Facebook changes cover photo policy: 20% text rule in effect but content less regulated
Facebook has updated its policy for pages’ cover photos, eliminating rules against calls to action, contact info or references to price or purchase information, while maintaining the 20 percent limit for text overlay.
The new guidelines give page owners more flexibility in the type of content they include in their covers. Many were unaware of these rules or simply ignored them knowing Facebook was unlikely to take action against them for their violations. The latest guidelines for pages regarding cover photos is:
All covers are public. This means that anyone who visits your Page will be able to see your cover. Covers can’t be deceptive, misleading, or infringe on anyone else’s copyright. You may not encourage people to upload your cover to their personal timelines. Covers may not include images with more than 20% text.
It is unclear when exactly these new guidelines were implemented, as Facebook did not update the date on its guidelines to reflect the change. We learned of this new policy from author Mari Smith, who was tipped off by Hugh Briss of Social Identities and Andrea Vahl of Grandma Mary – Social Media Edutainer. [Update: Facebook tells us this change went into effect on March 6, and the guidelines page has been updated to reflect this.]
The previous rules in place since December 2012 were as follows:
Covers may not include:
i. images with more than 20% text;
ii. price or purchase information, such as “40% off” or “Download it on socialmusic.com”;
iii. contact information such as a website address, email, mailing address, or information that should go in your Page’s “About” section;
iv. references to Facebook features or actions, such as “Like” or “Share” or an arrow pointing from the cover photo to any of these features; or
v. calls to action, such as “Get it now” or “Tell your friends.”
Photos that appeared in News Feed ads previously had similar stipulations, but those were removed earlier this year. Now, rules for cover photos and ad images are consistent. This is important as cover photos are beginning to be included in both organic and sponsored page-Like stories in News Feed. Admins should be aware that the way their cover photo looks on their page is not how it will appear in News Feed, particularly if they include text or arrows, or try to incorporate their profile picture as unified part of the cover.
Read also: Facebook explains how 20% text overlay policy for ads is enforced
March 20th, 2013 at 5:49 pm
[...] which give you insight into the issue; whilst Inside Facebook has detailed the changes in this blog post. [...]
March 21st, 2013 at 2:33 am
[...] can also read more on the update to terms of service on Inside Facebook and of course on Facebook (see section 1, III, B cover photos) - the latter definitely a link [...]
March 21st, 2013 at 6:23 am
[...] wir auf InsideFacebook berichtet haben hat Facebook die Richtlinien für die Coverfotos von Pages vereinfacht. Einige der [...]
March 21st, 2013 at 4:56 pm
[...] Facebook Cover Photo Policy http://www.insidefacebook.com/2013/03/20/facebook-changes-cover-photo-policy-20-text-rule-in-effect-… [...]
March 22nd, 2013 at 9:39 am
[...] listen to the Micro Minute Facebook Cover Photo Podcast Listed Below. You can also check out this Inside Facebook Blog Post that has more information on the policy [...]
March 23rd, 2013 at 12:32 am
[...] insidefacebook.com has talked to Facebook and got confirmation that the rules have indeed changed and that you can now [...]
March 25th, 2013 at 10:51 am
[...] the alarm and jump for joy, Facebook is giving brands more freedom to play with cover photos! The use of text on brand cover photos has been lifted, leaving brands [...]
March 25th, 2013 at 3:20 pm
[...] course, we never know if anything is “permanent” on Facebook!) InsideFacebook, HubSpot and MarketingLand were among the first to blog about the change to Facebook’s cover [...]
March 25th, 2013 at 5:56 pm
[...] call to action, contact information, references to price or purchase information has been updated. Page owners now have more flexibility in terms of what they can include in their cover photo, however the no more than 20% text overlay [...]
March 28th, 2013 at 2:47 am
[...] Inside Facebook later confirmed the rule change went into effect on 6th March., two weeks before the news broke. [...]
March 29th, 2013 at 12:01 am
[...] has loosened its policies on what can be displayed on covers. According to Inside Facebook, businesses are now allowed to [...]
April 7th, 2013 at 3:44 am
[...] course, we never know if anything is “permanent” on Facebook!) InsideFacebook, HubSpot and MarketingLand were among a initial to blog about a change to Facebook’s cover picture [...]
April 17th, 2013 at 12:55 pm
[...] Facebook relaxed their cover images guidelines as of March 6, 2013, adding the 20 percent text rule but easing up on their restriction on a call to action or contact information on the image. [...]
April 22nd, 2013 at 6:04 am
[...] in case you haven’t heard, Facebook has implemented a new rule that does not allow more than 20% text in your “Fan Page” cover image which left many [...]
May 8th, 2013 at 8:38 am
[...] cover photo should be 851px x [...]