Engagement in custom tabs on Facebook brand pages has seen a steep decrease since the arrival of Timeline, according to a PageLever report.
The Timeline view for brand pages was first introduced on February 28, 2012. Page administrators were given a one month period to opt-in, and on March 31, the Timeline view was made compulsory for all pages. PageLever studied the visits to custom tabs on 500 pages, each with over 10,000 fans. The results showed that visits to custom tabs had decreased by 53%.
This decrease is attributed to two changes that the Timline made in brand pages:
- Custom tabs can no longer be set as the landing tab, the Timeline is always the default landing tab.
- Tabs are much harder to find in the new layout.
The PageLever report recommends that brands use more organic sharing by way of wall-posts and status updates, over custom tabs. The Timeline view offers customisable features that page managers should utilise, such as being able to select which affiliated pages show at the top of each page.
Have you noticed less engagement on your Facebook page tabs as well? Share with us.
