Nobody can deny that Facebook is big, very big. With almost a billion and a half active monthly users it’s the largest social media platform in existence and a place where business thrives. Everyone with something to sell can benefit from leveraging its power.
It can be difficult to find ways to create repeat sales from existing customers whilst also drawing in fresh faces and converting them into new businesses. You might think that it’s difficult to appeal to both these audiences at the same time, but with a few clever tricks, you can get them to draw each other to your brand whilst fostering a loyal customer base.
We know there are many ways of growing your brand through Facebook and the most successful one is driving customer engagement. In this blog, we’ve narrowed down the six best ways of achieving that goal. Read on to find out what they are.
1. Know Your Audience
With every purchase, search and click, Facebook is fed information on what people are looking at and this valuable knowledge is vital to know where to direct your marketing. These helpful analytics are open for you to use, with tools such as Audience Insights able to help narrow down which customers would be most interested in your products.
With this information, and maybe a little trial and error, you can see what works and who it works for, informing your future choices when it comes to your brand. Best of all, once you’ve implemented Audience Insights then your job is done and you can leave the software to do all the heavy lifting for you.
It will automatically use the interests of customers to recommend products that match their lifestyle to ensure your adverts are received positively.
2. Referral Programs
The modern paradigm that is social media is one of the most effective ways of spreading information and awareness, making it a fantastic tool for eCommerce marketing. With the right incentive or buzz words, you can get users to do your marketing for you.
By offering a reward, such as something as simple as a small discount, in exchange for social media users making a short video advertising or using one of your products, you can get your brand in front of people you may not have been able to do so using conventional marketing.
The best part about this is that these customer referrals are genuine which have so much more impact than scripted adverts. People will be many times more likely to be interested in your product if a social media influencer they know is showing it off. The legitimacy this offers is priceless from a marketing point of view.
3. Facebook Business Pages
Rather than just being for personal use, creating a Facebook page for your business is a vital step to boosting your sales. You can provide information on your brand, contact details for customers with inquiries, store locations, and links to your product pages.
These pages also give you access to information like the number of people who’ve liked it and how many have made in-store visits. All this information can be used to adjust who you are marketing towards and provide the customer with a more positive experience. Customers can also give you a star rating out of five, so make sure to leave a good impression.
Viewers of your page also have the ability to post and when encouraged, you can create a community of frequent users that drive discussion and traffic. This helps to create a vibrant and active business page so new visitors can see just how exciting your brand is to others.
4. Stick To A Posting Schedule
Source: Later
So if you followed the advice in the previous step, you’ll have set up a wonderful Facebook page with contact details, directions, and information on your brand and range of products. That doesn’t mean you can rest on your laurels though, as you need to ensure you are keeping the page active by posting updates about your products or any upcoming information that might interest customers.
There is a trick to doing this right though and it requires a structured approach. You can’t post at random times and expect to cultivate a following, so you need to make and stick to a regular schedule and then followers will know what to expect and when to expect it, often coming to visit your page for an update because they’re anticipating one.
If you’re in a position where you simply don’t have time to commit to regular posts or you don't have the knack for what is needed to keep a fresh flow of posts going, don’t fear. There are plenty of social media managers out there to help give you what you need, so there are some alternative options available for busy business owners.
If you run a small business then perhaps the thought of bringing on an employee just to manage your social media may seem daunting, but as long as you pick the right person, you will likely see quick results as they start putting your brand out there for the world to see.
5. Multi-Product Displays
Displaying just one of your products in an advert is a gamble as it may not fulfill the customers' specific desires. With a multiproduct display, you vastly increase the odds of a customer seeing one of your products that is exactly what they want.
They are easy to set up, with a horizontal swiping grid that takes up as much space as a single product whilst offering a wide range for a potential customer to browse. They may also get caught up in their curiosity, browsing all the way to the end of the display as each item appeals to them.
6. Host Online Contests
Another great way to leverage the power of Facebook is by running online content, which offers several benefits to the marketer. To begin with, it naturally creates a buzz around your products and services, whilst all the time helping to encourage interaction and encourage awareness of your brand.
It’s also particularly useful in providing insight into the behaviors of your potential customers, as the process will give you lots of actionable data while simultaneously helping people to become more familiar with what your company offers.
Engage Your Customers & Watch Your Sales Fly!
There are of course dozens of more marketing tips and tricks you can use but all of the eCommerce marketing strategies discussed here have one thing in common; engagement!
Customers don’t want to interact with some faceless business that hardly acknowledges them even when they buy something, rather most want the personal touch. The tips and strategies we’ve looked at are a few of the ways that you can reach out and show your customers that you care about them.
If you can earn your customers' loyalty by proving to them that you care they will stand by your brand and recommend it to others, growing your business on Facebook as well as other platforms. It may seem like a daunting task, considering how many users Facebook has, but looking into the kind of things your target audience loves or something as simple as quickly answering a message can go an awful long way.
