A recycled post from a while back. I was reminded about this when I came across an forum discussion the other day about creating a FREE Facebook Page. I got to the party a little late but both sides had valid points they were making. I brought up the Sprout debacle from last year. In case you missed it, here’s a recap.
Sprout had a fabulous FREE application that allowed anyone to create stunning custom facebook page tabs for FREE. Create your tab, save the design, then add the app to your page. Simple, Easy and FREE. Very soon, there were millions of pages running custom built facebook tabs from Sprout. It was a smashing success (for a while). That’s when Sprout changed their business plan. If you wanted a Sprout Page – it would no longer be free. How does $3,000 a year sound? Pretty far from free, right?
Hey, it was great while it lasted! On the good side, there’s a Facebook Group for former Sprout users. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=309525392366 All kidding aside, (kudos to group founder Jeff Wasserman)
If you had a Sprout Builder Tab here’s what you were up against.
The Sad News from their FAQ
Q. How much longer will I be able to access or login to Sprout Builder?
A. You will have until March 30th (~45 days) to access Sprout Builder.
Q. What will happen at the end of 45 days to my account and to my sprouts?
A. At the end of 45 days, accounts will be closed. If you choose not to delete your sprouts, they will continue to ‘live’ for an additional 45 days but you will not be able to login to make any changes to them. On May 14than empty space will appear on all the pages on which your sprout once lived.
Q. Is there a way to download my sprouts?
A. Unfortunately, there is no way to download or save your projects.
Q. Is there any way to transfer my sprouts to another program?
A. It is not possible to transfer your sprouts.
Source: http://sproutinc.com/support/faq/
Here’s the Good News
- You can have many of the same features you might have had on your Sprout (plus more) on a Custom Built Facebook Fan Page.
- Each Tab is hand built to match the look and feel of your website
- Video? Flash? We can bring that in too!
- Have a YouTube Channel? We can bring in the whole channel, or just your favorites. (automatically)
- Flickr or Picasa Photos? We can bring them all in or just a set or album. (automatically)
- With a basic understanding of html you can edit your own tabs once they are built.
- The best part? Once a Tab is built, you own it. Forever. No other fees. Ever. Really.
Here’s how to get started…
Go to https://areweconnected.com/facebook
Click the Order Now Button,
Fill out the form,
Pay the invoice.
You are correct… It’s not free. It’s not automatic. It’s not Sprout.
If we’ve learned anything from this experience it might just be that sometimes hand built things just work a little better, right?
Related articles
- 4 different versions of Custom Facebook Pages (areweconnected.com)
He's an avid hockey fan, rides a mountain bike, sometimes rides a road bike, has a few motorcycles (he had a really fast one, bought a cool orange one, rode a really slow one, and now,a perfect "BDR Weapon"). If that isn't enough, he makes cheese and sourdough bread, loves strong beer and good red wine, and poorly plays the Mandolin.
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