Have you ever felt troubled when trying to add a stunning custom tab to your page but don’t know how? Since last year, I had found several that works great in providing sub-tabs and some with fan gate options. Today, it’s all about templates and widgets! Wouldn’t it be great if you can add one of these facebook applications together with some from 23+ Facebook Page applications to improve fans engagement? After all, it’s all about trial and error. Let’s head right to the facebook apps:

7 Killer Tab Customizers for Facebook Pages

#1  GroSocial

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Gating Content Settings: Available

I love GroSocial for the fact that it makes Facebook customization a breeze with its drag and drop interface, along with slick, sophisticated templates and widgets for all packages. It is super easy to use with clear indication of which apps are free and required payment. Best of all you can try all widgets and only pay if you decided to publish them. You can tweak the tab and element settings and preview them in your WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor. For free account you only get to publish one tab for one page but you may create as many tabs and publish the one you are most satisfied with. Here’s a custom tab created using Grosocial for my Page, imagine a lot more you can do with yours! GroSocial auto saves your work too, very neat.

 

#2  Lujure

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No (except email/button embed)

Fans-Gating Content Settings: Available

Lujure provides templates (limited layout for free plan) and 35 social suites you can choose to add to your tab. There are no ready images in the templates so you need to prepare your own according to the given image size per template. Adjust your page height and background color/image however you wish. Double click at each element to customize its content. Some may require coding knowledge such as embedding your email opt-in form and paypal button. Free plan allows you to install one tab to one managed page.

#3  Social Page Builder

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Gating Content Settings: For Paid Accounts Only

Like other page tab customizers, Social Page Builder offers free plan that allows you to install one tab to one page. Their templates are quite stylish and more towards retailing purposes. Its editing interface has both design and HTML mode. In order to edit an image on its multi-layer customization, double click it and you will be able to adjust color saturation, brightness or add shapes/text box. You can set hyperlink and alt text for the image as well. Social Page Builder is the only service I came across with spell check ability.

#4  FaceItPages

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Gating Content Settings: For Paid Accounts Only

FaceItPages is another DIY page tab customizer that offers quite a number of templates and modules for your page. Free account holders will have access to header banner, content block, photo gallery/slideshow and contact module but not the RSS feed (for blog and twitter account). You can add and preview the feed content but in order to get them published on your Page you need to upgrade to paid packages.

Extra info: FaceItPages also has an option to manage/create your timeline cover.

#5  Thrusocial

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Gating Content Settings: Available

Thrusocial is a great app to design your custom tab with drag and drop application widgets. Unlike most customizers, Thrusocial includes twitter and blog feed in their Free plan (hurray!). The greyed-out widgets are only accessible in paid packages.  Thrusocial provides basic template layout for you to work on and you can manage uploaded images in ‘Gallery’ option. Unsure if it’s just me but I can’t get ‘Facebook Sharing’ button to work on my Page after configured. I was excited to have found a scheduling feature in Thrusocial but couldn’t get that to function either – the message is forever ‘sending’ and never published. But since both features are not essential to me so overall, I’m still quite satisfied with Thrusocial.

#6  FanBridge Fan Page Creator

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Gating Content Settings: Available

Or known as Damntheradio, FanBridge Fan Page Creator enables you to create dynamic Facebook tab that features audio, video, tour dates, contests and more. Damntheradio is widely used by musicians like Linkin Park and Enrique Iglesias. What I love is that it provides Like-gating feature on single module to attract more Likes on Page. If you include comments in your template, you can only edit or delete a comment from their main site but not within your page. You can download the comments in .CSV format whereas email addresses for the ‘Signup Form’ module can only be downloaded for paid accounts.

#7  ShortStack

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Gating Content Settings: Available

If your Facebook Page is relatively new and you don’t have enough budgets to create multiple custom tabs like in the above plans, you just might love ShortStack! Differ from most Customizers, ShortStack has no page limitations and you can install up to 12 quick-publish tabs per page. You will have access to sweepstakes, fan gating tabs and other widgets except those required contest database, such as photo submissions for voting etc. Apart from its well designed template layouts, you can rearrange and set so certain widgets are exclusively for fans-view only. For those who have CSS knowledge you can enhance your tab further.  The only catch for this free account is that your fan count should not be more than 2,000. Otherwise you must upgrade to paid packages.

Feeling overwhelmed yet? Don’t be. The more you know what apps are available and what they are capable of, the more you’ll consider what can you offer to your audience. Remember, the purpose of this post is not to ask you to install EVERYTHING but to acknowledge you some of the choices available. Even free plan doesn’t sound so bad as long you don’t mind their ad placements (header or footer) on your Page. Carefully plan out your strategies, after all, 2012 had only just begun. Be glad that even none coders can find joy in setting up an impressive custom tab without feeling burdened.

Now Is Your Turn…

What is your favorite facebook application to create custom tabs? Have you come across better app suggestions? I’d love to hear them out in your comment.

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Update: Don’t forget to check out 7 Killer Facebook Applications to Create Impressive Custom Tabs too!

Greetings and Happy New Year! To kick off 2012, some of you may think of giving your Facebook Page a facelift. There may be some features you wish to add such as custom iframe tabs with fan gate option or ideas to encourage fans engagement on your Page. If you do, you’ve come to the right place! Every year I will compile a list of cost-effective facebook apps you can use not only to improve your fans engagement but hopefully enhance your brand visibility at the same time. Without further ado, let’s get to the list.

This review is based on my personal opinion only and has nothing to do with affiliation or app sponsorship whatsoever.

 

To Encourage Fans Participation and File Sharing:

#1 FriendCard

FriendCard is a smart way to make your brand go viral by allowing fans to send customizable branded greeting cards to their friends. Upload your logo and replace the default message with your own to fit your brand image. Your fans can then schedule to either send out their card immediately or later, what fun!

#2 Coupon for Pages

What can be more exciting to offer fans some great deals on your Page? Coupon for Pages by Involver is easy to setup while allowing your fans to print the coupon or share the good news with their friends. Not only you can gain new fans out of this but existing fans will appreciate your special treat and support your brand continuously.

(Note: Transform the Coupon tab into a fan-gating tab to entice new ‘Likes’)

#3 File Sharing

File Sharing enables page admin to share up to (any) 5 files with fans on your Page. There doesn’t seem to be a way to delete the files though but uploading new files will replace the old ones. I won’t worry too much about this as you can always hide the tab and use it when necessary.

#4 Scribd for Pages

Scribd for Pages is by far the best file sharing app I came across with the ability to support various file formats (.doc, .xls, .ppt, .txt, .jpg, .pdf). When you upload multiple files the latest one will appear on top of the rest. Files uploaded to Scribd will have more sharing options including embedding and emailing.

#5 PDF Tab

If you would like to share a PDF file with fans without the download option, this app might just meet your requirement. However you can only display one PDF file (<10MB) at a time.

#6 Fotobabble

Fotobabble lets users add voice to their uploaded photos and share them on Facebook Pages! What a great concept where Page admin not only get to enhance their welcome tab with a ‘real’ call to action asking fans to Like the page, but can also plan a fun contest like ‘Tickle Me Baby’ here where fans can upload ‘baby-talk photos’ for others to listen to.

To Communicate with Your Page Fans:

#7 LiveChat for Fan Pages

LiveChat is a very useful Facebook application to provide real time customer support to your fans or potential customers. If handled well, you may even convert first time visitors into loyal fans too. Sadly, LiveChat is not free but you get to try it for 30 days with no credit card required.

#8 TinyChat

TinyChat provides free video chat rooms for you to setup video conferencing with fans. After you created a chat room, just share your Tinychat room link with fans on your Page wall so they could enter. Bear in mind, since you are using TinyChat’s Facebook app your name will appear as your personal profile in the chat. For now there is no way to change the name yet so make sure you are comfortable with that.

#9 Forum for Pages

Ever since Facebook removed the discussion board from pages, Forum for Pages becomes one of the best alternatives to fill in the spot. You will be asked to authorize the app in order to post or comment; and ‘Like’ the discussion post to subscribe to the topic. Page admin can edit, delete or ban the user from the forum. Best of all, you can even lock a thread or make it a ‘sticky topic’ so it always stays on top.

#10 SupportTab

SupportTab creates a tab for your fans to ask questions. This app is great for those who don’t feel like installing a forum on the Page but still wish to communicate with fans about brand-related topics.

#11 Contact Forms

There are three types of contact forms you can choose from:

i) ContactMe

You can add business information including logo, address, phone number and social profiles. Customize your form with required fields and arrange them to your likings:

ii) Contact Form

Aside from basic configurations, you can add picture and message text separately as header; ‘send me a copy’ option is also available and you can customize your (sent) success message too. However you won’t be able to re-arrange your selected fields:

iii) Contact Us Tab – Improve Your Conversion Rate Form

Contact Us Tab is equipped with four general fields and you may set whichever as required fields.

To Acknowledge Loyal Fans on Page:

#12 Top Fans on Pages

Instead of checking through all fans activities yourself, here are several Facebook applications to help you decide who is(are) your superfan(s):

i) My Top Fans

After the results had been generated, you can publish it to your page Wall so everyone can celebrate:

ii) Booshaka

Booshaka tells you who is your superfan while rewarding the others in weekly basis based on their participation on your page – wall posts, likes and comments. What I love is that Booshaka shows admin the overall performance of a fan (Recent Activity) to confirm their qualification to be chosen. You can then recognize your top 10 fans on Page wall.

iii) Fan of the Week for Pages

Fan of the Week for Pages will feature one fan weekly. Although it is said that the result is based on fan’s activities but after compared the results with similar apps I’m not totally convinced. Either it’s random or based on activities, it’s still a good app to showcase your fan while schedule an automated shoutout at the end of the week (optional).

iv) Top Fans by SocialAppsHQ

Page admin can configure so top 5-15 fans are displayed. It is optional to link to fans’ profiles and place a Like Gate to this tab.

To Notify Events and Handle Appointments:

#13 Events Calendar

Events Calendar enables admin to create and maintain a list of events related to your brand Page and showcasing them in monthly calendar format to fans. You can set the event name, date, time and link to the contact’s profile Timeline or email. You may set so the calendar is viewable to admin/fans only.

#14 Genbook

Genbook is an appointment scheduling web service for small business. By installing Genbook to your Facebook page, you are allowing potential customers to reach you and gain more leads through confirmed appointments. You do need to register a Genbook account with your email address for 30 days free trial. When fans access your ‘BookNow!’ tab, they will be brought to the appointment page outside your Page:

To Encourage Invitation to View Your Page:

#15 Invitation Tab

Always make sure your fans are aware of this call to action to attract more ‘Likes’ on your Page:

i) Tabmaker Invite

For none-coders, this is an easy way to add an invite tab on managed Pages. Your fans can select who they want to invite to your Page or type their friends’ names in the search box:

ii) Invite Your Friends Button for Pages

This app makes it easy for fans to invite friends because all their friends’ names will be automatically added for invitation after the app is authorized. Of course, they can always choose to ‘invite (friends) one by one’.

iii) Smart Suggest To Friends – Invite Friends

Smart Suggest allows fans to include an invitation message not more than 255 characters before selecting friends manually.

To Create Tabs for Company Blog & Information:

#16 RSS for Pages

I have always loved RSS Graffiti for automated blog updates on Pages, but when it comes to creating a blog tab, RSS for Pages is my favorite. The tab consists of post image along with ‘Like’ and ‘Send’ buttons for fans to show their support.

#17 Extended Info

Not enough space in Info tab to describe your brand? Don’t squeeze everything on your landing tab, use Extended Info to add extra fields on a separate tab instead.

#18 FAQ Tab

Besides an appealing interface with your brand logo/banner, it attaches a form below for fans to reach you if needed.

To Showcase Other Social Media Profiles on Page:

#19 Google Plus Tab for Pages

Showcase your Google+ profile at your Page’s sidebar and configure the amount of Google+ updates (5-20) to display on the tab. Insert your Google+ Profile ID in the admin settings and you’re set to go:

#20 Twitter Tab

I prefer a (free) Twitter tab with customizable settings for brand visibility. This app allows you to insert banner image and provides customizations for the tab’s background, text and link color!

For Your Facebook Page Management:

#21 Post Planner

Post Planner lets you schedule your wall posts (text, links, images, videos etc) without leaving Facebook. This app is free for profile Timeline but costs $4.95/month to post on Pages (and Groups). Anyhow, it offers a 30-days trial for you to test it out.

#22 Static HTML:iframe tabs

Not enough iframe tabs on your Page? Now you can add up to 12 iframe tabs per page with Static HTML, find out where to get them. (More iframe apps to choose from, kindly refer to: 7 Free iFrame Applications to Create Welcome Tab (Custom Tabs) for Your Facebook Page).

#23 Selective Tweets

Don’t flood your Facebook page with Twitter stream. Use Selective Tweets to share info that matters to your page fans. When you post a full URL in your tweet that ends with #fb, it will appear as how you normally post a link on Facebook. Not to mention you will get a link below to be redirected to your twitter account for fans to follow.

Not enough Facebook applications for your Page? Get 14 more app suggestions here.

Now Is Your Turn…

Do you have other facebook page applications to suggest? Which app do you think has the biggest potential to improve fans engagement on Pages? Kindly share in your comment.

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If you’re on Facebook then you are well aware of this problem. Remember how we used to be able to check pending friend requests in our friends list as indicated below?

Not anymore with the new personal profile.

If you think there may be a hidden feature for this then sorry to disappoint you again. Here’s how Facebook responded about tracking pending friend requests:

Unable to check pending friend requests is a huge disadvantage for Facebook users, especially if you are warned for overusing the feature (sent too many requests in a short period of time), reducing the request quantity may be the way to go. Currently the only known way to track pending friend requests is by visiting the person’s profile with a ‘Friend Request Sent’ icon at the upper right corner:

Imagine we have to memorize ALL friend requests we ever sent then return to each profile, EVERYTIME? Obviously this isn’t effective enough. Now wouldn’t it be great if there’s a list for that… that’s right, a LIST!

Recently, I was inspired by how useful a Facebook list can get, including tracking our liked pages in News Feed. So I thought why not utilize Facebook lists to track our pending friend requests as well? Of course there may be plugins or apps for the same purpose but if you are skeptical towards third party apps, Facebook Lists is a much safer method to use. Here’s how:

Step 1: Build Your ‘Pending Friend Requests’ List

1. After logged in your personal profile, go to this link: https://www.facebook.com/bookmarks/lists

2. Click ‘Create a List’ and name it ‘Pending Friend Requests’.

3. You won’t need to add anybody to the list yet but whenever you sent a friend request, be sure to add him/her to your ‘Pending Friend Requests’ list.

4. From Home -> ‘Pending Friend Requests’, you can see profiles that had been added to your list. In order to follow up the list regularly, add it to your ‘Favorites’.

Step 2: Manage Your ‘Pending Friend Requests’ List

Unlike any Facebook applications, you need to update this list manually whenever a friend request is accepted. You can easily aware who just accepted your friend requests via Facebook Notifications or email alerts. After that, remove your new friend from the ‘Pending Friend Requests’ list.

Now, what if you missed the notifications and forgot all about the list after sometimes? Fear not, there are ways you can modify the list after several accepted friend requests.

Bear in mind, the news feed of your custom list will be consisting of updates from both your new (accepted) friends and non-friends (their public stories). Therefore you need to make sure the correct profile been removed from your ‘pending friend requests’ list, but how do you determine that?

Method #1 – Update ‘Pending Friend Requests’ List in News Feed

a. Open your ‘Pending Friend Requests’ list and scroll through your news feed. Hover over the profile to reveal his connection with you: If he/she had accepted your friend request, the ‘Friend’ button will appear. Remove everyone who established the ‘Friend’ connection with you, leaving the actual pending requests remained.

Method #2 – Check if Someone Had Accepted Your Friend Request

Instead of visiting the person’s facebook profile, you can check this within your custom list:

a. In your ‘Pending Friend Requests’ list -> ‘See All’ (upper right corner) to load the popup menu.

b. From ‘On This List’ you can have an overview of the people you sent friend requests to on Facebook. The unanswered/unaccepted friend requests will not appear in your ‘Friends’ list. For example, if Ron had yet to accept my friend request, his name won’t appear in my ‘Friends’ list. That’s how you know if a particular friend request is still pending or accepted.

These methods can only assist you this far in monitoring current and future sent requests but not previous ones. If anybody knows how to track back old (unlisted) friend requests, be sure to drop me a message!

Now Is Your Turn…

How do you manage pending friend requests before this? Do you think it’s necessary to have a checklist for it on Facebook? Kindly share your thoughts.

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Recently a lot of Facebook users are asking the same question:

“I can no longer view page updates in my newsfeed. How do I add pages I like into my Newsfeed? ”

Technically, the page updates are still there in your news feed, just not as easily spotted comparing to before. We all know Facebook has their very own algorithm in deciding which updates to appear in our news feed based on our recent activities and how popular is the post/page according to our interests. Even so, we still might miss out a whole lot more information from the pages we love even Facebook thinks they had it all sorted out for us.

 

5 Simple Steps to Organize Your Pages News Feed in Facebook

Facebook agrees that ‘Lists’ is the optional way to organize what you wish to see in your news feed. Therefore, why not utilize it now to monitor on pages you really care about? Here is how you can make that happen.

1. In your ‘Home’ section, refer to your sidebar and locate ‘Lists’ -> ‘More’. Or, go to your custom lists here.

 

2.  At the upper section of ‘Lists’, look for ‘Create a List’ button to bring up a pop-up menu. Name your list and click ‘Create List’.

 

3.  Now you can start adding Pages (instead of ‘Friends’) to your list: look for ‘Manage List’ at your upper right corner. In the dropdown menu, select ‘Add/Remove Friends’.

 

4.  Another pop up box will appear and at its upper left corner, select ‘Pages’ in the dropdown menu –  all pages you liked are displayed in alphabetical order. Start selecting the pages to be included in your list.

 

Tips: It is overwhelming to go through the entire list if you have over thousands of pages. Therefore, use (partial or full) keywords to find the pages you might be interested. When you’re satisfied with your choices, click ‘Done’.

 

5.  Now you can manage your list by deciding the type of updates you wish to see in your Page news feed.

Voila! Here is your very own customized News Feed for Pages:

Extra Tips 1: Create several lists instead of One-List-For-All

I would recommend you to create several lists for Pages You Like instead of just one that covers ALL. It would be difficult to see ALL page updates even in real time mode. Besides, you can merge the lists into one whenever you feel like it. However, the process is irreversible and the chosen list will be deleted after the merge.

Don’t worry if you do not have all the pages you want in one-go. Customize your list as time progresses, follow up on your current news feed to locate the missed-out pages and add them to your list anytime.

Extra Tips 2: Add your Facebook Page Lists to Your Favorites

All those important lists should go to a more visible area, say, your ‘Favorites’? Click at the pencil icon next to your Page list -> Add to Favorites:

Add as many lists as you prefer. When you’re done, you can rearrange them according to your preference (drag and drop):

Time Consuming if over Hundreds of Pages?

This is the pitfall of ALL list-making, but even if you have 5000 friends, I believe you would go through the entire list just to make sure your status update is going to the right group of people, right? This could be a great opportunity to better-arrange the pages you like instead of getting them all piled up for nothing. While a better alternative is on the way, this is the least we can do to organize the information we NEED, not depending solely on Facebook algorithm.

Oh, and while we’re at it, can Social @ Blogging Tracker Page be included in your privileged list too?

Now Is Your Turn…

Do you like the new changes to our Facebook news feed (excluding Top Stories and Most Recent options)? Would you prefer to have a better control over what information to read on? Do you have a better method in following up on the Pages you like? Kindly share your thoughts in the comment.

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[UPDATED 05/01/2012]Note: You don’t have to worry if FBML tags are not working in some of these iframe apps because starting from 1st, Jan 2012, FBML will no longer be supported as described by Facebook here.

Recently I received emails asking about facebook iFrame applications. Most readers enjoyed the guide on how to create an iFrame tab from scratch but some are requesting for a simpler route with ready-made iFrame apps that could save time and effort, even without owning a web page!

I realized there’s a need to update my previous post about adding a Welcome tab (or custom tab) to a facebook page. Therefore, I would like to share some of my after-use experiences with these handy iFrame applications. Kindly take note these opinions are strictly my own and have nothing to do with app sponsorship whatsoever.

7 Free iFrame Apps to Create Welcome/Custom Tabs for Facebook Pages

iFrame Applications with No Banner/Footer Ad:

1. Static HTML: iframe tabs

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: Yes

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: Available

Static HTML is suitable for those who are sensitive with footer or banner ads. You can copy and paste your HTML code, CSS or JavaScript to the empty fields as shown. It enables scrollbars and FBML options which you can tweak for both fans and non-fans content.

In My Opinion…

The editor section is pretty straight forward. To preview your iframe tab just click ‘Save and View tab’. However there is one minor issue when I tried to insert FBML code for ‘Fans-only content’ box with ‘Enable FBML’ turned on: somehow my Facebook Share icon would not show. Unsure if it’s a bug issue on my part but in case you faced the same problem, try inserting the codes below manually in ‘Enter your content here’ box without having to ‘enable FBML’:

<div>
<fb:visible-to-connection>
Put Your Fans-Only Content Here
<fb:else>
<div id=”non-fans”>Put Your Non-Fans Content Here</div>
</fb:else>
</fb:visible-to-connection>
</div>

iFrame Applications with Banner/Footer Ad (may be eliminated with minor fee):

2. TabPress

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: Yes

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: Available

Tabpress is similar to Static HTML in terms of copying and pasting the codes in the content boxes. Comparing to static HTML, Tabpress offers a more user-friendly preview bar that you may tweak between Non-Fan and Fan Content.

In My Opinion…

Tabpress kinda solved my bug issue with Static HTML as it allows FBML tags to show up effectively. Hurray to that!

3. Wildfire’s iFrames for Pages

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: Yes

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: Available

Wildfire iFrame application is convenient to use but best of all, page admin can upload image files straight from its editor. This differs from Tabpress and Static HTML as both apps require user to pre-upload the images (if have) to a self-hosting or photo-hosting site, for example, a coding below is needed if you are to showcase a Welcome image:

<img src=”http://www.yourphotohostingsite.com/imagename.jpg”>

By using Wildfire iFrames, you may eliminate this coding procedure.

In My Opinion…

Unfortunately, FBML tags are not supported in Wildfire app. Wildfire’s iFrames for Pages is currently FREE but in future they might start charging. So if you’re a fan of the app, better install it now.

4. Hosted iFrame

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: Yes

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: Available

What I love about Hosted iFrame is that it lets you add up till 5 iframe tabs to your facebook page (can be found at bottom page ‘Install Additional Tabs’). It gives you both Source and Visual preview of your content. Hosted iFrame allows Google Analytics so you may trace your page traffic. Also, it provides a special ‘Main Content’ editor box that you can create content for EVERYONE, besides the Fans-Only and Non-Fans content.

In My Opinion…

The ‘Main Content’ editor is a catchy feature. For now, Hosted iFrame is free for up to 25,000 fans but do watch out as once your page exceeded 25,000 fans, your tab will show a blank screen until you purchase their paid plans. Do take note that the total fan count is determined as a total of all your managed pages that are using Hosted iFrame, so it is important to monitor your tab consistently.

For Non-Coders: Allowing Subtabs

5. Iwipa

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No (with Media boxes)

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: Yes

I introduced Iwipa previously in 5 Ways to Create Welcome Tab (Custom & Sub-tabs) for Facebook Page http://www.wchingya.com/2010/11/welcome-sub-tabs-facebook-page.html. Iwipa provides advanced editing that benefits both coders (Source view) and non-coders (Visual). You can customize your content easily with the editor, from bolding texts to adding bullet points, pictures, video or links. Most of all, it adds sub-tabs and multiple media boxes to your iframe tab as shown below:

In My Opinion…

Facebook users may get a little frustrated learning their way through Iwipa’s control panels, but once you had mastered it, you may enjoy some fascinating features. For example, you can customize a special note to your fans with catchy title or even a welcome video. (Paid version provides more customization and even embedding your Google Analytics code)

Note: Iwipa has a special media box that can showcase your page fans but that’s optional. If you would like to keep your fan list private, make sure this media box is not activated.

6. TabSite

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No (Drag N Build)

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: No

Same as Iwipa, Tabsite had also upgraded to iFrame compliant. Its ‘Drag N Build’ feature had been recently added so special media widgets such as Google Map and email form integration (MailChimp, Constant Contact and Delivra) can be added to your custom iframe tab.

In My Opinion…

You will have to customize everything in Tabsite’s own main site (login required). Tabsite gives you two free main tabs: Welcome and Drag N Build (each with subtabs). Therefore, remember to ‘Save & Publish’ every time you made corrections to your tab content. Paid account offers more widgets but it all depends on your facebook page requirement.

For Non-Coders: Easy Custom Tab with Ready Template

7. Pagemodo Pagebuilder

Requirement of Coding Knowledge: No

Fans-Only and Non-Fans Content: for Paid Account only

Pagemodo is not affected at all by the FBML to iFrames transition as it provides drag and drop template for page admin. You can enjoy quite a number of free, sophisticated templates with easy image-uploading and text insertion.

In My Opinion…

Pagemodo is great to give fans a professional-feel of your page without having to worry much about image arrangement. Great for facebook page beginners to explore before advancing to more professional iframe tab customizations.

Bonus Tip ~

Some of these iFrame applications are using ‘Welcome’ as their tab name. You can re-name these tabs easily if you are to create a different custom tab. Just go to Edit Page -> Apps -> look for the iFrame application and click ‘Edit Settings’ -> Custom Tab Name -> change ‘Welcome’ to any custom name and ‘Save’.

Now Is Your Turn…

Bottom line, there is never a ‘best’ application but only the one that suits your facebook page the most. Make sure to test the iFrame applications yourself and understand their privacy options before using. Do you happen to know any other useful Facebook iFrame applications? Do share in the comments below.

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[UPDATED 25/12/2011] If you want to Insert your external Web Page as one of your Page tabs, now this can be done easily with ready–made custom iframe apps. This will also solve the Secure Hosting requirement for your custom apps to display properly in ‘secure browsing’ on Facebook.

Below method is ONLY useful for those who wish to create iframe application for other Facebook users to add to their Facebook Pages:

It has been almost two weeks since the official launch of iframe app, replacing the good old static FBML tabs on our facebook pages. For those who aren’t sure what is an iframe, basically it is a standard HTML tag to enable a HTML document to be inserted into another HTML page. The benefit of iframes over FBML is that it accepts a wide range of web coding (Javascript, CSS etc) that used to be non-compatible in static FBML to create dynamic content for our custom tabs. Best of all, you can even import your custom made web page to be included in your fan page! Imagine how convenient that would be for your promotional effort!

Since no more NEW static fbml applications can be added to our managed pages, it’s important to know exactly how to work from creating the app to adding it to your facebook page successfully. I will try to be as thorough as I manage:

How to Create and Add Custom iFrame Tab to Facebook Page

Firstly, you need to prepare a html page to be inserted into your facebook page. You may use Dreamweaver for the job and upload the html file to your web server so to be pulled into your fan page later. Or, we can do this the easy way with less complication via a wordpress plugin named Facebook Tab Manager. What I love about this tab editor is that it saves time and keeps the custom tab size limit of 520px wide so no resizing is needed afterward.

Add Facebook Tab Manager to your WordPress Blog

1.  Login to your blog and add Facebook Tab Manager to your plugins.

2.  Activate it and look for ‘Facebook Tabs’ at your sidebar -> click ‘Add New’. Notice that to create the iframe tab content is as easy as how you normally write a new post.

3.  When done, hit ‘publish’. New instructions will appear at the bottom of the post on configurations to register your content on facebook:

Customize Facebook Tab with iframe App

4.  Go to Facebook Developer and start setting up your new iframe app.

[UPDATED Image: 25/12/2011]

[END]

Note:

Some of you who are creating your facebook application for the first time, verification process may be required. If you had already verified your facebook account before this, you can bypass this step. Otherwise, you need to go ahead and select to verify your account with mobile phone or credit card. Or, if you are not comfortable with this step, add an admin who is already done the verification to work on the new iframe application.

5.  The ‘About’ section consists of some necessary fields besides filling in your app name. Add image to your icon and logo so it’s recognizable.

[UPDATED Image 25/12/2011]

Edit your app icon: Settings -> Basic -> Edit icon:

[END]

Tips: Why icon/logo image is important?

‘Icon’ image will show up next to your app name when added as a new tab to your facebook page. ‘Logo’ image will appear in app directory, for example:  you can have a look at your ‘Edit Page -> App after you added it to your page :

6.  At ‘Facebook Integration’ section is where all the hard work landed. Here are some important fields that required to be filled correctly:

In Canvas Section:

• Canvas Page – the base URL of your application on facebook.
• Canvas URL – this is the URL where facebook pulls in your iframe content.
• Secure Canvas URL – the secure version of Canvas URL with ‘https’. Basically the same info you entered in your ‘Canvas URL’.

Complicated? No worries. Refer back to step #3 above and locate the ‘Facebook Integration Tab’ in your blog and copy/paste the links given to you, for example:

[UPDATED Image/Instructions 25/12/2011]

Go to Settings -> Basic -> Select how your app integrates with Facebook -> Save Changes:

To create and associate a new (community) page with your app, go to Settings ->Advanced ->Contact Info ->App Page (Create Facebook Page) (optional) :

[END]

Below is the example of how Canvas section is filled:

*Caution*:

If you are unable to see the iframe app after installed to your page (regardless if you’re in ‘http’ or ‘https’), leave the ‘Secure Canvas URL’ field BLANK. Your iframe tab should be able to work in ‘http’ (non-secured browsing) and in order to view that, you need to go to Account -> Account Settings -> Account Security -> UNCHECK Secure Browsing. This is believed to be caused by a known issue on how our custom app is not visible when viewed in secured browser (https) as described in this bug report.

The bug occurred in February and was said to be fixed in mid March, however it seems that the bug is back again recently and affecting some of my pages. Will follow up on this issue and if you know how to fix this, do share.

In Page Tabs Section:

The important parts are ‘Tab URL’ and ‘Secure Tab URL’. Both links are referring to the html file location including its file name -> Save Changes:

*Caution*:

Again, if your app tab is not viewable, leave the ‘Secure Canvas URL’ field BLANK until the bug issue for secured browsing (‘https’) is fixed.

So now, your new iframe app is created!

Add Your iFrame App to your Facebook Page

[UPDATED 25/12/2011]

Refer to the documentation on how you can add a page tab dialog, or the one near to the end of this post. Clearly there is no longer a view app profile page link available in Developers apps section. No idea why though. [END]

7.  Now go back to your ‘My Apps’ page and select ‘Application Profile Page’.

8.  Then as how you normally add application to your page, click ‘Add to My Page’ -> then Add to the page you want:

9.  See that a new tab is added at your page sidebar. Rearrange the tab [#2(c)] to a preferred location or set it as your landing tab.

*Caution*:

For some web developers who intends to import their external web pages to facebook pages, be sure to check if your page consists of any disallowed ad providers. Thanks to Kim for providing this info so not to violate facebook Terms of Use (refer to the part about ’9. Special Provisions Applicable to Developers/Operators of Applications and Websites’).

10.  You can rename your custom tab by going to Edit Page -> App -> your app name -> Custom Tab Name -> after edit, click Save:

 

So whenever you wish to create a new custom tab, you need to go through all the steps again to get it done. Time consuming isn’t it?

To make things easier, if I could I will try to find other alternatives or ready-apps so even facebook beginners could enjoy as much privilege without having to go through the lengthy steps. Be sure to follow close and don’t miss upcoming posts!

Updated Post to check out:
7 Free iFrame Applications to Create Welcome Tab (Custom Tabs) for Your Facebook Page.

Now Is Your Turn…

How is your experience with iframe app so far? Has it been more useful for your page or not? Do you have any special tips to add? Feel free to do so in the comments.

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I’m really grateful to Are for he had posted a great question here. I haven’t actually wrote a detailed post about photo arrangements for either New Profile or the upgraded facebook page.

This week would be a great opportunity to go more in depth with both platforms! Truth is, we do need all the visibility we can get in facebook these days. Not to mention the ability to control which photos to show or hide from public eye.

Section #1 : How to Manage Your Photos in New Profile

It’s always important to check your privacy settings before applying any changes to your personal profile. For your new profile, all the photos appearing on top of your wall are photos been tagged by you or your friends. Make sure you are clear of the privacy setting that controls who can view your tagged photos at #2 of this post.

Now, let’s proceed with our photos arrangement in a new profile:

Creating a Profile Banner

In a profile banner, photo sequence is everything! There are many ways you can create a banner, some suggested to use app like Profile Banner but personally I prefer self-customization. I simply created a banner with the size of 485px x 68px and divided them into 5 photo strips. More about the photo size at Section #2 later, but once you got your photos ready:

1. First of all, upload your photos to your selected or newly created photo album in new profile:

2. When the photos are uploaded, you may choose to whether ‘Publish Now‘ or ‘Skip‘ it for later. I would go for ‘Skip’ as the news feed about your tagged photos will be updated anyway when we apply the tagging later.

3. Now in your album, identify your photo sequence and rearrange them if need to.

4. Before applying the photo tagging, do take note that the last photo you tagged will always show up at the farthest left on top of your profile. So if your photos are telling a story or been arranged to form a banner, make sure they are displayed so photo #1 is the first to be tagged, followed by #2, #3, #4 and #5 as shown below:

5. To tag a photo is easy, simply go to your album and tag your photos in proper sequence. Select the photo -> Tag this Photo ->Type or Choose your own name in the box -> click ‘Tag’ -> Done Tagging:

Solution: Unwanted Photos due to photo tagging by friends

Your profile banner can be easily disrupted once your friend had tagged you in another photo. Since there is no way to prevent people from tagging you, you can manage the unwanted tagged photos by:

i) Hiding tagged photo by ‘x’ (mouseover)

ii) Remove and untag photo from Wall

Section #2 : How to Manage Your Photos in (Upgraded) New Facebook Page

In the most recent post about enhancing your upgraded facebook page (some new tips were added at ‘Extra Tips‘ section in that post, do check them out!), the #1 advice is to make use of the photo row to attract fans attention effectively. Unlike personal profile, these photos are not only tagged photos of your facebook page but also:

• Your most recent uploaded photos
• Randomly arranged

Obviously a page banner is not possible for now since we cannot control the photo sequence. Even so, there are some easy, exciting ways you can use the spot for publicity. See how my friend, Nancy is smart on making sure her business messages are sent through via the photos on her page:

From what I see, this is by far the best way to present the photos until other methods come around. Without further ado, let’s see how we can learn from Nancy in controlling our photos on top of our fan pages:

1. Create and optimize your photo size to approximately: 97px (height) ×68px (width). (Photo sequence is not an issue here.)

2. Use photo editor such as Pixlr or Photoshop, even your very own Paint (Windows 7 version) to create the photos (more image editing app suggestions refer to section (b) of this post). Make sure the photos are striking enough to capture attention, better with a call to action like ‘Click Here’.

3. When you’re done designing your photos, upload them to your facebook page. Notice you can see them on top of your facebook page as soon as they are uploaded:

4. When your fan clicks at the photo, it will appear as a slideshow. Add image caption or URL that explains your promotion in details:

5. If you had added other photos after this, you can still grab the first spot on the left via tagging. Go to your album and select the photo you want to place #1 -> click ‘Tag this Photo’ ->Type or select your page name in the drop down menu -> click ‘Done Tagging’ :

6. Look! The tagged photo will appear just where you wanted it to be (so far only works on #1 photo from the left):

You can add as many photos you like to your facebook page and apply tagging whenever necessary. Of course, you can always ‘hide’ other photos you uploaded so only the default ones are showing on top of your facebook page. Most importantly, use your creativity and make sure each click-through is worth it for your fans.

Now Is Your Turn…

Have you discovered any smart ways to control photo arrangement on both your new profile and facebook page? What other ways you can suggest so page admin can make full use of their photos? Be sure to share your brilliant ideas in the comment below.

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Three days ago, facebook announced an exciting news about Page Upgrade! Some of the most desired features are finally included such as page notification, ability to comment as the page profile and many more! I can’t wait to share with you what I love about the new facebook page:

 

#1  Latest Photos Arrangement to Grab Attention

 

Clearly, the new profile launch was preparing us for this evolutionary change for facebook pages. Now your page is also featuring 5 photos on top of your page, displaying the most recent photos or the ones you’ve tagged your own page in. Fans photos are excluded here.

Notice that the photos are randomly arranged after each click-through. It is difficult to maintain the photo sequence to create a large banner as how we normally do in new profile. However, since the removal of the ‘information’ box and latest status update on top of the facebook page, admin will need all the visibility he/she can get to grab fans’ attention. You should work out a method on how these photos can better assist in promoting your business without having to worry about photo sequence. This is something I intend to look further into.

 
Updated & Recommended to Read: How to Manage Photos On Top of Your New Profile & Facebook Pages
 

#2  Extra Length in Naming and Tab Descriptions

 

A lot of people see the new tab arrangement at the sidebar as a bad thing due to less visibility and click-through rates comparing to older design. After exploring them, I found there are hidden blessings within. Here are a few important tips about tab control:

a) Default Landing Tab STAYS
This could be the biggest concern of all, but good for facebook, this option stays for good.

b) Extra Spaces in Naming your Customized Tabs
Remember how we used to complain not having enough space in naming our tabs? Now you can have at least two rows of eye-catching description for your customized tab! That’s a welcoming improvement in tab visibility at the left column.

c) Edit and Hide Excessive Tabs
Unlike Merged pages, you can edit and hide your app tabs at will! Just click ‘Edit’ -> drag and drop the app tabs to arrange their order:

To have a less distracting sidebar, it’s advisable to keep only the important tabs in sight. Remove the unwanted tabs by clicking ‘Edit’ -> click ‘x’ next to the app to hide it:

Remember, sometimes less is more.

 

 

#3  Improve Page Interaction with Page Notification & Admin View

 

Wall Posts are no longer arranged in chronological order, instead two new filters are given for viewing: ‘Everyone’ or ‘your page name’ (posts by admin only). By default, ‘Everyone’ will show fans the most engaging posts on your page. The good side is fans are encouraged to participate often for visibility. The downside, new posts are struggling to reach the top. Even popular posts may lapse over time. For example, Christmas or new year wishes may stay on top of your page due to >100 comments by fans, but it doesn’t give much significance in value or info-sharing. This is another concern we need to work on in page engagement.

Page Notification:

This is remedied by the new page notification:

 

a) Email notification: Go to Edit Page -> Your Settings -> Tick the box for ‘Email Notification’ -> Save Changes. You can also change email settings for individual pages here :

 

b) Red on-site alert: You will have to ‘Use Facebook as Page’ (Logged in as Page Profile) in order to see them:

Then you can see page notification updates:

And it works for photo comments too! Hurray!

 

Admin View:
Page admin can easily view the ‘Most Recent’ posts and ‘Hidden Posts’ (Spam filter) via Wall -> Admin View option at the sidebar.

 

 

#4  Separate Business Interactions from Personal Profile

 

The upgraded page solves the biggest concern in separating personal life from business contacts. You can now do the following via identity switch between a personal and a page profile:

What you can do OUTSIDE managed pages:

• Post comment as your business page without status-tagging feature.
  

 

• A whole new section of news feed for your liked pages (or once known as ‘favorited pages’):
  

 

What you can do INSIDE managed pages:

• Page activities (‘recent activity’) are showing up on your page Wall
  

 

• Find out mutual connections (mutual fans count) between other pages and yours in Recommended Pages:
  

 

• You can even choose to post as your personal profile by Edit Page -> Your Settings -> Untick ‘Always comment and post on your page as Your Page Name‘:
  

 

#5  Effectively Build Relationship with Other Pages via ‘Like’ & ‘Feature’

 

A page can finally ‘like’ as a page itself. There are two ways you can do this:

a) When logged in as your personal profile: click ‘Add to my Page’s Favorite’, OR

b) When logged in as your page profile: click ‘Use Facebook as Page’-> go to another page -> click their ‘Like’ button on top.

Best of all, you can decide which of your favorited/liked pages are showcased at your page’s sidebar: Edit Page -> Featured -> Select the number of pages to be rotated randomly:

You can feature your own page admins too if like (but DON’T if you are separating business from personal life):

 

 

#6  Limitless Counts to Change Page Category

 

It used to be troublesome to request for a page category review from facebook. Now you can manually select the accurate group and category for your facebook page from Edit page -> Basic Information -> Category -> and see the immediate change after that:

And there is no limit of how many times you can change page category.

 

#7  Better Moderation to Reduce Spam via Moderation Blacklist

 

You can now add keywords in the ‘Moderation Blacklist’ to prevent spams from appearing on your wall or comments: Edit page -> Manage Permissions -> Moderation Blacklist:

 

It’s great to see facebook is learning from their lessons with New Profile and merged facebook places/fan page by allowing ‘Preview’ before forced implementation. Page admin can switch back to public mode anytime if not satisfied, but NEVER after confirming the page upgrade. All facebook pages will be auto-updated starting March, 2011. Might as well get adapt and be ready for it.

 

Extra Tip:

 

Not sure if you noticed but Managed Pages is gone from our profile account. You can still reach your managed pages via this direct link or via Discover Facebook Pages -> Pages I admin.

 
Updated 01/03/2011:

We can now change ANY app tabs to our desired names. Go to Edit Page -> App -> select the app you wish to rename, click Edit Settings -> notice a new option ‘Custom Tab Name‘ is given! Key in the name and ‘Save’.

 

Some page comments may appear in GREY, which means they had been marked as spam by facebook and visible to page admin only. Release the legitimate comment by clicking ‘x’ -> Unmark as Spam so it is visible to all.

 
Updated 02/03/2011:

You’re gonna love this! Facebook is giving us back the ‘Most Recent’ posts option on our pages! Hurray! The previous ‘Admin View’ is now switched to ‘Hidden Posts’ (also known as Spam filter).

 

NOW IS YOUR TURN…

 

So I’m eager to hear what you think about the new upgraded page? What is the biggest gain for you and what previous options you’d like to keep unchanged? Share your thoughts in the comments.

 

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It has been four months since we talked about how to receive email notification for facebook page updates. Up till today, this feature remains unavailable on facebook. Apart from regular checking, page admin can only rely on third party applications to monitor upcoming posts and comments from fans.

I had previously introduced Page Notifier and Fan Page Notifier to monitor page activity (read this post to learn more about them). Page Notifier’s free version provides one-time-scan per 24 hours. As much I’m satisfied with its results, I longed for more scans in a day. As for Fan Page Notifier, the last time I got an email notification from it was end of December 2010. Not sure why it stopped. I went back in and updated my subscription recently, we’ll see how it performs few days later.

It’s absolutely fair to have limitations when using a free application, I understand that. In fact, I appreciate the app developers for trying to make our lives easier with these nifty facebook applications. Still, it never stops me to source for better alternatives, which is why I’m thrilled to introduce you these two new, free facebook applications that made my page monitoring a lot easier starting 2011:

#1 Hyper Alerts

Hyper Alerts won me over with its tag line ‘The Feature Facebook Forgot’ (how true is that!). It’s currently in public BETA (FREE) so definitely worth a try. The setup is almost instantaneous, start by registering yourself with an email:

Then, decide how you wish to add your facebook page to be monitored:

Option (1): Add Alert by URL
- All you need is to type in your facebook page URL -> Add, and you’re set. You don’t need to add this app to your facebook page at all! Plus, you can even monitor other fan pages you like but not under your administration.

Option (2): Add Alert from your Facebook User
- This option, on the other hand, requires authorization to access your facebook account. The purpose is to retrieve all facebook pages you are currently managing with your profile so you can select multiple facebook pages at once.

Normally I would go for option (1) since no strings attached (less privacy concern). But in order to receive instant email notification for new posts and comments, I was requested to connect my facebook page with the app anyway with option (1) :

So bottom line, you have two choices based on your alert frequencies:

• If you refuse to allow Hyper Alerts to access your facebook account, you need to settle with either one of these alert frequencies: Hourly, Daily, Weekly or Monthly.
• If you prefer to receive email notification ‘as soon as possible’ for new posts and comments,  it’s a must to add Hyper Alerts to your facebook page (authorization required).

For now, I don’t think HyperAlerts is capable of notifying new photo comments (within photo albums) but only updates from the page wall:

What I love about Hyper Alerts:
It’s always a courtesy to ask if user wants to add the application to their facebook account. Even if we are not ready to allow access for Hyper Alerts, it still gives us other options – that’s thoughtful. I love how a user can opt-out of ‘Own Content’ so only fans posts or comments are notified, reducing the noise in our inbox. Not to mention, the ability to monitor other pages we like is a bonus!

#2  MediaFeedia

MediaFeedia is actually a facebook management tool and ‘fan page notifications’ just happens to be one of the offered features. Similar to most web applications, you need to register (either via facebook connect or email address). Then, you will be asked to import your facebook account to select the pages:

Once confirmed your page selections, go to Fan Page Notifications -> Start Monitoring -> type in your email address to receive page alerts. The maximum number of email addresses you can enter is three:

This is how mediafeedia email notification looks like in your email:

Mediafeedia includes updates from the page admin him/herself. By clicking at ‘Comment’ you will be redirected to your facebook page to reply and view the complete conversation:

What I love about MediaFeedia:
I have started using MediaFeedia since early January, I must say this application is exactly what I was looking for to improve my page monitoring with Page Notifier. The scan results are very similar to Hyper Alerts’ but with extra features such as post scheduling and email invitation to other admins.

Hyper Alerts and MediaFeedia are both showing profile thumbnail in their email alerts. I find that a significant ‘visual’ improvement for page notification apps, also a good way to get familiarized with who our fans are via their profile image.

Now Is Your Turn…

How do you monitor your page updates? If you have been using other facebook page notification apps, how would you compare them with Hyper Alerts and MediaFeedia? Kindly share your thoughts in the comment.

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The incident with merged facebook page and Places has temporarily subsided, thanks to the much-requested ‘unmerge’ button. I didn’t get to explore how the Places page work but as much the Bing map looks attractive on the merged pages, there are numerous reasons why a business owner should think twice before merging.

Last Saturday, I had a light bulb moment when one of the page members wrote:

Although this has nothing to do with a Places page, but undeniably the idea of inserting a Google map into a facebook page is a great alternative! That way page admin can still use an interactive map to guide fans to their business premise without having to worry about page layout and losing landing tab setting due to the merge.

There are several ways to do this but personally I prefer facebook applications over manual HTML embed. I am anticipating for iframe app facebook promised to release in 2011 which will make dynamic content (like Google Maps) to be embedded a lot easier. Until then, here are some facebook applications you can use without having to worry about manual coding at all:

3 FACEBOOK APPS TO EMBED A GOOGLE MAP

#1  BlockWild Map

BlockWild Map lets you add a ‘Map’ tab indicating your business location within a facebook page. No HTML code required. All you need is to fill up your business name and address, the map tab will be up and running:

Notice that you can even announce local events for your business with details such as description, duration, image gallery etc. Fans can interact with you about the event via facebook comment box, or share it with their Twitter or Facebook friends (social buttons available). Since there won’t be any notifications you should check on new comments regularly. To access the complete map, fans can close the event box anytime by clicking at the purple-circled ‘x’:

I love how the tab is named ‘Map’ to suit perfectly for its purpose. However, if I have a customized Google map to highlight special routes or places nearby, I will need more control over the map and how it is displayed. That’s when Contact Tab comes in:

#2  Contact Tab

We first heard about Contact tab from my introductory about facebook page engagement tools (app #13). Back then I didn’t go deep with the Map feature but today, you will see how easy it is to embed a customized Google map to your Contact tab. I’m using First World Hotel, Genting Highlands as an example:

1. Learn how you can customize your Google map here:

2. Once your map is ready, look for the option ‘Link’ at the upper right corner and click at it for the HTML code:

3. Next, locate the ‘Contact’ tab on your page wall -> Edit Application:

4. Paste the HTML code you copied from the map and paste into the iframe box at the lower part of the Contact Tab -> Save Application:

5. After been asked to ‘click to view map’, your fans can use the tools (red-circled) to move around the map, or zoom in/out at will:

I love how Contact Tab is capable of adding a customized Google map, but if only other mandatory fields such as email, website and address can be opted out. The word ‘Contact‘ may not be obvious for fans in finding the map so you may like to mention/add a link to it from your Welcome tab or Info.

#3  Placewidget

Placewidget is also using Google map so if you had claimed your business on Foursquare, you can add this application to showcase the map. But unlike Foursquare main site, the map is non-interactive, merely an image file. A click at it will bring you to Foursquare where you can then explore the map thoroughly.

We don’t know how long we get to stay in the old page format, but until facebook team improvises the Facebook Places for merging, page admins will have some options to show their offices via Google Maps for now.

Now Is Your Turn…

Is adding a Google map or Bing map essential for your business page? Shall the settings for default landing tab and tab-positioning be maintained in the new facebook page layout? Love to hear your thoughts in the comment.

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CHECK OUT: 23+ Essential Facebook Page Applications to Improve Fans Engagement in 2012.

2011 has finally arrived! It’s the moment we renew our pledge to social media commitments and keeping our audiences enthralled with our content! As I went through my blog achieve the other day, I was deeply encouraged by the responses obtained from the below posts, especially in helping page admins to discover some favorite apps of their own:

• 13 Facebook Applications to Promote Your Blog
• 16 Facebook Applications to Boost Popularity of Facebook Fan Page
• 31 Facebook Applications to Enhance Your Facebook Page
• 5 Ways to Create Welcome Tab (Custom & Sub-tabs) for Facebook Page

Coincidentally last month, a reader wrote in and requested for ideas in increasing fan base and fans engagement on their page wall. During my research, I came across Appbistro, a market place for facebook page applications that saved me a lot of time in discovering new applications when I logged in as my Social @ Blogging Tracker page:

Basically what it does is to identify my page type then recommend me the best applications for my facebook page. I can sort the app results based on popularity, rating or price range. Thanks to Appbistro, I found myself a new set of facebook applications for my facebook customization work in 2011. Most applications below are either free or allowing free trial as I know how much we all love FREE stuffs.

Kindly be reminded that this review is based on my personal opinion only and has nothing to do with Appbistro or any app developers sponsorship whatsoever.

To Listen to Fans / Customers Feedback:

#1  UserVoice

I had briefly touched about UserVoice in promoting your facebook page with testimonials. When I finally tested out this app in mid December, what a great substitute for Feedback app this is! Your fans can now provide suggestions for your service/product, and have others to comment and vote for existing discussions. You will then be notified for each new update via email so you can moderate fans posting at once. When you feel a subject has gotten enough feedback, close it so no further voting or new posts can be added to it, except for comments.

Two features I love about Uservoice: page admin can retrieve deleted ‘ideas’ (if you had deleted any posts by mistake) and each response on the forum will not be posted back to any of your fans profile wall – I’m sure most will appreciate that, especially in separating personal profile from business pages.

This application is cross posting between your fan page and UserVoice homepage, where you can setup own alias for the domain (yourusername.uservoice.com). Learn more about their different plans and how extra features such as ‘export’ or ‘unlimited forums’ can meet your page requirements.

If you’re not ready to pay for the service, you can always customize a feedback form using Static FBML all by yourself.

To Give Incentives and Attract New Fans:

#2  Gifts for Pages

Everyone loves FREE gifts! ‘Gifts for Pages’ prepares a facebook tab for you to create branded gifts so fans can distribute to their own friends on your behalf! Inspire your inner creativity and personalize some catchy 130×130 px image icons to grab fans attention. Give them something meaningful or worthwhile to share, then track fans responses via traffic graph. If you don’t like the existing layout, modify the ready CSS file to fit your brand’s image.

It’s always good to learn about giving prior to receiving.

#3  Easypromos

If you don’t know how to customize a promotion tab yet, this is the app for you. Easypromos is FREE for FIRST-time promo only ($15/promotion after that) and you should definitely take a look at the features and configurations, very easy to setup. Specify the length of your promotion period and select the criteria from the given options. One of my favorites is that page admin can encourage non-fans to like your page first before they are able to fill up the entry form.

You may choose how to display this promo on your page wall and check your fans registration form within the application itself.

Note:

Promotions are great but make sure you’re not violating any of these Facebook Promotion Guidelines before set one up.

Extra Read:

Refer to #1 Promotions in 31 Facebook Applications to Enhance Your Facebook Page

To Encourage Fans Participations via Polls and Media files:

#4  Fan Appz

Fan Appz will impress you with its wide range of social media marketing applications. Free account provides Polls, Quizzes and Top 5’s. To me, those are sufficient enough to generate interest and participation from fellow members, if your questions (and images) are intriguing enough:

Page admin can edit or delete published poll or quizzes but not after fans had already voted on them. Plus, you will be given scheduling feature to promote the poll on your page wall so fans from different time zones can participate. To discover more about their paid plans read here. Just remember a free plan will have an advertisement link on the tab and you won’t be able to set promotions/coupons.

#5  ffwdPlayer

I had been asked many times about better ways to import a video channel into a fan page. Besides Involver, ffwd Player can be an excellent alternative to publish videos uploaded by you on other video hosting sites such as YouTube or Brightcove.

The video-import is extremely easy by inserting your channel’s username, then you can configure so to update it automatically with feed (either via uploads, favorites, playlist or search). Customize your video tab with brief description of the videos and include a header image. Your fans can later share the videos with their friends via the ‘Share’ button per video.

#6  Livestream

(image credit: Livestream)

How fun it is you can now broadcast live from your fan page to get in touch with fans all over the world! Just a click at the Livestream tab your fans can enjoy real time interaction with you via the comment box during the live broadcasting. As usual, the ‘Share’ button is highly visible so if your fans find it interesting enough to share with their friends, they probably will. Customize your livestream tab with a catchy header image for brand awareness. Your livestream is not limited within facebook page only, it will be kept in a video library on livestream.com and to be viewed or used on your external sites, such as a company blog.

Another great example of Livestream can be seen on Facebook Live. Read about their paid plans if interested.

#7  Peekeez

Peekeez is very similar to livestream, it lets you setup a live video broadcasting from your webcam on facebook page and encourage fans to comment, share within the tab. Say, if you have a restaurant and you’d like to show off how busy the day can get, Peekeez is perfect for the task.

What makes it different from Livestream is that it does not cross post to its official site. According to their privacy policy that “your webcam can only be viewed on your facebook page” but it’s not entirely free. You may have trial period up to 14 days and after that it’ll cost you $20/month.

#8  Posted Items Pro

Posted Items Pro is basically a tab where you gather your favorite medias to be shared in one place with your fans. All you have to do is decide which media files (blog posts, video, mp3, web link or image) you’d like to feature with proper title, source link and descriptions. For web link, you can even select a thumbnail for the post. Then all the media files will be displayed within a tab named ‘Favorites’. Your fans can comment or share these files with their facebook friends, a harmless and effective way to increase page impressions for your business page.

#9  Clobby Group Chat

Some people told me how they admire Facebook Groups for having the Group chat feature. If you feel the same way, why not try out this real time chat app called Clobby Group Chat? Your fans will be able to invite their friends to join in the chat or ‘like’ a chat, so it’s great for viral effect. I once blogged about this application so if you’re in for a detailed review, kindly refer here Clobby: Facebook Group Chat for Fan Page and Personal Account.

To Encourage Geotagging for Local Business:

#10  PlaceWidget

(image credit: appbistro)

PlaceWidget adds a foursquare tab to your facebook page that includes your venue info with an easy configuration. You can show off mayor, offers and tips to visitors – this is obviously a plus if you and your fans are dedicated users on Foursquare. Comparing to the after-merged facebook places and a fan page, this would not alter your existing page layout and landing tab settings.

Extra Read:

Find out what other types of location you can add on Foursquare here.

For Marketing, Job Opportunity & Branding:

#11  TextualAds

You do aware how prevalent mobile marketing is these days. TextualAds is not for everyone but if you are interested in mobile marketing, textualads is an application that allows your fans to opt in for latest promo or product news via text messages. You will be able to send targeted SMS for your marketing campaigns according to your fans age, country, state, gender etc with customizable layout (css style sheet) and messages – but these are under paid plans, of course. Free account has less customization but may be good to try out:

Just be reminded that people are very cautious with their privacy. If you are going to use TextualAds make sure you had made clear that you will not distribute or misuse your fans’ personal details. Trust is hard to come by these days so never, ever violate that promise.

Extra Read:

To learn more how powerful textualads can get, here’s a post that will amaze you.

#12  Work For Us

What can be more rewarding by offering your fans a chance to work as a team? Work For Us allows you to post job openings on business page. Apart from filling in the forms, applicants can attach their CV/Resume without having to leave the page at all! Work For Us makes it easy to share job opportunity with friends via ‘Share’ button or a personalized private message.

One thing I love about this application is that you can integrate your twitter account and set the tweeting frequency for the new job vacancy.

All accounts are given 30-days free trial or, you can always subscribe to its Free plan for one job slot.

Extra: similar application – Jobmagic

#13  Contact Tab

I absolutely love Contact tab! This is a comprehensive tab about your business info and how your potential clients can reach you. Not only banner image and logo, you can include contact forms, contact methods and embed a comment box within the tab. The setup is very easy, simply fill in the required info and Save it. If you’re interested to display the location of your premise via Google map or Bing map, feel free to do so. A remedy to a plain, dull info tab that makes you stand out from the rest of your competitors.

#14  dPortfolio

I’m all about adding Testimonials and portfolio to your social profiles if you are to promote your business as effectively as possible. As much I prefer custom tabs for the job, but if you are not familiar with customization, feel free to adapt dPortfolio in categorizing your quality work with descriptions. Honestly, I was having second thoughts when placing this as # 14 since I was getting error message when trying to save my project, the page stalled for a long time and didn’t stop. It could be a temporary error since no other users are complaining about this yet, so I’m putting this under observation as I really hope it would work.

There are over 110+ applications on appbistro so these are just the tip of an iceberg. You can learn more about other facebook applications that match your needs by logging in with your user profile in which your facebook page has attached to it. If you are not ready to login with your facebook account, why not browse all the applications here.

The paid apps listed in appbistro are either using their payment API or attach with an affiliate program with them. That’s why some apps can be purchased straight from the site (Cart) while some are not. When enquiring about their future project, I was told that appbistro is working on a whitelabel application store. Any service or website that owns an API can integrate their own application store powered by appbistro, a great news for app developers in search for a platform to showcase and market their products.

Friendly Reminder: some apps require access to your basic facebook info. There will always be a pop up box to alert you what information the app will be accessing so make sure to check them through before you click ‘Allow’. Also, if you decided to discontinue an app from your page, apart from removing it from your ‘Edit Page’, make sure to remove it from your profile’s privacy settings here as well.

Now is Your Turn

How do you plan on enhancing your facebook page in 2011? Will you be using Appbistro or any of the facebook applications above to increase fans engagement? Do share your thoughts.

SPECIAL GUEST on SBT In TWO WEEKS TIME!~

In conjunction with the new year, an honorable guest poster will be here for the first time on Social @ Blogging Tracker! I’m pretty sure most bloggers are familiar with his name and It’s truly a privilege to have him here! So if you wish to know who is my mysterious guest make sure to subscribe so you won’t miss this! I can assure you it’s worth the wait.

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