A New Dimension of Social Media: How To Create 3D Posts for Facebook

If you haven’t already seen it in your News Feed, Facebook recently introduced the ability to share 3D posts. Responsive to touch and scrollable on both desktop and mobile devices, users can interact with these 3D posts right in their feed without having to install a new Facebook app (e.g. Messenger).

Last year, we talked about the value of keeping virtual reality in your browser—no hardware, no hangups, no exclusivity. The ability to post something on Facebook in 3D opens the door to future support for social virtual and augmented reality that is easily accessible to the masses within a platform they are already using.

For consumers, this is a welcomed break from memes and spammy chain posts. For brands of every kind and size—from a worldwide entertainment company to the local history museum—it's an entirely new way to introduce products and artifacts, share content, tell stories, and test the three-dimensional waters. How this feature will develop over time is still up for discussion, and the current release from Facebook is a bit feature-sparse, but it could open the door for future adaptations like complex interactive 3D worlds or socially-connected augmented reality experiences.

So, how does it work? Posting to Facebook in 3D should be as simple as dragging and dropping a file from your desktop to your newsfeed. But there are quite a few steps that need to take place before that can happen. Since we couldn't find a straightforward example of this process, we created our own example for you:

1. Create your artwork in your prefered 3D software (like 3DS Max, Blender, Maya, or Clara.io).
2. Export your creation as a gITF file and the necessary bin and image asset PNGs.
3. Facebook only supports GLB files, so you will need to convert your file from gITF to GLB. Fortunately, this handy tool package does the heavy lifting for you: https://glb-packer.glitch.me/. For the record, we didn’t make this tool so use at your own risk. Drag your glTF, its BIN, and any textures it uses onto the website. It will automatically generate and download a packed GLB file usable for 3D Facebook posts.
   (Pro tip: If your asset uses PNG files, be sure to check the "Convert PNG to JPEG" first. This will make your GLB significantly smaller and load faster for your viewers.)
4. Drag and drop the GLB file from your computer to your business Facebook feed. Customize your background color and text and you’re good to go!

We are always tinkering and experimenting with new technology. If you’re a museum, television network or brand that likes to experiment, too, you came to the right place. Let’s chat!