by Andy Thompson, Guest Contributor
“WE’RE FRIENDS, right?” This is not a question of intimate friendship anymore but a verification of an electronic social connection.
Social media are a big hit to people of different ages and color. Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, among others are hastily cloaking the world with influence as well as substituting the functions of established media like TV, radio, magazines, and newspapers. Facebook, specifically, has changed the social aspect of man’s life. Making friends with people abroad, sharing ideas, information, news, and experiences to a great number of friends through pictures and videos, and connecting loved ones from afar are all feasible with Facebook.
Having all these feasibilities, Facebook did not start as a business-friendly site in 2004. As a budding website, it has its own experience of failures and downs. Check out a brief background of Marketing on Facebook:
- 2007- Virtual present store and Marketplace application for confidential cataloging were launched. Facebook Ads, brand Facebook Page, and divisive advertisement system called “Beacon” that promotes viral dissemination of brand ads finally came out.
- 2006- Facebook partnered with JP Morgan Chase to endorse the Chase credit. During the one year of promotional accord, Facebook users saw ads engaging them to link with a Chase network group. It then came out that the members of that group received points for actions. Also in 2006, Facebook and Microsoft paired up for a tactical partnership for banner syndication. Then, Microsoft’s adCenter was made. It became the elite provider of banner ads and funded links on the website. In this year, Newsfeed was launched and Share feature was inserted.
- 2008- After launching its Chat feature, Facebook presented Engagement Ads.
- 2009- Facebook included the Like button and launched the Page again to make it appear more like Profiles that involve updates and photos. Neilsen, during the Advertising Week, commenced Brand Lift with Facebook that gauges the effectiveness of ads in the site.
- 2010- The vice president of Advertising and Global Operations, David Fischer connected with Facebook.
- 2011- To lure advertisers, Facebook displayed Facebook Studio that emphasizes the best works from promoters.
As the years went by, more and more developments and additions were taken by Facebook to cater to businesses within the site.
Today, bringing in more than 700 million people online every day is a phenomenal occurrence that caught the opportunistic minds of entrepreneurs. Having this large number of people gathered in a particular spot online means a money-spinning promotional space. This makes Facebook the best vehicle for marketing. Various businesses are now flocking in this nest.
In conventional marketing, product and service exposure is through printed ads which sometimes end up unnoticed and rejected by consumers. Nowadays, a quick search and scan on your preferred brands on Facebook presents ease and efficiency to the consumers as well as communication to the providers.
One significant rule of marketing is to bring your product and service into a platform where many people can see; thus, exposure could lead to more demand. In Facebook marketing, entrepreneurs can see a bright future for their businesses.
The following are facts that show how Facebook marketing strategy helps businesses to flourish nowadays:
- Photography Gallery
Gallery Photoclass is a South Korean camera work gallery focusing on modern pictures. They also conduct photography classes and displays that showcase the work of South Korean talents. They have a shop at Daejeon City where people can purchase prints. Gallery Photoclass desires to bring their products outside Korea and allow foreigners to reach them. So, they aimed to attract more traffic to their newly-developed website, boost brand exposure, and engage in communicative relationship with their clients through Facebook. This Facebook marketing increased traffic in the website by 54 times in just 10 days and added fresh 13, 000 Facebook fans in just 2 months!
“The gallery has benefitted tremendously from the increased website traffic from Facebook and the growth of our Facebook Page community, “said Ku Duk-gwan, Director of Gallery Photoclass.
Photography Gallery strategy did not only swell the website’s traffic and fans but also helped them develop their imagery for picture ads. It is just like hitting two birds in one stone and a good epitome of give-and-take relationship. This Facebook marketing strategy is a hit.
- Visual Narration
It has been established that significant skills in learning are listening, speaking, reading, and writing. But as the world continues to change and people adjust to it, a fifth skill is added which is viewing. This can be seen in the number of views in videos that reach into millions. This became another Facebook marketing strategy for business to be perceived in a whole new angle. Facebook marketing enhanced to the level of advertising which triggers curiosity and satisfies the interest of the people. Visual discourse such as video has been found to be more effective. As a matter of fact, beyond 50% of Facebook users in UK, Brazil, South Korea, Singapore, Isreal, UAE, and others view videos every day. In a year, video posts creation of every person on Facebook boosted 75% globally. Brands and products use this happening to their advantage. Businesses are investing on photo, especially video posting on Facebook to allure more people to their products and services. They are continuing to upgrade the system of video watching so that viewing is smooth and loading is quick. They are also tapping program developers to make brand and product stories for mobile gadgets and connection form to reach more people.
In Kenya, The Coca-Cola Company had begun a photo ad campaign to disseminate a significant message of happiness (#KenyaHappiness Story). So far, this ad touched the hearts of people and raised ad recall by 18%.
Lifebouy utilized videos displaying the skin germ-defense capabilities of the soap to encourage mothers in Indonesia to proper hand washing and keep families safe from diseases and viruses. Then, the campaign enhanced 9.4% brand awareness.
Maxi-Peel in the Philippines presented storytelling about ladies experiencing problems with pimples, acnes, and oily skin that affected their past lives. Loved ones and friends also gave a testimony about them. At the end of the video, the families and friends were shocked to see that who they are talking about is actually listening to them. Then, together they will compliment the brand for its life-changing effect to them. One testimony revealed how a guy noticed a certain girl after she used Maxi-Peel. The product made her look attractive. The end of this testimony is a scene where the guy just said, “I hope we can be together.” The Facebook page also encouraged users and fans to react on the videos. This Facebook marketing triggered opinions and comments from people especially those who can relate.
- Going Mobile
Marketers are now developing fast mobile Facebook promotions to follow consumers wherever they go in just a touch of a key.
There is no doubt that Facebook is mounting as one of the fastest in our time today. From very simple to now, complicated, communicative, and outstanding Facebook marketing strategies, it continues to grow and help businesses reach the peak of the industry. With nonstop developments and adjustments in Facebook marketing, the world is to be called one great ocean to fish.
Andy Thompson has been a freelance writer for a long while. Her passion in writing is her main drive in crafting articles that are engaging, informative, and meaningful. Her partnership with TroopSocial has given her a whole new opportunity to take writing to a whole new level.
