# Making a Facebook Landing Page



## Cope (Feb 25, 2010)

Hey everyone,

I stumbled upon a pretty good article/tutorial on how to create a better landing page for you business on Facebook. Not sure how many people use it, but I thought I'd put it out there for anyone who's interested.

Check it out on Mashable.com:
HOW TO: Build a Facebook Landing Page for Your Business


----------



## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

I read that article a few days ago as well. 

I'm still debating whether or not it's best to have your Facebook fan page open up to a "custom" page like that or have it open directly to the "Wall" where the main activity is at.


----------



## outrageoustees (Feb 25, 2010)

I've heard about this in the past and the consensus was that "the landing page was better," but I had no idea how to do it. This article sounds very helpful and...now it's on my To Do list for my ClimbAddict Fan Page(which is a mess and looks DOA).

I think that, if we are honest with ourselves, we accept that all this social media really is marketing. Social Marketing. Sure, it is fun to interact with our audience - important even! BITD, mom & pops SAW their customers - when they came into the stores. 

That said, we need to get our messages out there if we are to sell product. Facebook has always seemed cumbersome to me, even for my personal page. I like the "Landing Page" concept!


----------



## airborneranger (Apr 28, 2008)

I've done this for a few pages that I've created...

It's not too difficult - I used dreamweaver as it lets you strip down to the code you need an copy and paste it once your pics or other files are uploaded...


Here's another sample for you to reference as well:
An Introduction to Facebook Page Development and FBML(Facebook Markup Language) | dropthedigibomb.com
How to Style an Application Like Facebook - Devtacular


Hope those help.


----------



## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

> I've heard about this in the past and the consensus was that "the landing page was better,


I actually heard the opposite. Do you have any links to where the consensus was that the landing page was better?



> I think that, if we are honest with ourselves, we accept that all this social media really is marketing.


I think it's also important to remember that there's many ways to market. An "in your face" approach like a landing page may not be the best method for everyone.


----------



## outrageoustees (Feb 25, 2010)

Sorry Rodney - I just saw that on the fly while cruising the interverse. Best to follow your own instincts and research! 

For MY page, I feel it would be better because I find the Facebook pages stifling to my creativity. They "aren't" what I would put out there. I like that the Landing Page has just the very basic FB branding and the majority of what the viewer sees would be what I want to show.

As well, I do agree that "in your face" isn't the approach for everyone. I use my Twitter profiles for interactive, playful, stuff. But I really don't see how I can maintain enough interaction on the FB to go that informal route. I notice that my viewers haven't interacted with what I have put up, even though they DO see the pages, and they DO Fan them. 

So for me - I think having a clean presentation of my message might work wlel for me.


----------



## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

> But I really don't see how I can maintain enough interaction on the FB to go that informal route.


I think it'll be different for each company and how they setup their Facebook pages, but I don't think you always have to have the same level of interactivity.

Having a Facebook page also allows your fans to _interact with themselves_ about your brand.



> I notice that my viewers haven't interacted with what I have put up, even though they DO see the pages, and they DO Fan them.


If you think of Facebook like marketing, then you want them to pay attention to your posts *some*  A like or a small comment shows that they are actually reading and responding.

As I mentioned though, each strategy is different and depending on how you setup the Facebook page (for your brand or encompassing a theme that includes your brand), how people react and respond may be different.

For example, if you're a big brand like Macy's, then your "fans" will be much more numerous and have much more activity about a specific experience with your brand. Using a landing page if you have a lot of brand loyalty makes sense because people are more likely to click through to see what other things you have to offer. The same philosophy happens on big brand websites. They do things (flash, landing pages) that small businesses shouldn't do because the customer experience and expectation isn't the same.

If your brand is newer or just starting out, it may be better to go with a "general theme" like "I Love Rock Climbing" which gets people talking about the *activity* which you and your brand are also a part of.



> So for me - I think having a clean presentation of my message might work wlel for me.


That's what we all have to figure out...what will work best for each of us


----------



## familyfanclub (Jan 22, 2008)

Here's my two cents:

A Facebook landing page is valuable for people visiting your page that don't know what you are. It allows the owner to give a summary and create calls to action, such as LIKE my page. 

Once a user LIKEs your page, when they visit your Fan Page, they'll see the Wall, not the landing page. The first time they visit until they LIKE the page, they'll see the FB Landing Page. 

So, the reason that I like the the FB Landing Page is to get the information out about "what" we are, call to action to LIKE and SHOP Family Fan club. After they LIKE my page, they hopefully will interact with the Wall.

The key to building the relationship is getting the visitor to LIKE my page. Once they do that, whether they buy or interact immediately, I've got a long term connection with them. I feel like I have a better chance to get them to LIKE my page with a Landing page for people who don't already LIKE my page. 

I'm planning to direct the majority of my traffic (from my twitter profile, QR codes, tweets, etc..) to FB in an attempt to get visitors to LIKE my page. Hopefully they'll continue on to SHOP or interact on my page. OR it will be a failure.

That's what I'm thinking.

Here's a video I watched on creating the page: How to Create a Facebook Page and Landing Page (UPDATED!) ,


----------



## curiousity (Feb 15, 2009)

Normally a landing page is a bad idea as it creates an additional barrier for people interacting with your site (beyond its informational use for the first visit.)

If the Facebook landing page doesn't appear upon a visitor liking ("like") a page as familyfanclub states, then this removes the barrier for returning visitors.

One word of caution: make sure that you very clearly spell out in your landing page that if they "like" your company, they will never see the landing page again. Such as (it's a too long, but you should get the gist):

"*To skip this page in the future* - click on the "Like" button on our page and you won't see it again as long as you are logged into Facebook."


----------



## familyfanclub (Jan 22, 2008)

If anyone would like to participate in a test to verify my theory, that returning visitors after liking my page don't see the landing page, my facebook page is: www.faceboook.com/familyfanclub

If it doesn't work as I think it does, please let me know.

I think it works like this:
* First time a visitor visits my facebook fan page, if the visitor hasn't already liked my page, they'll see the landing page.
* If the visitor has liked my page, then they'll see my wall.

Thanks for any feedback.


----------



## JOHNSY (Dec 20, 2010)

I use my page more as a blog style so I am concerned I will lose that vibe if I hide everything behind a landing page. This is not set in stone of course but untill I am a household name getting people to make that second click may not be that easy. I think capturing my audience with the main image is working for me now.
Cheers,
johnsy
https://www.facebook.com/SPECTREapparel


----------

