Your profile picture is really important. Find out Why!

First lets go over what your profile picture should be set up like according to Facebook.

Facebook offers these instructions for creating your profile pic: Page profile pictures are square and display at 160×160 pixels on your Page. The photo you upload must be at least 180×180 pixels. We recommend uploading a square image. Rectangular images will be cropped to fit a square. Your Page’s profile picture will also display next to your Page’s name around Facebook to represent your Page.

So basically, Facebook’s image dimensions say your profile picture should be: square, at least 180 pixels wide & 180 pixels tall, not a rectangle (or it will get cropped)

Ok so let's talk about what kind of picture you should use. In the world of Social Media, with emphasis on social, we forget that our first view from another profile is our very own profile picture.

I think your Facebook profile picture is more important than your cover photo because it’s the image that represents your page throughout Facebook — to your current & potential followers.

Your profile pic appears in:

1. the News feed of your followers
2. Posts on your page’s Timeline
3. Replies in comments
4. Comments & posts you make on other pages while using your page
5. the Cover photo on your Timeline

The most important of these is #1, of course — the news feed of your followers.  And while you may think it’s cute to have a pic that’s funny or witty — most companies just can’t pull this off without looking a little ridiculous.  More importantly it's the 3 second rule.  If someone is looking for a potential business to do business with, then that profile picture could make or break the deal.  I will state that if you have a business fan page then this is something you should strongly consider during the creation of your page.  In a business such as mine, it's all about branding myself therefore a profile picture of me is most important.  Granted this is something that is not recommended for children, as an entrepreneur, branding yourself is most important.
In conclusion, use a picture of yourself not your cat or favorite fictional character.  Be authentic and real!