How to wield Facebook followers to drive sales

Monday October 09, 2017 , 4 min Read

No matter what business you run - be it a tech startup, a beauty parlor or a Fortune 500 company, by now a Facebook page for your brand's entity is a given. Now, the question arises have you done enough to convert those subscribers into potential customers or patrons even. Those thousands, even millions, of netizens are potentially a goldmine of revenue and it's about time you establish strategies to tap into that segment.

Let us take the advice of two entrepreneurs from completely different fields who have used their Facebook fan pages to drive sales.

Image: Shutterstock

Ravi Handa, founder of Handa ka Funda, provides online coaching for CAT and banking exams. This is his two cents on the subject matter. "Facebook is no longer a very effective medium when it comes to driving sales. At least not as effective as it was in 2013. The organic reach of pages has fallen down drastically. We haven't been able to use ads effectively like most other companies, so we shy away from it. However, there are some areas where FB is still effective.

a) Brand Building - If you are a small company like us, rest assured, customers will check your reviews/likes/content on Facebook to see how relevant you are. So updating your page/group helps.

b) Using FB Live for sales - Facebook Live works like a charm when you want to drive people to the website. Something we did last year, and are planning to do this year as well. Like, we run a 15-20 minute FB Live session for applicants who look to crack the IIFT/XAT exam. This gives us visibility and the conversion ratio is a testament to its effectiveness.

It is different for each company and the type of product but I am sure with the amount of reach that Facebook provides you will be able to find customers.”

Sumit Ghosh, Founder of Socioboard, is also an internet marketer. He says, “A common problem which most entrepreneurs or marketers at startups face is the challenge in monetizing their Facebook fans. After you have acquired fans either by running a pay-per-click (PPC) campaign or organically via content distribution, the next challenge is to monetize the fans. The most used method of engaging fans is via Facebook contests."

According to Adweek.com quizzes were the most shared content type on Facebook. So, why not use interactive content (quizzes, polls) to create Facebook content?

How can marketers conduct a Facebook contest through interactive content?

Grab audience’s attention
Sustain engagement
Entertain audience
Gain leads
Transfer traffic to website, other channels
Get unique, self-declared data
Receive insights

Let’s see what marketing professionals can obtain through quizzes and other types of interactive content (polls, surveys, assessments):

Interactive content marketing is an opportunity to make smart, dynamic forms, which has the capability to turn visitors into leads. Quizzes, polls or surveys urge the audience to interact. Add mutual interest into the mix and you have a success story.
Passive content imposes a reaction from an inactive reader. While interactive content makes use of the action taken and emails leaving forms implemented in the sequence of motions. It is easier to make the third or fourth step than first.
Quizzes, polls and surveys can boost leads’ profiles with self-declared information. Directly received insight allows you to prepare more accurate campaigns, messages and offers.
Interactive content tools can be integrated with leading marketing platforms.

You can use Socioboard for creating interactive contests which will engage your fans and help you create a steady stream of revenue. With all that said, Facebook is one of the best places to amass a following for your personal brand or business and convert them into paying customers. Follow the advice of these two entrepreneurs to leverage the Facebook platform.