When Facebook launched its Timeline feature earlier this year, the response from users seemed a little frosty. It was busy, clunky and a little invasive. But while consumers might be hesitant to add details of their lives before their time on Facebook, the potential for the feature might be little more useful for brands.

Levi's are one of the first to realise this, and has just launched a Timeline feature on its Facebook page to tell the story of its denim history. It turned to its very own brand historian, Lynn Downey, to help plough through its archive and pull out interesting moments from the company's past, such as the San Francisco earthquake in 1906 that destroyed the brand's headquarters, and its logo change in 1886 to feature two horses for the first time. Each one is explained visually using original artwork from the time.

What's more, to help launch the function, Levi's turned to its fans and asked them to submit photos of them wearing the brand's jeans from the past. These were collected in an album on the brand page, with a few select ones making it to the timeline too.

With heritage being so important to consumers today, more brands are finding ways to communicate their past through digital platforms. We expect to see a few more trying out innovative things with the timeline function.