image width and height as well as the shape whether horizontal or vertical. Facebook crops images for shared links to fill a box of 476 × 249 pixels.
For image shapes vertical (portrait), square, or horizontal (landscape) Facebook scales and crops the thumbnail to fit a 158 width by 158 height pixels. Posting multiple images to a link post is also possible, however; Facebook will make it a carousel post and the image will be scaled and cropped to fit 300 × 300 pixels square.
E. Facebook event cover image sizes: 1920 × 1080 pixels – These are the recommended dimensions by Facebook
Facebook event images appear differently in different locations; however, the recommended image size is 1920 × 1080 pixels which translate to a ratio at 16:9. If you upload larger and wider images, Facebook will crop them on either side. Taller images also will be cropped to reduce the height.
Event image size guidelines
- Recommended size is 1920 width by 1080 height pixels (16:9 ratio)
- On a desktop, it will be displayed at 470 x 174 pixels
- On mobile, it will be displayed at 560 x 208 pixels
4 Free Facebook Landing Page Creation tools to simplify your work for 2018
Facebook tools have been helpful for marketers in 2018. Below, are some great Facebook landing page creation tools for your custom Facebook pages. All of the tools here are easy to use so you don’t have to be a techie to use them and come with a limited free option which does not expire.
What a Facebook landing page can do for your business
- Increase the chances of getting more likes: More people have a higher chance of liking your page even those that are non-fans when you create an engaging landing page
Check out!
Pagemodo is an incredible Facebook landing page creating tools that enable users to create custom landing pages by selecting the already created templates then customizing them with your own content. if you create a Free Pagemodo account, you will get an opportunity to access the features that are designed for paid packages. With this tool, you can create one Facebook fan page, design a custom tab for your fan page, access the Cover Photo Designer and also plan a single Facebook and Twitter post every day.
ShortStack allows user lots of options. You can add popular widgets by simply dragging and dropping them on your interface. This tool comes with a free plan that has impressive features. Apart from Facebook, ShortStack also works with the other popular social media networks like Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Another great free Facebook landing page creation tool is the Tabsite. This tool allows users to create custom Facebook pages, apps and also run contest. This tool’s free version allows users access to one tab and two custom named sub-pages. You can include email form integration with MailChimp and Delivra at a cheaper price.
Involver allows users an opportunity to incorporate basic apps like Twitter app for display of existing tweets. The only difficult thing with this tool is that it has a free static HTML which requires one to have some knowledge on HTML, however, this tool is great if you want to add a little customization to your Facebook Landing Pages.
Final Thoughts
A quick overview of the ideal Facebook post and the image sizes that comes with it. You should know the following:
- An ideal Facebook post must be short – Short Facebook posts receive more engagement that long posts. Facebook suggests that post should contain 80 characters or less.
- An ideal Facebook post must have a clear goal – What is the message being passed to your audiences? Do you want your post to be shared? Do you wish to spark a debate on your Facebook post?
- An ideal Facebook post must not contain #hashtags – Posts with #hashtags and @symbols do not show credibility. Your followers may think you’ve copied the posts from other social media networks.
- An ideal Facebook post should contain Emojis – Use of emojis can increase engagement, however, your emojis must be appropriate to your content and tone.
- An ideal Facebook post should include images/photos – A picture is worth a thousand words. Adding images/photos make your post more attractive to the human eye.
- Your Facebook post should be valuable – Your post should add value to your followers. Should be helpful, informative and able to address their concerns
- Create your ideal post at the right time – Post at the time when your followers are active online. This is because your post will be able to be passed to a wider audience than when your followers are offline.