When companies post links as a status update it gets fed a picture that’s automatically pulled from the site they are linking to. This can result in some pretty wacky image and link pairings in the brand’s post. Luckily, Facebook gives you the opportunity to upload your own picture to a link post, which is an option that appears under the automatically pulled site image. This can sometimes look just as awkward depending on how the image is oriented and sized. This blog discusses the best size for images on Facebook, more specifically custom images for links. You obviously chose this image to best represent the link you’re posting, so for it to get cropped accidentally can mean totally underutilizing the custom link image feature – for example:
See how the image is cropped because it extends outside of the cutoff areas? Fear not, there is a way to manipulate the oft-fickle Facebook beast. If you use an image that has the dimensions of 525 x 270 (or anything with this as a scaling ratio basis), you should be able to keep all of your image in the viewable area on Facebook feeds instead of it getting cropped, which looks like this:
The reason why this is useful is because it allows you to have an optimized image in conjunction with your link. Obviously, an image-based click through link is going to be less compelling to be clicked on as opposed to just a text link with an unoptimized image, like below:
Which do you think will get a better CTR with its fanbase (hint: image real estate helps!).
If you’re going to set up a promoted post, I think this is the way to go, since every little thing that can be done to make an ad stand out or increase click through rate (CTR) is helpful. I see a lot of brands doing promoted picture posts, which is fine, but I think a better argument can be made to use promoted link posts with optimized images. One of the advantages is the fact that they cut down on the amount of clicks it takes to get you through a link.
If you promote a post that’s an image post with a link in the caption, a lot of time customers will be drawn to the image and will click that, which brings up the image in a shadow box (this is when the image becomes enlarged and the background is blacked out). From here you have to hope they click on the embedded link in the picture’s caption area. This brings the customer to your desired landing page with 2 clicks (this is under the assumption that they clicked on the image first then the link). It’s totally possible that they clicked the link first, but a lot of times it can be truncated and hidden after a ‘See More’ button. This is true especially if it’s a particularly verbose caption, but my money’s on them clicking on the picture first.
Clicking the above image opens up into a…
… shadow box. Notice how the link was cutoff in the top image that shows up in the feed.
Alternatively, a link post with a correctly optimized custom image will get your prospective customer where they need to go in 1 click, regardless of which item they click on (the image or the actual link in the post).
The yellow highlighted sections of the link post will lead to your desired landing page in 1 click from the news feed.
This may not seem like much of a difference at first glance, but in a online world plagued with lazy and not-so-observant users, it can make the difference between a person clicking through to your desired destination or not.
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Blog by Webhead Interactive