The Facebook Pages went into a revamp last February and it seemed that a number of Facebook Page Administrators felt they were left in the middle of confusion.  Since most of these Administrators were not aware of the upgrade, they were equally surprised and unprepared when they received a notification from Facebook asking them to confirm their category. Well, the upgrade is obligatory and whether Facebook users liked it or not, before the end of March, the new format was implemented as the new standard.

Adding to the confusion is the new method of creating Facebook Pages. At the beginning stage of creating a page, the Administrator needs to select under which classification will the new page belong. From the original three categories, (i.e.  1. local business, 2. brand, product or organization, and 3. Artist, band or public figure) the option grew to six different categories which are:

1.     Local business or Place

2.     Company, Organization or Institution

3.     Brand or Product

4.     Artist, Band or Public Figure

5.     Entertainment

6.     Cause or Community.

Under the new system, Facebook is somehow forcing the Page administrator to be more specific in categorizing the page. We all know that the reason behind this more stringent categorization is that because Facebook would want to have an easier way of indexing every Page, thereby utilize this information for managing better traffic. To put it simply, with the right information, your Page becomes more accessible for Facebook to place ads that would be more relevant and ultimately generate better income for you, the advertisers and Facebook.

So, let’s have a look at the 6 categories and try to differentiate and understand each of them.

1.     Local business or Place

This puts business establishments the major players in this category. With the advent of the “Check-in” trend brought about by foursquare and twitter, Facebook immediately followed suit with its very own “Check-in” feature. This “local” information will help Facebook’s in-app Check-in to grow and gather more “Places”. Business offices, banks, stores, restaurants, art galleries, hospitals, schools,  etc. (as long as there is a “physical” establishment) should fall into this category. It is utterly important to fill-up the required information (name, address, zip code, phone number) accurately in order to benefit from your “exposure”.

2.     Company, Organization or Institution - (USE FOR YOUR CHURCH)

We can assume that this category caters to those companies, organizations or institutions that do not do retail transactions like non-profit organizations (such as churches), industrials, political parties, publishing etc. This category could also include those commercial businesses that mainly conduct transactions “online”.

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3.     Brand or Product

This category refers to Brand, Product, Trade Name or Trade Mark representing any business, product or service. Those who wish to further promote and establish their brand’s or product’s identity may put-up a page which targets its loyal supporters. Fans of popular products would like to align themselves to their favorite brands via Facebook especially those which are considered luxurious like Apple, Louis Vuitton, Bentley, Rolex, etc. 

4.     Artist, Band or Public Figure

Anybody who is a public figure or celebrity can create his own Facebook Page in order to have a ground where he/she can connect with his/her fanbase. Not limited to those who are involved in the performing arts, this category covers athletes, chefs, doctors, government officials and even fictional characters.

5.     Entertainment

For this category, entertainment does not refer to a “person” but rather to an entertainment piece like a movie, book, sports team, radio station or TV show.

6.     Cause or Community.

Communities, organizations and causes can create a Page which may help promote their interest or principle. 

There you have it, the new six categories of Facebook Pages. You don’t have to worry so much if you think that you were not able to choose the right category that fits your Page, the upgrade has finally allowed Administrators to change their categories unlike before.  So, while you can see that you’re having troubles whenever Facebook rolls out an upgrade, think of it as Facebook’s  way of helping its users maximize the social network leverage. One lesson learned is that by properly defining your category, your Page will be more relevant and connected, thus, leading more followers, supporters and prospects.