6 Best Practices to Create an Engaging Facebook Cover Photo

Facebook is the undisputed king of social. With 2.45 billion registered accounts and 1.66 billion people that login into their account every day; the platform offers a huge number of eyeballs marketers and business owners can afford to ignore.

It is not surprising then that smart marketers and business owners are often on the lookout for ways to stand out from the multitude of other brands on the website. One useful trick to creating a compelling Facebook presence is utilizing the nifty Facebook cover photo.

You see, when users land on a brand’s Facebook page, the first thing they usually see is a large splash of an image that covers almost a quarter of the screen. Now, this dominant Facebook real-estate can help you introduce your brand to potential followers and hopefully, customers effectively and efficiently.

The question, especially for those new to the Facebook page, is how they can make the most of the cover photo?

Start from the basics

As it turns out, Facebook has all sort of sets of guidelines for effectively using their platform. The first thing you should do is to make sure the image you intend to use fits the Facebook cover photo.

The Facebook cover photo is also often referred to as Facebook banner images and has a recommended minimum dimension of 851 x 315 pixels. You will want to make sure your banner image is at least this size for the best result. Thankfully, there are several tools and resources online you can use to crop your photo to the required size.

Facebook recommends uploading PNG image format for a high definition display to ensure a crisp image and any copy on the photo to stand out. JPEG file format which prioritizes quick load time is preferred for mobile versions.

Keep in mind that on desktop, the banner image is more rectangular while on mobile, it is squared to account for the smaller screen. So, you may want to make sure your copies and other messaging elements are not placed too far out on the sides to avoid cropping when viewed from a mobile device.

Finally, before uploading your Facebook cover photo, be sure it satisfies these additional requirements:

• That you have full copyright to the image or that you are not violating anyone’s copyright.

• That the image is not deceptive and misleading in any way.

• That the image does not encourage people to download and post it on their timelines.

• That you are not using third party brands, sponsors, or products within the cover image.

Once you have the basics covered, it’s time to move into branding and positioning to achieve specific goals.

Be sure the cover photo is relevant to your brand

The Facebook page banner is a mini-billboard you can use to tell your brand story. Aim to transform this free online real-estate into a piece that describes what your brand is about and what you stand for in the shortest possible amount of time.

While at it, be sure the design elements – color choice, voice, copy, font – are consistent with your overall branding. You don’t want to create confusion in your audience’ minds with inconsistent branding.

Give your Facebook cover image a focal point

While you aim to align the banner image with your brand, you also want to make sure the cover photo has a focal point that draws in the eyes when someone visits your page.

Many of the best Facebook cover photos usually include centerpiece users focus on when they land on the page. Use negative white space, color contrast and other design techniques to focus attention on a specific spot on the image.

Include a call-to-action

Your Facebook cover photo is a landing page and should be designed to help you accomplish some business objective.

So, consider adding a relevant call-to-action (CTA) and a link to your website so users can click through to your site. This is doubly important, especially if you are running a sales campaign or promoting some offers on your website. This is one of actionable Facebook cover photo ideas for businesses.

Frequently refresh your cover photo

While you don’t want to change your Facebook banner image too often, you also don’t want to leave one image on for too long.

The trick to an engaging banner cover photo is striking a balance between refreshing the images and changing them too often. Changing the image once in four to five weeks is recommended as it helps keep your page fresh without appearing unreliable.

Finally, keep it simple

It may be tempting to want to include so many designs in your cover image, by keeping things simple, you not only create a visually appealing banner but also, make the message you choose to highlight impactful and compelling.

Simple design with a single message helps you avoid clutter, creates a good impression on users and forces your audience to focus only on the thing you want them to.