Sales Strategy
Yes, Facebook ‘Likes’ Really Do Matter And Really Do Help Your Business | April 29, 2015 (0 comments)
Ft. Lauderdale, FL—One of my favorite speakers is Maurice Freedman, owner of Zaah, a digital creative media agency based in New York that specializes in mobile apps, games, social media and web development. His presentation at a recent Preferred Jewelers International event was on social media—specifically, focusing on Facebook do’s and don’ts. I learned a lot and I’ve been able to go more in depth about Facebook and appreciate its importance in helping jewelers grow their business.
This is funny because I don’t have a personal Facebook page! But my husband Joe (Murphy) and my business are all over it. But here is what I learned, and my take on what jewelers need to know.
Do Facebook “likes” matter? In a word, yes! Freedman says that a brand’s organic reach is only around 6%, so it’s important to have a Facebook strategy in place. Facebook is not only a social network but also a channel for brands. People will tell you about the thousands or millions of followers they have—and I personally do not like Facebook as a vanity meter--but, the truth is, the more likes you have, the better your brand and the better your social media marketing efforts will be.
You need a strategy, but more importantly, you need to make sure that you are getting the right people to like your page and engage with your content.
So just how do you grow your Facebook community strategically to attract the right user who will engage with your content? The best ways to grow and engage Facebook communities are: 1) ads that promote your page; and 2) ads that boost your posts.
Andie Weinman
Here are some tips to promote your page:
1) Get specific about the age range you want to reach. Know your demographic. Narrow your focus down to the most relevant age group for your purposes and for your product.
2) Zero in on the right location. If you are not an online retailer or a global brand, you do not need to target everyone in the universe. If you are doing an event in your hometown you can get as specific as targeting one or two zip codes in your area.
3) Target users with the most relevant interests. The more specific you are, the better the results. Example: A luxury car company new to Facebook might want to target users who already like Mercedes, Jaguar, Bentley’s etc.
4) Leverage your followers’ connections, mostly by word of mouth or friend to friend. This is connection targeting. Show your ad to Facebook users who are not yet connected to you, through your friends who are. This is not the end all, but it helps identify and zero in on a user who’s fairly likely to connect.
If you can promote great content, generate events and get new page likes, you will have great results and ROI on your Facebook marketing efforts. For this to work you must be creative. Use bold images, rich media, engaging headlines, clever teasers and compelling calls to action. Here are some tips to boost your posts:
- Find the right audience for your message.
- Create compelling content. Images work best.
- Allocate an adequate advertising budget.
- Try and find your sweet spot and never stop analyzing and optimizing!
If you can do all these things, there is a really good chance your audience will not only engage with your promotional posts but also like your page because they will want to see more in the future. And they’ll tell two friends and they’ll tell two friends, and you know how that goes!
Ok, so maybe I do “like” Facebook after all!
But the bottom line is, it makes a lot of sense to have a presence, create compelling content, and strategically grow your Facebook community. As reluctant as I was in the beginning, I continue to learn and grow and embrace this new technology.
Andie Weinman, president and CEO of Preferred Jewelers International / Continental Buying Group Inc., was born with the “Jewelry Gene” working in the jewelry industry since she was only ten years old. Her first job was as a cashier in the opening of a catalog showroom doing a fantastic job even at that tender age. Andie holds a B.A. in musical theatre and a B.S. in marine biology from The University of Tampa. When she realized that seawater and marine biology were not good on her hair and she wasn’t quite good enough to make it on Broadway, the jewelry business beckoned. Andie has picked diamonds, sorted color stones, shot waxes and performed a multitude of jobs in the manufacturing of jewelry. Her negotiating experience and prowess has given her the reputation as being tough but fair in her dealings with vendors. In 2012 the Indian Diamond and Color Association awarded Andie the Prestigious Doyenne Award of the Year.