According to a study by social intelligence firm Syncapse, 78% of a company’s Facebook fans have already been its customers and are familiar with its products or services.
The report suggests that marketers should focus their efforts on converting their existing customers, as being a brand customer is often the reason why users become Facebook fans in the consumer goods sector. According to Syncapse, marketing experts have to focus their investments on a high-quality fan base, as not only is conversion friction and acquisition cost lower, but it base will generate bigger rewards. This applies to both higher-cost and lower-cost brands.
The main stimulus for those users who “like” a brand on the social network are either discounts and coupons or sharing interests with other users. However, Syncapse believes that attracting fans by offering discounts might lead to a lower brand value. There are many brands out there that offer direct-response rewards in an effort to boost Facebook membership, but these practices often target deal-hunters, which usually result in a low-quality, fake fan membership.
The authors of the report calculated the value of a Facebook fan on the basis of factors such as loyalty, spending, tendency to recommend the page, brand affinity, earned media value and acquisition costs. The value is estimated to be $174 (£115), a rise by 28% compared to 2010. Yet Syncapse said that the real value of a Facebook fan should be measured by the reasons they became a fan in the first place.