Meta Business Portfolio, Accounts Center, Business Manager, Business Page: What’s the Point?

The new Meta Business Portfolio along with Accounts Center, Meta Business Suite, and Facebook Business page are complex. However, they are just interconnected tools designed to help businesses manage their presence on Meta platforms (Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp).

But why create this structure in the first place?

Essentially, Meta wanted to make it easier for businesses to leverage the full potential of their Meta presence by providing a more efficient, secure, and insightful platform.

Here are some key benefits that Meta hoped to achieve with this feature:

• Improved Efficiency: By consolidating multiple business assets (Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, ad accounts, etc.) into one place, businesses can streamline their management processes and save time.
• Enhanced Security: Business Portfolios allow businesses to control access to their assets, ensuring that only authorized individuals can manage them.  
• Better Analytics: By having all their assets in one place, businesses can gain a more comprehensive view of their performance across different platforms.
• Simplified Team Collaboration: Business Portfolios make it easier for teams to collaborate on marketing and advertising efforts.

Here’s a breakdown of each to hopefully help you familiarize yourself with the structure:

Meta Business Suite:

• Ownership: Owned by the business, but accessible through a Meta Business Portfolio.
• Purpose: A comprehensive tool for managing and monitoring all your Meta business assets from a single dashboard.
• Setup:
  1. Create a Meta Business Portfolio.
  2. Access Meta Business Suite through the portfolio.
  3. Set up notifications, analytics, and advertising campaigns.

Meta Business Portfolio:

• Ownership: Owned by the business itself.
• Purpose: Acts as a central hub for managing multiple Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, and WhatsApp Business accounts.
• Setup:
  1. Create a Meta Business Suite account.
  2. Add existing or create new Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, and WhatsApp Business accounts.
  3. Assign roles and permissions to team members.

Accounts Center:

• Ownership: Owned by the business, but accessible through the Meta BusinessPortfolio and Meta Business Suite.
• Purpose: A specialized tool within Meta Business Suite that provides a centralized view of your business’s financial information across different Meta platforms. It offers insights into your ad spending, earnings from in-app purchases, and other financial metrics.
• Setup:
• Create a Meta Business Portfolio: As the foundation for managing your Meta business presence.
• Access Meta Business Suite: Through the portfolio.
• Utilize Accounts Center: Find and activate the Accounts Center feature within Meta Business Suite.
• Connect Financial Assets: Link your Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, and other relevant accounts to Account Center.

Key Features:

• Financial Overview: Provides a comprehensive view of your business’s financial performance.
• Ad Spending Analysis: Allows you to track and analyze your ad spending across different campaigns and platforms.
• Earnings Insights: Offers insights into your earnings from in-app purchases and other revenue sources.
• Payment Management: Helps you manage your payments and refunds.
• Tax Information: Provides information related to tax reporting and compliance.

Facebook Business Page:

• Ownership: Owned by the business but created within a Meta Business Portfolio.
• Purpose: Represents a specific business or brand on Facebook.
• Setup:
  1. Create a Meta Business Portfolio.
  2. Add a new Facebook Page.
  3. Customize the page with your business information, profile picture, and cover photo.

Ownership Structure:

• Meta Business Portfolio: Owned by the business.
• Meta Business Suite: Owned by the business, but accessible through the portfolio.
• Facebook Business Page: Owned by the business, but created within the portfolio.

Proper Setup:

1. Create a Meta Business Portfolio: This is the foundation for managing your Meta business presence.
2. Add Business Assets: Add existing or create new Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, and WhatsApp Business accounts.
3. Assign Roles and Permissions: Grant appropriate access to team members based on their responsibilities.
4. Customize Your Pages: Tailor each Facebook Business Page to represent your specific business or brand.
5. Utilize Meta Business Suite: Use this tool to manage and monitor all your Meta business assets efficiently.

Now that we understand the basics, who should own the accounts? Are the Business Portfolio roles different than those in Business Suite?

NOTE: We’ve had countless clients have issues with digital media accounts because a staff member signed up for them. DO NOT MAKE YOUR ACCOUNTS PERSON-SEPCIFIC!! NEVER DO IT!

What you should do is get a catch-all email account such as info@businessname.com. That way, you will always have access to passwords and usernames, so you don’t have to struggle with Meta’s customer service or start your accounts from scratch because an employee hasn’t worked there for over five years.

There is no separate admin section to create admins for the Business Portfolio.

Within the Meta Business Suite, you can manage user roles and permissions. When you assign someone as an Admin in Meta Business Suite, they automatically become an Admin of the Business Portfolio. This means they have full access to all the tools and features within the portfolio, including managing Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, and WhatsApp Business accounts.

Here’s a breakdown of the roles and permissions you can assign in Meta Business Suite:

• Admin: Has full access to all tools and features.
• Editor: Can create, edit, and delete content, but cannot manage the page’s settings.
• Moderator: Can moderate comments, posts, and messages.
• Advertiser: Can create and manage ad campaigns.
• Analyst: Can view and analyze page insights.

Adding Clients as Partners in Meta Business Portfolio

Businesses, such as marketing agencies, can now create Partner relationships. This is especially helpful if you plan on advertising on the organization’s behalf. It provides Meta with valuable relational data so you can hopefully decrease the likelihood of account issues popping up in the future.

Understanding the Partner Role:

When you add a client as a “Partner” in your Meta Business Portfolio, you’re essentially granting them limited access to your business tools, allowing them to manage their own Facebook Pages, Instagram profiles, or WhatsApp Business accounts under your overarching supervision. This is particularly useful for agencies or businesses that manage multiple clients’ social media presence.

Steps to Add a Client as a Partner:

1. Ensure Client has a Meta Business Portfolio: The client must have created their own Meta Business Portfolio. If they haven’t, guide them through the process.
2. Send Partner Request: From your Meta Business Portfolio, go to the People tab. Click on Add People. Search for the client’s business name or email. Select the “Partner” role and click Add.
3. Grant Permissions: Once the client accepts the request, you can grant them specific permissions for their own business assets. This could include managing their Page content, running ads, or viewing insights.

Best Practices for Managing Partners:

• Clear Communication: Establish clear guidelines and expectations with your clients about the level of access they have and what they can and cannot do.
• Regular Reviews: Periodically review the permissions granted to your clients and make adjustments as needed.
• Security Measures: Implement strong security measures to protect your clients’ data and prevent unauthorized access.

Key Points to Emphasize:

• The benefits of using a Partner relationship for managing client accounts.
• The importance of proper setup and ongoing management.
• Your willingness to assist Heather and the Chalmers team.

Now, you may be saying something along the lines of “Ok, Ok, I get it, but then what the hell is Account Center and what’s its purpose/use?”

Account Center is a tool within Meta Business Suite that provides a centralized view of your business’s financial information across different Meta platforms. It offers insights into your ad spending, earnings from in-app purchases, and other financial metrics.

Here are some key features of Accounts Center:

• Financial Overview: Provides a comprehensive view of your business’s financial performance.
• Ad Spending Analysis: Allows you to track and analyze your ad spending across different campaigns and platforms.
• Earnings Insights: Offers insights into your earnings from in-app purchases and other revenue sources.
• Payment Management: Helps you manage your payments and refunds.
• Tax Information: Provides information related to tax reporting and compliance.

Essentially, the Accounts Center is a valuable tool for businesses that want to gain a better understanding of their financial health on Meta platforms.

“But can’t you add people to pages in Account Center too?”

You can indeed add people to your Business Portfolio accounts directly through Account Center.

According to Meta, this is a convenient way to manage user permissions and access to different assets within your business.

Here’s a breakdown of the steps involved:

1. Access Accounts Center: Log in to your Meta Business Suite and navigate to the Accounts Center section.
2. Select a Business Portfolio: Choose the specific Business Portfolio you want to manage.
3. Add People: Look for the option to add people or manage user permissions. This might be located under a “Settings” or “Team” section.
4. Assign Roles: Once you’ve added a person, you can assign them specific roles and permissions. This could include being an Admin, Editor, Moderator, Advertiser, or Analyst, as discussed earlier.

To summarize, while you can initially add people to your Business Portfolio through the main People section, Account Center provides a centralized location for managing user permissions and access to specific assets within that portfolio. This can be especially helpful for businesses with complex structures and multiple assets.

While you can add people to your Business Portfolio through the main People section, Account Center offers a specific area dedicated to managing user permissions related to financial matters. This can be particularly useful for businesses with complex financial structures and teams that need to access and manage financial data.

Here are some key benefits of adding people through Account Center:

• Granular Control: Account Center allows you to assign specific permissions related to financial data, such as viewing ad spending, managing payments, or accessing tax information.
• Centralized Management: By managing user permissions within Account Center, you can have a single location to oversee who has access to sensitive financial information.
• Enhanced Security: Accounts Center can help you maintain better control over who can access and modify financial data, reducing the risk of unauthorized access or fraudulent activities.

In summary, while both options allow you to add people to your Business Portfolio, Accounts Center offers a more specialized and focused approach for managing user permissions and access to financial information, making it a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes.

Wondering how to get ahead in a crowded digital world? Read our article about the need for long-term thinking here. Need help understanding the hierarchy? Need a social media audit or someone who can take all the headache out of marketing for you? Contact us today!