The Facebook Cheat Sheet for Image Sizing & Dimensions

Did you know that posts on Facebook including a photo album, picture, or video generate about 180 percent, 120 percent, and 100 percent more engagement, respectively? (Facebook) Increase your audience engagement by using this guide to help you improve the quality of images you upload on Facebook.

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Timeline

Your COVER PHOTO (the banner image at the top of your profile page) will be displayed as 851 x 315 pixels; however it is ideal to start with an image size of 1720 x 630 pixels for a high quality image. Facebook will automatically resize your image to the optimal cover photo size.

Tip: For faster page load time, upload an sRGB JPG file that’s less than 100 kilobytes. For images with your logo or text content, you may get a higher quality result by using a PNG file.

Your PROFILE PICTURE will be viewed as 160 x 160 pixels; however you must upload an image with the dimensions of at least 180 x 180 pixels. If your image is larger than these recommended dimensions, it will be cropped to fit the square display area.

Tip: Make sure you profile picture is legible at 90 x 90 pixels as this is the size your profile picture will appear in the newsfeed of others.

The ABOUT section below your profile picture is where you’ll tell users about your company. You’ll have up to 255 characters to describe your business, outline your products and/or services, and provide your contact information.

The FACEBOOK APP ICONS measure 111 x 74 pixels. The app icons are displayed below your cover photo and to the right of the “About” section.

When you UPDATE YOUR STATUS your profile picture will appear next to the left of your post. It will be displayed at 32 x 32 pixels. The amount of text displayed depends on how much you write in your status updates. For example, if your status update is 11 lines or less (not including an attached image) all of your text will be displayed. If you write more than 12 lines your text will be cut down to 6 lines with a “see more” option.

If you UPLOAD AN IMAGE on your timeline it will be viewed as 403 x 403 pixels. Facebook has added a Lightbox interface for viewing photos, allowing users to view entire albums without navigating away from the current page. When a user views an image in Lightbox, it will be displayed up to 960 x 720 pixels. The maximum image size you can upload is 2048 x 2048 pixels. You then have the option to reposition the photo by clicking on the pencil icon to edit.

The optimal size of a SHARED LINK on your timeline is 1200 x 627 pixels or 560 x 292 as the minimum. On your news feed the image will be automatically resized to 398 x 208 pixels. If you upload a smaller image then Facebook will create a 90 x 90 or 154 x 154 thumbnail instead.

If you HIGHLIGHT A POST on your page or create a MILESTONE the image be can up to 843 x 403 pixels.

Facebook Ads

Facebook recommends an image size of 1200 x 627 pixels for all advertisements. A larger image will ensure a sharp photo when viewed in full screen. Your ad will be resized according to ad type.

A PAGE POST LINK advertisement is used to increase sales and generate leads. Facebook has increased the image size in link page posts by 4 times on mobile and 8 times on desktop. They recommend using images that are 1200 x 630 pixels or larger and at a minimum use images that are 600 x 315 pixels.

A PAGE LIKE advertisement is used to increase your number of page “likes”. The recommended image size is 1200 x 450 pixels.

An OFFER advertisement serves the purpose of attracting current and prospective customers. The optimal image size is 1200 x 627 pixels.

An EVENT advertisement is used to promote an event. The image should be uploaded at 1200 x 450 pixels for high quality resolution.

*Note: The sidebar ad is reduced to 100 x 72 pixels.

Feel free to bookmark this page in your browser so you’ll have the proper image sizes on hand the next time you’re updating your Facebook graphics!

The Pinterest Cheat Sheet for Image Sizing & Dimensions

Pinterest has recently changed their layout. Along with this new layout, the image sizes & dimensions have changed. We have created the ultimate cheat sheet with the correct image sizes & dimensions to help you stay up to date.

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Profile:

Pinterest recommends you upload a profile picture with square dimensions measuring 600 x 600 pixels. Your image will automatically be re-sized to fit the profile picture measurements of 165 x 165 pixels.

Your profile name can be up to 37 characters long. You have a maximum of 160 characters to describe your business.

Boards:

The board cover image measures 217 x 147 pixels. Any important text and/or images in the cover photo should be placed inside these boundaries.

The small thumbnails are found below the board title and measure 51 x 51 pixels.

The complete board size is 238 x 284 px and includes the cover image, the small thumbnails, and the follow button.

You have a maximum of 100 characters to state your board name (of which 28 characters are visible) and 500 characters to describe your board.

HINT: A description with about 200 characters gets the most repins.

Pins:

After you’ve created a board title for your group of pins, you will then need to upload some pins with the recommended dimensions of 735 pixels wide x adjusted height (the height will be scaled according to the height of the image). This is the enlarged pin, or the image size users will see after clicking on the pin on your homepage.

However, no image is too big to pin. You can upload an image that is significantly larger than these recommended dimensions and your image will be compressed. There is a limit to how small an image be can however. An image must not be smaller than 81 x 81 pixels.

The pin in your feed will measure 238 pixels x adjusted height. (Again, the length is adjusted depending on the height of the image).

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We hope our Pinterest Sizing & Dimension Cheat Sheet was helpful. The next time you change your profile picture, create a board or upload a pin to Pinterest, save some time and refer to our cheat sheet for the correct sizing and dimensions.

Be sure to check out our blog “How to Create a Pinterest Business Page” for tips on maximizing your Pinterest success.

How to use Hashtags on Twitter

hastags

Twitter, one of the most widely-used social networking platforms today is the mastermind behind the hashtag system. The term “hashtag” has become well-known in the online community and has been adopted by other websites such as Facebook, Google+, and Pinterest. Hashtags have quickly become a part of popular culture. Knowing when and how to use hashtags are important to get the most out of your social media marketing. But first things first, what exactly is a hashtag?

What is a hashtag?

A hashtag (#) marks a keyword or topic in a user’s tweet. Hashtags are formed by using the number (#) symbol followed by the keyword with no spaces or punctuation. The purpose of hashtags is to enable users to quickly find content on a topic that is of interest to them. A user can use a hashtag in their own messages or they can simply search for a hashtag to find more content on a particular topic.

When to use a hashtag?

Knowing when to use hashtags are a must if you’d like to get your message out there. Hashtags can be used to start a conversation or join a conversation that is already happening on Twitter. Users often hold Twitter chats, where a hashtag is associated with a discussion theme. Twitter chats are scheduled at a specific time, where users can log on and join the discussion in real-time by including the hashtag in their messages.

Hashtags are also used for holding contests, networking, and discussing major events, to name a few. For example, you can hold a contest and use a unique hashtag to get people to enter your contest, with the hopes of attracting more followers to your account. Hashtags, such as #FollowFriday is a great way to network with other Twitter users. Every Friday, you mention users whose tweets you find helpful by including their Twitter handle in your message. In addition, hashtags are commonly used to discuss events. They allow users to learn more about the event and enable users to express their feelings towards a particular topic.

How to create a hashtag

A hashtag can be a single word, an abbreviation, or a phrase. To create your own hashtag, always begin with the number (#) sign followed by letters, numbers, or a combination of the two. The first step is thinking of a catchy keyword or phrase that is not already in use. It is important to ensure that your hashtag is not the same as an existing username on Twitter because it will only lead to confusion. A tip for creating an effective hashtag is to keep it short, simple, and easy to remember. Since the hashtag will use up some of the 140 character limit it is best to keep the hashtag short. Hashtags that are understandable as opposed to a jumbled combination of letter and/or numbers are the easiest for users to remember and use.  Once you have thought of your own hashtag you can begin including it in your Tweets. Most people put hashtags at the end of their message but they can also be found at the beginning of a Tweet or within the Tweet itself.

The importance of hashtags

Frequenting including hashtags in your messages is an effective way to promote your personal profile or company page. You are advertising your message not just to your followers, but to the entire Twitter community. If you’re a business, for example, you can promote your services by including a hashtag within your content. This hashtag could be a general keyword that is related to your service offerings or a newly created hashtag that is unique to your business. The use of hashtags is a great way to network with users. Often times, users will create a hashtag that prompts users to fill in the blank. These hashtags, called mad-lib hashtags are effective at generating traffic and maximizing user engagement.

Hashtags were created with a purpose in mind so I recommend that all users take full advantage of them. Knowing the function of hashtags, when to use them, and how to use them are key steps to becoming a Twitter expert.