Best Face Forward

What’s the most important part of your Facebook profile? Why, your face, of course! Today is the day you pick your profile picture. Sure, it can change as you go through the first 30 days and beyond, but that doesn’t mean the picture shouldn’t be chosen with care.

For a new user, it’s important that your profile picture highlight your face above all else. A clear image of your face is crucial to help people recognize you in a search. The best first picture is either a head-and-shoulders or head-to-waist portrait showing at least 75% of your face.

Remember, your profile picture should reflect the goals of your profile, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. If you’re using your profile to keep up with friends from college, then a casual, jeans-and-T-shirt picture may be the right fit. If you want to reinvent yourself, pick something that reflects your new persona. But if you’re using your page primarily to keep up with business contacts or for professional networking, a collared shirt or blazer might dress up your jeans best. Because of Facebook’s overall warm and friendly atmosphere, a full business suit is not required, even for professional profiles.

When uploading your picture, pay special attention to the heading that reads “Thumbnail Version.” Use you mouse to center the picture on your face as much as possible. It’s important that this thumbnail displays your face, otherwise, people who may be searching for you may have a difficult time recognizing your profile.

DID YOU KNOW? Facebook hosts more than 1 billion photos on the site, with 6 million photographs uploaded each day? That boils down to 70,000 per second—making Facebook the biggest photo sharing site on the web.