Facebook has revolutionised digital marketing, allowing brands of all types and sizes to personally engage with their customers on an unprecedented level. The introduction of Facebook Premium looks set to give yet another boost to the social network’s marketing muscle, with a new set of features designed to help businesses use the site in much the same way as families and friends do.
Speaking at a recent marketing conference in New York, Mike Hoefflinger, Facebook’s Director of Global Business Marketing, likened the brands vision for brands to a bygone era when shopkeepers knew their customers by name. It’s “the richest most customisable marketing canvas we’ve ever built” he said of the new product, which will be rolled out across mobile and tablet as well as desktop. At the heart of the new approach is ‘Premium Offers’, a new feature that will allow you to maximise your resort’s audience through advertising placements and Sponsored Stories, very similar to Twitter’s Sponsored Tweets. “Premium Offers on Facebook are the best way to get your stories in front of more people, more often” explained Hoefflinger “This is your opportunity to express your identity and tell your stories.”
Research has shown that a brand’s Facebook fans are twice as likely to purchase compared to customers from the general population, and the social network has introduced a new ‘Reach Generator’ product to capitalise on this loyalty. The new feature ensures that an impressive 75% of your fans will be exposed to your brand’s content and the potential benefits for your resort are exciting. During the Reach Generator development and testing stage, Ben & Jerry’s doubled its total customer engagement and saw an increase in sales of 3 to 1 ROI.
 | As part of the move to merge marketing on Facebook with the general Facebook experience, stories from brands now appear in the customers’ Newsfeed, right next to updates from friends and family. Marketers will have the opportunity to display their content not just on the Newsfeed and on their brand profile, but also during the log-out procedure, where yet more advertisements and offers will appear. |
While it remains to be seen how these changes will affect the millions of people worldwide who use Facebook everyday to interact with their friends and family, there’s no doubt that they are a marketer’s dream come true. Are you ready to make the most of Facebook Premium?
