The new Timeline format of Facebook Pages is an amazing tool for brands. It allows them to tell their stories -- their history, employees, products, etc. -- using their own voices and those of their customers, the press, and others.
I urge brands to think of their Facebook Timeline as an interactive scrapbook of the company’s history. And I ask you to push beyond the official timeline that’s probably already on your Website (and most likely doesn’t engage many people). Think like the editor of a newspaper. What are the most arresting photos and events you want to put on the front page? What items ignite excitement or nostalgia among your fans? How can the items be made interactive?
One of the simplest ways to craft a lively Timeline is to vary the items as much as possible. Here are some ways to get really creative.
Use historical images
Old images are a good way to ignite nostalgia among longtime fans or to even gauge fan interest in old products that can be brought back to market. For example, the Timeline for Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream includes a photo celebrating the company’s founding in a creative way.
In other examples, Burberry and Red Bull highlight old ads.
Subway celebrates its flagship sandwiches.
Incorporate testimonials
Testimonials, fan letters, and the like are very effective, since consumers trust other consumers more than the brand itself. It’s also just fun to showcase vestiges of the analog era.
Coca-Cola turns fan letters into Milestones by setting the date of the Milestone as the date referenced in the comment and adding a related photo from that era.
Leverage historical references
Historical references are a great way to educate new consumers and remind loyalists of your rich history. Include photos of key figures within the company or its history, including celebrity spokespeople. Highlight notable innovations in the company’s history. This Milestone from the New York Times is a good example.
Historical trivia is one of the best ways to spark interest and engage your audience. Smirnoff Vodka tests consumers’ memories by quizzing them on which 1950s bottle design is from the United States.
The NYT highlights major moves and expansions as well as legacy photos of the facility, employees, and other behind-the-scenes historical peeks.
Manchester United highlights epic awards and accolades, like the 1997 English Premier League championship. The NYT calls out its first Pulitzer Prize.
Examples of your brand referenced in pop culture and brushes with celebrity add a nice element of exclusivity and popularity. The more iconic, the better. For example, Burberry includes an unforgettable image from the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, in which Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard both sport classic Burberry trench coats.
Get those pictures moving
Keep in mind that Milestones can also include video. Look at your brand’s YouTube channel, and add the most interesting videos as Milestones. If you haven’t uploaded your old commercials, behind-the-scenes videos, and other historical footage, now is the time. Coca-Cola, for instance, shared the following landmark 1972 video on its Timeline.
Keep your tone consistent
Your Timeline tone should match the company’s voice. For example, the NYT Timeline flavor is erudite and factual. Red Bull’s reflects the fun and adventurous spirit of the brand. Old Spice’s tongue-in-cheek tone has led to a largely mythological Timeline.
In essence, anything associated with the company is fair game for the Timeline. To craft a killer Timeline, vary the items, think like an editor, engage your audience, and choose items and stories that match your company’s tone. Lastly, once your Timeline goes live, gauge audience interest, and consider hiding or deleting items that aren’t getting any comments or Likes.
With the introduction of new timeline feature, users of social network are now able to express themselves better and can tell their stories more effectively than ever before and also the contribution it has made in enhancing the online marketing in a creative way is worthwhile investment but now the feature has garnered widespread criticism especially from users who are not keen on sharing their details with all and sundry.
According to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, "Timeline is "the story of your life," so the more you put in there to make it complete, the easier it is for someone with ill intent to gather information about you
Thank you for a wonderful post. I really enjoyed reading it! Amazing! So interesting and the examples of the advertising are so great:) ( I know I speak superlative:)
That's a great example and I will definitely tell my students about that.
I would like to see responses to your question as I'm getting more client requests for help with the new timeline and Facebook ad campaigns (I usually work with very small businesses).
Dressing well for travel was still seen some decades after those old movies. I wonder what kind of brands would advertise today as Burbery did with the slogan "when you travel by air".
The "when you travel by air" ad fits with the way you see people dressed for travel in older movies, dressed for success, you might say. In part, that was because air travel was still very expensive, and not something your average middle class person would do regularly unless s/he was sent on business.
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Social media has been with us for a decade -- but employer policies and the law are anything but firm about the most appropriate usage of this powerful tool.
Businesses often struggle to decide which domain to use. When it comes to purchasing a domain name, you have plenty of extensions to choose from, ranging from .com and .net, to .me, and even .mobi. But which one should you pick?
I've been writing about how the next evolution of the Internet might just be an advertising revolution, and how corporate IT can stay involved as the enablers and providers of the technologies that make this possible.
In the 1970 science fiction thriller Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M.
New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority is conducting a pilot test of digital kiosks to guide subway users to where they want to go more efficiently and at lower cost.
The whole Amazon.reader debate is a double-stupid. It's stupid to think that there's any e-book buyer who doesn't know Amazon's URL, and it was stupider to let ICANN launch the whole free-form TLD initiative to start with.
While NFC's original goal was to enhance mobile commerce applications, it is finding its way into a number of other uses, which is creating both opportunity as well as challenges for IT departments.
Enterprises would like to move to cloud computing but are hesitant because they are concerned about providers’ ability to secure company data. Here are some tips that help to ensure that if breaches occur, the business is not left holding the bag.
Edmunds separates customers into segments based on the info it collects on its site and from partners, and uses that to push out custom content, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
The automotive website uses propensity modeling to target ads and customer registration forms, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
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M2M: Rise of the Machines? Not Yet David Weldon In the 1970 science fiction thriller Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M. CLICK FOR MORE
M2M: Rise of the Machines? Not Yet David Weldon In the 1970 science fiction thriller Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M. CLICK FOR MORE
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