If you manage a “Fan Page” on Facebook, you may have noticed the big box at the top asking you to upgrade your page. And you may have asked yourself, “What is this upgrade going to do for me besides change the look of my page."

Well, there’s one great advantage the upgrade brings that may change how you use your page. Just as you as an individual Facebook member can “like” a company’s fan page, fan pages can now like other companies’ fan pages. This means that, as a Facebook fan page manager, you can reach out on behalf of your brand - “as” the brand, not your personal Facebook identity - and get more interactive with related brands.

(If you want to “become” your brand, log into your administrator account. In the top right-hand corner of the page, look for a link that begins with words “Use Facebook as [fan page name].” Click on the link and you can navigate and explore Facebook as your fan page, rather than your personal page.)

All the fan pages your page “likes” have fans of their own. By interacting with pages related or complementary to your company or industry, you can strengthen your brand and extend your influence within the massive Facebook community. You can use your fan page to actively network and spread your brand’s message, rather than just hoping your fans will like and reply to your page’s content.

How You Should - and Shouldn’t - Use Your Facebook Fan Page

1. “Like” all the fan pages relating to your industry, location, partner companies and other elements that relate to your fan page.

2. Your page now has its own news feed, supplied by the other fan pages you like. Monitor your news feed on a daily basis.

3. Build recognition of your fan page by interacting with other fan pages you “like.” If another fan page posts interesting content that relates to what your company does, post a reply “as” your fan page, rather than “as” your personal page.

4. Share personalized information on your “liked” pages that relates to both your fan page and theirs. Don’t just add a link to your new blog post, for instance, without providing an explanation as to why it may be important to the other brand and its followers.

5. Don’t spam other pages.

6. Don’t brag. Avoid over-promoting your company on another brand’s page. And unless you have a reciprocal agreement with another page’s manager, don’t provide coupons or promote specials in your posts on other pages.