You could have a visually stunning website, incredible products at outstanding prices, and the best multichannel order management system available, but if you’re not advertising, then you’re not generating the sales results you should be getting. And if you’re not advertising on social media, particularly Facebook, then you’re missing out on one of the most effective ways to boost your sales that’s available to online merchants.
Getting it Right
There are a lot of online merchants out there who aren’t all that sure why they should be using Facebook to advertise, or who know that they should but aren’t all that willing to allocate a budget to have it done right. They end up appointing someone within their company to handle social media. Most of the time that person isn’t an actual expert in social media marketing – he or she is just the person who has the most time to spare. A few months later, the social media campaign isn’t really working, and that’s when the choice has to be made whether to scrap it (bad idea) or find someone who actually knows what they’re doing (better idea).
It’s important to keep in mind that not much is free – and if you’re looking for quality, then nothing is. You invest in things like business cards and shipping management software, so you need to accept that you’ll have to invest in your social media campaign. You may want to hand it off to an outside provider, or at the very least get your in-house person some training. If you’re willing to invest the money, and get it done right, you’ll get great ROI from your Facebook advertising campaign.
Make Sure Your Content is Awesome
You’ve probably heard it said over and over that your content has to be relevant, useful, and fresh if it’s going to attract people to your online store. But are you actually producing that sort of content? In order to get to that point, you should first consider a few things about you and your business.
- What makes you different from your competition? What makes up your brand – what are your beliefs and core values? Why do your customers buy from you?
- Determine exactly who your customers are. The better you know them, the better your chances are of reaching them.
- Define your goals. Write them down.
Now you know how to direct your content.
Engage People and Increase Your Likes
You want to grow your Facebook community in such a way that it mirrors the “real world” community your business occupies. In days gone by, all you had to do was get people to “like” your page, and they’d be able to see everything you posted. That’s not the case anymore. Much of what you post may only show up in a user’s “Pages Feed,” and not everyone checks that every day, especially if they’ve “liked” a lot of pages. So if you’re going to keep yourself out there for existing members of your community, and if you want to attract new ones, you’re going to have to advertise. Fortunately, Facebook ads don’t cost much, and when they’re done properly, they deliver terrific results.
Bear in mind that just getting a lot of “likes” doesn’t necessarily mean your Facebook page is working for you. Your posts need to drive traffic to your website, and what that means is that you have to engage people – offer them something that will motivate them to visit your site. Offer them a chance to win some thing if they fill out a survey, perhaps. Or offer them a free ebook. An interesting video to watch. You get the idea.
Once you have them on your webpage, your awesome content should induce them to buy. Now it’s time to get them to the checkout, so make sure your shipping management software makes it easy for them to navigate the buying process, and you’ve just gotten yourself another customer, thanks to your Facebook ad campaign!
Sources:
http://www.krusecontrolinc.com/facebook-to-generate-leads-sales/
SUMMARY: Advertising on Facebook is one of the most effective ways to grow your online business, but a Facebook ad campaign is only as good as the person creating it. It’s not a job to be handed off to just anyone. Properly handled, it will drive traffic to your website and increase your sales.