Can’t FACE The Shops?

July 13, 2011
by Retail Champions

ASOS, Dove, French Connection, Coca Cola and Heineken all have the same thing in common. Instead of expecting consumers to tear them self away from the latest gossip, status updates and their friends’ crazy photos to go shopping on their website, these retailers are going straight to the consumer via Facebook. It’s through Facebook that they are able to reach 560 million potential customers. Not only are they able to increase their brand awareness by having a Facebook page that people can ‘like’ and receive updates from, but they are able to sell their products without navigating the customer away from the social network at all: ultimate customer convenience.

Facebook shops launched at the end of January this year and ASOS the online retailer was one of the first to seize the opportunity. Unlike some Facebook shops, ASOS bravely placed their entire stock on their Facebook shop, adding over 1,000 new items a week. Other shops, like HMV and Dune understandably wanted to see conversion rates before committing to uploading their whole stock, however customers still have the comfort of shopping on Facebook and are only redirected to the main site when they click ‘purchase’.

Coined a ‘social selling experience’, Facebook shops attracts already engaged users, that have already sought out to support the brand by ‘liking it’. And with the ‘friends who liked this’ tool, also attracts users that hadn’t yet got round to showing their interest, much like display advertising pre-targeting technology, which sources similar users (with similar online behaviours) to those profitable users who have already shown an interest in a brand, and converts them into a profitable users also. What’s more, Facebook shops can help give the buyer confidence. With the added ability to sort by ‘most liked products’ people can be sure they have a made a popular choice!

Understanding the importance of this channel, Latitude recently launched a Facebook shop application for ‘Wiggle’. Working closely with our chosen software provider Zibaba, Latitude helped to customise the platform to ensure it mirrored the Wiggle site. Zibaba’s flexible nature made this an easy process and consequently the shop was launched fairly quickly. Not only has the shop generated both direct and assisted conversions since its launch, but we’ve also seen a significant increase in new fans on Facebook. Potential customers are more prone to liking the fan page, so they can be sure they’ll never miss out on a new promotion.

As a retailer, having a Facebook page not only results in the obvious; brand awareness, but also encourages brand loyalty. Retailers are able to remind people who have shown an interest in the brand already (either by liking the page or purchasing from the Facebook shop) about offer A, B or C, by popping up in the user’s news feed, much like a retargeting display ad. One thing brands with Facebook shops should be wary of is just dumping their online store into a Facebook shop. To be a successful social selling experience, they need to interact with the users by making it something new and exciting with additional features and special promotions to keep customers coming back!

Retailers now have access to their customers like never before and customers likewise have access to their favourite retailers. They no longer need to venture out of the house to shop, nor even remember to visit their favourite retailer websites for that killer outfit. Online shopping is now literally available at their fingertips.

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