Facebook has just announced that the size of company page profile pictures will increase from 125 x 125 pixels to 160 x 160 pixels on April 26, 2012. If you are curious about how this new size will look, check out your personal Facebook profile picture, as these images have been 160 x 160 pixels since the timeline was added.

This change has received mixed reviews from numerous designers and marketers. Many people want the larger space to create more branded images, but many businesses and clients are losing hundreds of design dollars that were spent to make profile images that interact with their cover image, such as the one below:

The larger page profile images will also sit 23 pixels from the left and 210 pixels from the top of the Page, which will destroy many creatively designed Timeline covers.

Are you nervous about how your images will look after the switch? On April 25, you should:

• Check that your image hasn’t become pixelated or unclear with the size increase
• Ensure text and important elements on your cover images are still visible
• If the image has become fuzzy, try resizing your it to 180 x 180 pixels and uploading it again. It should appear crisp and clean.
• Brainstorm if the space increase will allow you to better brand your image, such as using a larger logo, the full company title or your brand tagline
• If your page profile image interacts with your timeline cover photo, check to see if your design still aligns (see our featured image in this post for an example of this!)
• Facebook can’t always foresee how changes will affect all parts of the site, so check around your Page for any altered functionality

Will the change affect your page profile image? Do you need to re-work your cover image design? Our designers are available to tweak or re-create your profile image and timeline cover image. Let us know how we can help!