Pages that switch to the new Timeline format will now display user recommendations in a box beneath friend activity and include a prompt for people to write their own recommendations.

This was a feature on the old version of pages, but when Facebook first released the redesign, recommendations were not visible. Recommendations are still only enabled for pages that are associated with locations. Users can’t write recommendations on pages for brands and artists unless page owners provide an exact address in their About sections.

The new recommendations box is less discoverable than it was on the previous version of pages, where it was featured on the right hand side. We’ve seen Facebook prompt users to write recommendations after Liking a page, but this does not seem to occur consistently. Recommendations could be a very useful feature for users, but with all the options on pages — Like, message, add to interests, write a post, view tab apps — it becomes difficult to organize from a design perspective. Recommendations, however, could also become part of the publisher box where users can make posts and upload photos to a page.

Facebook is still tinkering with the layout and features of Timeline for pages. Although the new design highlights which of your friends Like a page and any posts they might have made about that page, Facebook still hasn’t added information about your friends that have worked for a company or attended a school, for example. Previously these items were shown in a box on the top right of a page. (See image right.)

A representative from the social network tells us, “The pages redesign is new, and Facebook is still figuring out the details of how everything will look.”