For most businesses, maintaining a Facebook Page these days is a standard part of a business plan. But how do you drive traffic and engagement for your Facebook Page using in-store promotions, or inversely encourage visits to your business through marketing on your Page?
Here we take a look at some different ways organizations around the country have been able to literally bring Facebook into their stores with in-store marketing to promote their Facebook Page. This allows them to forge a long-term connection with their visitors. Facebook has reported in the past that in-store Facebook Page marking can lead to a 20% increase in the rate of new Likes.
In-Store Facebook Signage
Facebook kicked off the idea of in-store signage marketing in 2010 when it began sending window decals to local businesses to encourage customers to Like their Pages on Facebook. The stickers included SMS instructions for Liking a Page and the Page’s URL for customers to visit.
Such promotions continue to be popular, as SpeedySigns is currently giving away 50,000 of the signs for free. Another incarnation is a QR code users may scan with their phones to instantly visit or Like a Page. In this example, the QR code sign was placed near the cash register sign at The Gap in West Covina, California. Business can experiment with placing signage any where in their store that customers temporarily pause, such as restaurant table or waiting areas.
But in-store signage may take other, grander or personal forms, too.
Driving east on Interstate 10 in Southern California you might happen to see a giant, LED sign advertising Claremont Toyota’s Facebook Page. Then there are more traditional in-store signage that, in some cases, may be personalized with user comments from Facebook itself.
For example Salt Lake City-based chain Dan’s Market had a sign advertising a young man holding a computer (with Facebook on the screen) and alerting customers to “exclusive deals” on the Page’s Wall.
Large window decals for the Charlotte Russe woman’s clothing store at a mall in Tukwila, Washington seemed to take actual comments and profile photos of users from the Page and plastered them all over the store’s front windows. This signage was brightly-colored, extremely prominent and included information about free jewelry, where to find the Page, how to text for the link, quotes and photos from women appearing to be fans, the Like button and the thumbs up icon that usually accompanies the Like button.
Then there’s the higher tech version, such as Momentus Media’s Insto.re app that allows businesses to reward customers in-store for Liking their Page.
Printed Material With Facebook Page
Business can also create printed promotional materials for their Facebook presence that can be distributed to a store’s visitors. Users in a charitable mood to donate blood might pick up a business card at the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center in San Antonio with the organization’s social media information.
Janice Carpio, Assistant Director of Community Relations there said when the organization launched the Facebook Page the goal was to grow the Page in order to extend the network — particularly when it came to the 25-55 age group — of its potential donors. By becoming more involved and providing better service, the Center hoped to cultivate its donor network via Facebook. It’s always a good idea to promote your Facebook presence on all your printed materials, especially if these materials are free to your customers.
Deals and Check-Ins
Some businesses have taken advantage of Facebook’s location service Places to run different types of in-store promotions, such as a coupon or free gift. Facebook told us this week that the top 10 most popular eateries in the past six months were:
1. Starbucks
2. Buffalo Wild Wings
3. Chili’s
4. Applebee’s
5. McDonald’s
6. IHOP
7. Denny’s
8. Olive Garden
9. T.G.I. Friday’s
10. The Cheesecake Factory
Then there was retailer Gap that used Deals to give away 10,000 free pairs of jeans to the first 10,000 customers who checked into their stores using Places.
But even smaller businesses can take advantage of Deals, as evidenced by Cornell Gallery in Pleasantville, New York. The business’ first Deal earlier this year was for $15 off a custom framing order and utilized Facebook decals promoting Places deals. Of course, with recent changes to Places interface, businesses may have to change the way they apply these types of promotions, too.
Businesses don’t necessarily need to get super high tech to promote these types of in-store deals that interface with their Facebook Pages. There are lots of ways that companies can tie an action on Facebook, such as Liking the Page, to an action in their store and vise versa. One example is the Sprinkle cupcake bakery in California that posts a “word of the day” on their Page for a free cupcake in store — in addition to free cupcake coupons that may only be redeemed in-store.
Technological Attractions
If businesses want to get really fancy, there are other ways to market your Facebook Page in store. Several examples we found included photo booths, or applications on such machines, that allow users to interact somehow with merchandise and then post this back to the stream. Diesel Cam and Macy’s Magic Fitting Room are two examples of this type of in-store marketing.
By utilizing these techniques, you can gain more Likes for your Page, drive more foot traffic to your business, and engage with customers who visit both your online and offline presences.
[Images Via Courtesy, djwaldow, AfterMarketerClub, WestchesterSocialMedia, levidepoches]
Additional strategies for growing your business through Facebook Places can be found in the Facebook Marketing Bible, Inside Network’s comprehensive guide to marketing and advertising on Facebook.
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