Facebook is huge! Nowadays, that’s just common knowledge. But a common challenge the millions of small businesses on the network face is determining just how valuable each new Like is worth to them. That’s what I will be covering in this article.
If you’ve ever asked yourself the following questions, read on to find out more:
• Why should I care about a Facebook Like?
• How much money am I actually making off every new Like?
• How can I increase the profits made off these Likes?
The Facebook Like
When it comes to your business page, we’re not talking about when someone “Likes” a post you made; we’re talking about when someone “Likes” your actual page. With each new fan you make, you are presented with a potential customer. Granted, many of your fans may already be customers, but there can be other fans who simply like the content you put out or want to learn more about what you do.
On a basic level, the more Likes your Facebook page has, the better. But determining the actual worth of every single Like does require you to keep some important points in mind.
Why You Should Care About Facebook Likes
Every Like matters, even if not all of them lead to a monetary return on investment (after all, some people may Like your page for other reasons, there might be some spam accounts here or there, and other users may be outside of your area of service – e.g. someone in the UK Liking your Page even though you only serve US customers).
But if you’ve ever asked yourself, “Do I really need to care about Facebook Likes?” – the answer is a resounding “Yes!”
With every Like:
• your social presence grows;
• you have more users who could potentially become customers (I will be looking at this in the next section);
• passionate fans can turn into brand evangelists – they will rave about your business, and word-of-mouth is one of the most powerful forms of marketing in the social space;
• you are now engaging with people on a platform that allows you to keep your business front-of-mind on a long-term basis; and
• your Facebook page is a place where you can build strong relationships with customers and bridge the gap between business and consumer
The worth of a Facebook Like runs deeper than just a tangible dollar value ROI. Every Like is a chance for your business to become more deeply connected with your audience.
How do You Measure the Worth of a Facebook Like?
Now I’m going to provide you with a look at how you can measure the actual monetary worth of a Facebook Like. As these approaches require you to compare a number of metrics against one another, you will need to have already generated money from your Facebook page in the past.
The site Augmo does cover three different measuring systems when it comes to calculating the value of Facebook Likes, but keep in mind that all three require a notable amount of time and effort.
A simpler means of getting a general idea of what a Facebook Like may be worth to your business is via HubSpot’s helpful “Value of a Like” calculator. It presents you with six fields that need to be filled out.
These are:
1. How many Likes your page has
2. How many people “unlike” your page each day (on average)
3. How many times a day you post to your Facebook page (on average)
4. How many clicks your Facebook posts receive (on average)
5. Your site’s conversion rate from Facebook linked posts
6. The average value of each conversion (e.g. $12 per conversion)
As an example, below is a screenshot of a hypothetical page’s performance. They have 1,000 page Likes, but– on average – lose about five followers every day (though this regularly levels out with the same number of new Likes). They post twice a day, get 20 clicks (on average) on their posts, and their conversion rate sits at a respectable 10%.
When all of these metrics are put together, HubSpot’s calculator returns an average value of $9.55 per Like. Knowing this value is essential, regardless of what your business specializes in. Because say, for example, you’re wanting to make improvements to your jewelry store’s Facebook marketing – knowing the value per Like is an integral piece of the ROI picture.
Increasing the Value of a Facebook Like
A Facebook Like, just like any other signifier of marketing success, is going to be different for all companies. You can use calculations like those mentioned above to get a better idea of the true worth of a Like relative to your business (which could be a big or small number), and then determine whether you may need to make changes in order to increase each Like’s worth.
If you do think some changes are in order, a great way to boost the value of your page Likes is to give your audience a reason to want to buy from you – such as offering a travel certificate with a purchase. An incentive such as a flight to Vegas or 7-day resort stay can help you turn more of your current fans into customers.
One such example is Carleton Refrigeration, an HVAC company that has been offering customers a cruise when they purchase one of two specific York furnace models. Not only have they been marketing this campaign brilliantly across numerous channels, but their Facebook efforts have been top-notch. Below are just some examples of the fantastic effort they have been putting in.
A key aspect to their successful Facebook efforts has been their regular posts showing customers who have received the cruise certificate after making a qualified purchase. As you can see from the above post, the simple act of uploading this photo and keeping the the campaign front-of-mind has led to some great interaction – 17 people shared this particular post alone, thus increasing Carleton Refrigeration’s reach to hundreds, if not thousands, of more people.
In the below post, you’ll see that they gave the same valuable cruise certificate to a customer by the name of John.
And guess what John did when he received this great reward? He left a 5-star review for the company with the eye-catching line “CRISIS TO CRUISE,” which even included him talking about the promotion they were running – this is word-of-mouth marketing at its finest. John essentially became a brand evangelist for this small, family-run business.
Travel incentives improve the value of your Facebook Likes across the board, and can bring in new Likes and conversions, too. What this yields is an end result where each Facebook Like, current and new, is someone who is more invested in your business; which means a greater overall ROI.
Whether you use a travel incentive as part of a promotion or contest on Facebook to grow your Likes and increase their worth, we can help. Find out more about our Facebook marketing and contest services here.
To find out more about our products and how we can help you go above and beyond your competitors, feel free to contact us online, fill out the form below, or give us a call on 1-866-883-2968.
