Fans More Likely to Buy
by Hostway
The Internet gives us ultimate choice. We can become whomever we want to be
and associate with millions of different people, brands and ideas. Some have
said that this means that anything we do on the Internet is valueless as it
could so easily be a lie.
However, it turns out that the things we choose to do in virtual space are a
pretty clear reflection of how we are living our real lives out here in
meatspace. When we become a fan of something on Facebook or follow a business on
Twitter, we actually do more business with those favored companies.
Fans Buy More
Recent research by Chadwick Martin Bailey and iModerate shows that people who
are willing to publicly support your product on Facebook actually do purchase
more from you. Even if they never directly recommend you to a friend, when they
become a fan of your business’ Page, a news item is inserted into all their
friends’ feeds. With even moderate users having at least a hundred friends,
that’s a significant advertisement from a highly trusted source.
Word-of-Mouth Works
More important, studies have shown that
people
do recommend those brands they bother to follow. Some follow others and
become fans because they want to learn more about the brand or identify strongly
with the brand philosophy. The most compelling reason for this type of
engagement, however, is to receive special offers or discounts from their
favorite brands.
Fans vs. Groups
There are many
Facebook groups out there promising that if you join the group, you will
receive a significant reward. Only the most naive will join, as they are aware
that fan Pages or official tweets are a more reliable source of promotional
information. Those Facebook users who become your fans are giving you special
status because they can only become fans of 50 Pages in total.
Favoring Fans
Once you have made it onto a customer’s follow list or fan Page, capitalize
on this relationship by rewarding their loyalty with real value discounts or
hot-off-the-press
releases that they will get first. Having this elite status, simply by
choosing it, will get your followers and fans out there working for you and
spreading the word. Retweets and comments help your special offers go viral, so
be prepared!
Hostway Corporation helps small- and medium-sized businesses increase sales with innovative
Web hosting packages that include an easy-to-use Web site builder, a built-in mechanism for driving traffic and an
email marketing platform. Founded in 1998, the company currently serves more than 600,000 customers across the globe and operates over 250,000 square feet of state-of-the-art data centers with a direct presence in 13 countries, 17 worldwide operation centers and more than 700 employees.
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