Facebook’s Shopping Feature: Good News for Retailers

July 29, 2015

Earlier this year, we shared five things to expect from digital marketing in 2015 – and so far, every item on the list has been implemented in some way across all popular social media sites.

Number five on our list was “online advertising budgets will increase,” which allows room for more hyper-local consumer targeting and increased online spending by consumers.

According to a company representative, Facebook’s shopping feature is currently being tested and will allow retailers to essentially have a mini e-commerce site within their Page enabling a whole shopping experience to occur within the site.

That’s right, soon users will be able to buy items straight from retailer’s Facebook Pages. The shopping features will be under a new “Shopping” section where currently existing tabs for Timeline, About, and Photos are located. Within the shopping section, companies are able to choose whether to keep the transaction within Facebook or redirect to the company’s website.

Facebook already has ads that include a call-to-action “Buy” button, allowing desktop and mobile users to click on ads and brand Page posts to purchase a product directly from a business, without ever having to leave Facebook, however, until now these have been limited to small and mid-size businesses solely within the U.S.

With Pinterest adding buy-able pins for all brands in June 2015, Facebook is just the latest social media site to join the party. Pinterest is currently not charging for the buy-able pins, and it’s highly likely Facebook will also start off the same.

Let’s not forget, with all of the demographic and behavioral data Facebook gathers, the social platform will now be able to collect data on completed purchases. Talk about valuable information for advertisers!

The new shopping feature is still being tested, but start prepping now; the roll-out can be expected anytime. Contact Van West Media today to get a strategy in place for your brand. Our experts are here to help you make the most of Facebook’s newest feature!

Facebook’s Latest Update: What Marketers Need to Know

July 10, 2015

Facebook’s ever-changing News Feed algorithm has been updated once more with new features. Last year the company updated their News Feed to allow users control unfollowing and refollowing posts from people, Pages, and Groups. Now, they’re allowing users to personalize their News Feed experience based on what they enjoy viewing the most. Facebook News Feed’s updated controls include:

  • selecting whose content users see first,
  • being able to find new pages to connect to,
  • unfollowing people to hide their posts, and
  • reconnecting with people previously unfollowed.

So what does this mean for brands who utilize Facebook as a means for targeting their consumers?

We’ve highlighted a few things marketers need to know:

Prioritize Friends and Pages to See First

Users can now select up to 30 accounts to prioritize, meaning their updates will appear at the top of the News Feed. A star next to the account will remind users that they have chosen to see their updates the most.

Discover New Pages

This section is based on Pages similar to those users have already liked, and Pages liked by similar people. This feature is meant to let users easily find Pages that they would be most interested in.

Unfollow or Reconnect

This is an updated design of the feature released last year. Here, users can see a list of the top accounts they’ve seen in the past week and choose to unfollow any friend, Page or Group if they no longer wish to see their updates. There is also a section of all the accounts users have unfollowed in the past and have the option to refollow them at any given moment.

Brand Strategies

These updated News Feed features will likely alter how brands will craft their presence on Facebook. They’ll now have to think about what kind of posts will make users want to prioritize them on their news feeds, as well as how much content is too much content, leading users to unfollow. There is an advantage! Brands will be able to get a number of how many users are prioritizing their pages – a factor that provides insight on what’s working and what’s not when developing posts.

Is your brand ready for the Facebook update? Contact our team at Van West Media for assistance with your social media marketing plan!