Sharing hobbies on facebook
Every day people of varied age groups and backgrounds log into facebook to catch up with their friends, and to explore their interests. Hobbies are defined as activities that one takes on during one’s leisure time. They are essentially meant to add fun and interest to one’s day and offer an experience quite unlike anything a conventional day brings. For many the joy of having a hobby lies in sharing their experiences with fellow hobbyists. There are many who share their hobbies on facebook and even find facebook shops where they can buy essentially supplies to support their hobby.
Discovering hobbies on facebook
When it comes to sharing hobbies on facebook, there is a lot that one can do. The simplest and most obvious way is of course to include information about the hobby in one’s posts. This could include photographs of the pet projects. Often people have a group of friends with whom they share an interest in a certain hobby and facebook offers a great platform to share that interest. One can also ‘like’ hobby and interest pages that they would like to follow. Quilters can not only check on the most traditional and the most contemporary designs, they can also shop for books, patterns and much more. Best of all, they can interact with fellow quilters, share insight, gain advice and tips.
Hobbyists also like to see on facebook brands that they use and love. It gives them a great space to voice their opinions and recommendations, and to be heard! The Handi Quilter is one such brand. It uses its posts, photographs and YouTube videos rather effectively. The facebook fan page also has a forum for its fans. At LilyPad Craft Supplies fans and customers can buy craft supplies.
Gardeners from across the globe find facebook to be a fertile place to share their ideas. Some pages like Gardener’s Supply Company offers their fans tremendous support in terms of ideas and guidance when it comes to issues such as choosing the right plants or irrigation system.
Scrapbooking is another hobby that has plenty of takers on facebook. There are many pages such as The Scrapbooking Club and Scrapbook.com that focus on this activity and have plenty of ideas to share with scrapbookers. However while these generate a lot of interest what a lot of fans would really like is to find a brand that sells its products on the social network. Imagine being able to buy supplies on facebook and then posting the finished project on one’s page. The social network is the best place for a hobbyist to showcase his or her work. And for related businesses facebook is a great place to engage fans and sell their products.
Storefront Social is a unique app that helps a business set-up a facebook storefront. The shop can be customized to meet the needs of the business and its target audience. This includes the use of company colors, logo and photographs. The business can choose a language that their target audience is most comfortable with it. The facebook shop also allows customers to buy products with multiple currencies and with PayPal.
Social commerce start up to watch out for
Social media and commerce has thrown open a plethora of opportunities for entrepreneurs. Social commerce can be used in versatile ways to make sales and generate income. People love to recommend brands and products to their friends, and like wise, seek out recommendations from them. Social media makes this process simpler and more fun. There are many small and big businesses that are choosing social commerce as the platform on which they wish to address and interact with their target audiences.
A storefront for the budding entrepreneur
Most fashionable women have a secret desire to own a boutique that sells beautiful things and brings in a source of income. This idea is the focus of Kitsy Lane’s venture into social commerce. Interested entrepreneurs can create a storefront and curate it with products from the Kitsy Lane store. Thereafter, they can share information and recommendations on social media networks and earn a commission on every sale that is made through the storefront. There are several facebook storefronts that offer products from the Kitsy lane store. This includes Langs Luxuries and Southern Charm Kitsy Lane Boutique.
Local Response is an interesting social commerce tech startup that focuses on keeping brands informed about what their customers and target audiences are doing or considering. The intent is what this app focuses on and gives brands a chance to swoop in to make an offer or recommendation at the opportune moment. The app offers businesses a chance to market their brand and products just when customers would need them the most. This improves the chances of a sale and also strengthens brand identity.
Social commerce like social media is all about story telling. How this basic premise can be used in creative ways to help target audiences associate and identify with brands and products is the priceless question that marketing managers need to answer. Its all in your actions believe the people behind the Karma Gifts app. The app can be downloaded onto smart phones and connects users to facebook. It helps people find relevant social information about their friends such as birthdays and special occasions and then makes gift suggestions. The gift message is sent to the friend and shipping details are requested for. In some instances the receiver can make changes to the style of gift that they will receive.
It is important for business of all sizes to invest in a facebook storefront where their product line will be showcased. Customers can buy products they like and share their experience and opinions with their friends. Shop and tell has always been a fool proof method of marketing.
Storefront Social is an app that helps businesses set up a customized facebook store. Social commerce managers can choose to offer content in a language of their choice. This makes the app great for businesses from across the world. The storefront will use the business’ colors and photographs so that it can truly claim its facebook storefront. The store offers great navigation to offer a smooth shopping experience. Customers can pay with multiple currencies and with PayPal too.
How to improve conversion on your facebook shop
The social commerce storefront may look a lot different from a brick and mortar store, but the basic principles that guide shopping remain the same. With the advent of social media sites consumers are able to interact with their friends far more easily. Earlier they would have been reduced to calling a friend on the mobile and seek their opinion about a product, while they were actually in the store. Now with social commerce the facebook shop is where the target audiences lie. Friends can share products and seek the opinions and recommendations of their friends. They also like to go by the testimonials offered by other consumers.
The secret to improving social commerce
The secret to improving conversion on your facebook shop lies in understanding your customers and not in some elusive sales and marketing formula. People are more likely to buy something when there interest in the brand and the product is at its peak. With social media your business can interact and engage its target audiences and offer them the opportunity to shop on the facebook store. Customers love to share a great deal and talk about a good shopping experience. On facebook they can do both, and a lot more. They are your most powerful marketing tool. Here are some tips on improving conversion and sales.
- Research indicates that more than half of online shoppers are logged into their facebook accounts while they are shopping. Instead of using the social media site to ask friends for opinions, shopping on facebook would be a satisfying experience for customers. To this end, it is vital that brands offer the complete range of their products and not just display a few. A good facebook app like Storefront Social can help customize a facebook store so that it looks like the space truly belongs to the brand.
- Well planned navigation and a shopping cart that is designed to be considerate of the shoppers’ needs, are two key factors that help a customer complete their transaction. Out of every 10 shopping carts, 7 are abandoned before check out. The reasons for abandoning a cart can be several including the fact that the shopping cart doesn’t update quickly enough or that it may have expired by the time the customer is done shopping. Some brands send out timely messages to remind customers of abandoned or forgotten shopping carts.
- Features such as price comparisons, a shopping cart that doesn’t expire quickly and completion of the transaction with multiple currencies and with PayPal, are some things that would aid a business sell more. Such features would make it fun to shop at the facebook shop and the customer would not be in a hurry to go to other pages to make comparisons.
- The facebook storefront should make it easy for customers to share their pre and post sales excitement with their friends. Word-of-mouth recommendations are the strongest and most persuasive source of marketing.
- Exclusive deals for facebook fans also motivate customers to shop on the social media site. Offers such as 1-800-Flowers’ Group Gifts help friends shop together. The brand also offers customers a discount for joining the community.
Some brands who are making a difference on facebook
An increasing number of businesses are choosing to actively support human interest causes. The range of these causes extends from child care and nutrition to supporting the underprivileged. There are some brands that are making quite the difference with their efforts on facebook. When it comes to issues such as nutrition, Nestle seems to be quite a controversial brand. However, it uses its facebook fan page effectively to inform and educate customers about the brand’s initiatives to offer food and health solutions.
Customer’s viewpoint
A research study reported that if factors such as quality and cost remain equal a remarkable percentage, as high as 94%, would choose to switch to a different product or brand if it supports a cause and makes a difference to society at large. This makes it important for businesses to look at the way they support their community, locally as well as at a macro level. People want to know that the brands they buy and support have a caring side, and social initiatives that support a cause reflect the same. Facebook offers businesses a remarkable platform that can be used to inform customers and visitors about the brand’s social commitment and can also encourage customers to make the same.
A human face to brands
Johnson & Johnson uses its J&J Health Channel facebook app to reach out to customers and fans so they can share a role in supporting a cause. When a fan donates a photo the brand donates $1 towards a charity or cause that the fan supports such as making sports safe for children or repairing a public park. Stayfree, a women’s personal hygiene brand also takes initiative to empower women in developing nations and bring about a change in their lives. P&G Children’s Safe Drinking Water encourages customers and fans to support the cause. Each time a visitor clicks the ‘like’ button, the brand donates a day’s clean water in a developing country.
When a customer visits a brand’s facebook fan page, he or she wishes to interact with the brand and also peruse the products that are on offer. There is no point in using an effective medium such as social media to engage the target audience without offering them the chance to buy the products. A facebook shop helps the customers buy products when there interest in the brand or product line is at its peak and a sale is most likely.
Storefront Social is an app that can be used to create a facebook shop. The store can be customized to meet the needs of the business and its customers. The facebook storefront would be akin to the brand’s online and offline store and would make use of brand colors, logo and photographs. The social commerce manager can also choose to use a language of the business’ choice. This helps it reach out to its target audience effectively. This makes this app valuable to businesses from all parts of the world. The navigation is devised to help customers find the products they are looking for while still being able to see other products that are available and may interest them.
Shopping for gifts with social commerce
Shopping for gifts can be a challenging task. There are many issues that you need to keep in mind, the most important being the tastes and preferences of the person you are buying the gift for. Often you may decide on what you wish to buy but may not be able to find a store that sells the product. Social commerce makes shopping for gifts a breeze. There are a plethora of brands and products that you can choose from while you seek the opinions of your friends and read up on testimonials and product reviews by other customers.
One of the biggest advantages that social commerce offers the contemporary shopper is the fact that they can compare products and actively seek the recommendations of others. There are some social commerce brands such as Gifts.com that make it possible for a shopper to buy from a wide range of products. So essentially, you can buy something for your colleague, your mom and your sweetheart, all in one place. What makes the shopping process more fun and interesting is the concept of the Gift Guru. A Gift Guru is a fellow shopper who lists out products that he or she likes or has bought. It is great to read the recommendations of a person who has bought a product that a shopper may be interested in.
Facebook Gifts
Often people forget to pick a gift until the very last moment. Social commerce on facebook Gifts offers an awesome solution to this awkward situation. All a person has to do is pick a gift for a facebook friend and they will be notified about the gift along with a personalized message. Thereafter the recipient can choose a size, flavor or color that suits them before giving the address to which they wish to have the gift shipped. Soon the recipient will receive the gift at their doorstep. This keeps the recipient’s personal details secure while ensuring that they receive information about the gift on their special day.
This app helps friends send out gifts to celebrate the small and big moments of joy. Be it birthday, anniversaries, promotions or just to brighten a pal’s day, shopping for gifts on facebook is a fun experience. It is vital that businesses offer their products on the social network so that fans and customers can buy them without leaving the social media site.
Storefront Social is a wonderful app that helps businesses set up their own facebook storefront in a matter of minutes. The store can be customized to reinforce the brand’s identity and to this end business colors, logos and pictures can be used. It is vital that the store offers a wide range of products quite like a brick and mortar store would. There is nothing more depressing for a shopper than a store with a limited range of products. The app makes it possible to offer content in a language chosen by the business and transactions can be accepted with multiple currencies and with PayPal. This makes the facebook shop truly global.
Does your social commerce store offer a good deal for customers
There are many social commerce experts who have tried to determine the top reasons that encourage facebook users to shop on the social media site. Most find that the social nature of shopping makes social commerce a viable option. After all, people trust word-of-mouth recommendations over descriptions offered by the manufacturers. People also place the opinions of strangers who have used the product or know the brand well, over well worded product details.
One of the most popular reasons for choosing social commerce over other shopping options is the fact that many brands offer special and exclusive offers and deals to their fans and followers on social media sites. Often a brand will offer a product at a discount only when it is bought at the facebook store.
It is vital that a business does adequate research before determining which deal will garner the most attention and action. If the deal requires that the customer share more information than they would be comfortable sharing or needs to be referred to several friends, most fans and customers would opt against it. A great deal should be relevant to your target audience. It should be capable of capturing their attention and motivate them to act on the deal, quickly. Finally, it should also be the kind of deal that they want to tell their friends about.
Creating a deal on facebook
Every business that has a facebook fan page can create a deal on the social media site. The deal could be for individual customers or for friends who check-in together. It could also be aimed at loyal customers who have visited the page or the facebook store several times during a specified period. Finally, some businesses may choose to pledge support to a charity for every time a customer shops at the store. It is vital that a business follows up on how well a deal fared with its target audiences. This will help the marketing team develop targeted deals in the future.
It is important that a business have a facebook storefront where customers can peruse the product line and shop. The convenience of shopping on the social media site where most online users spend a large portion of their time is one of the biggest advantages of social commerce. Storefront Social is an app that helps businesses create a facebook shop and customize it effectively. The store would offer excellent navigation that would helps customers find the products that they are looking for, while also highlighting other categories.
Some businesses that are known to offer great deals include Wine Market, an Australian wine store that offers terrific deals to its fans. It is known to have sold 100 cases of wine in less than one hour of introducing a deal. Some businesses offer free shipping as a deal and customer love this as it cuts down the cost of their online shopping. Victoria’s Secret offers customers reward cards which can be used online or at stores. The brand also runs contests that allow customers to design things like tote bags for the beach.
Interesting facebook apps
There are perhaps as many facebook apps as there are interests that facebook users share. For many people shopping is a chore, a task that is daunting and exhausting. Social commerce is an interesting and fun alternative wherein people can buy the products they like while they are on a social network such as facebook. The best part is that they can seek and share their recommendations and suggestions with their friends. There are many apps that are designed for businesses and customers, to enhance the social commerce experience.
Some facebook app help businesses set up store on the social network and keep a track of returns from social commerce, while others may help create a campaign and garner support for it. Some other apps that are especially popular include gaming apps and those that help users communicate and simplify their life. In essence facebook apps make the social network as real an experience as life offers.
A glimpse of liked products
There are many facebook apps that make shopping fun. Glimpse is one such facebook app. This app uses the shopping search engine, TheFind to identify and display the products that a customer may like. This display is based on the type of products that the customer likes. TheFind has a database of over 500 million products that ensures that whatever a shopper’s taste and interest Glimpse will offer a peek of the most liked products in those categories.
A customized facebook store
Storefront Social offers a business the opportunity to create a customized store that will showcase its product line. The social commerce manager can offer content in a language of its choice and can use photographs and colors that help the business claim the space as its own. The app allows businesses to accept payment in multiple currencies and with PayPal.
Where I’ve been
This one is for the avid traveler and for friends who like to follow the travels of their friend. Where I’ve Been is a Tripadvisor app that lets travelers post their travel details on facebook. People can add additional details including where they would like to go and with whom.
A face to face experience
The Video Calling Skye app allows facebook users to video chat with their friends. The user does not need a Skype account to use this app. This personalizes the facebook experience and makes it more interesting.
Support a cause
The Causes app helps people create a campaign and garner support for it. It is an effective way of eliciting public interest and influencing a specific situation. The causes are quite varied and range from environmental concerns to human interest ones.
Group Gifts
For facebook users who wish to share the expense of a gift Let’s Gift It offers a great app. From flowers from 1-800-Flowers to a coveted product friends can buy a group gift on facebook. This app does away with the need to keep a track of how much each friend needs to contribute towards the group gift, and simplifies the process of getting a gift for a special occasion.
Facebook commerce for start-ups
A start-up business requires plenty of business planning, initiative and understanding of the market. The one thing that most start-ups don’t have is a big marketing budget, and what they could really use is a marketplace to showcase their merchandise. Facebook is where the target audiences lie. And if a business has a product it wants to sell it could not get better publicity than on facebook. People like products which are interesting, creative and useful. On facebook you can market your business and products to the right target audience.
Marketing your brand
The most important thing that a start-up needs to do is to ensure that its prospective customers know of the business and can identify with it. This can be achieved largely by creating a facebook fan page that offers quality and relevant content. It is the content of a page that convinces visitors to click on the ‘like’ button and follow it. The business needs to post regularly on its facebook fan page and respond to customer and visitor queries and requests efficiently.
Targeted advertising on facebook allows businesses to create advertisements that will only be seen by users who match the parameters that a business sets for the Ad. Audiences can be targeted based on location, age, interests, connections and education.
Spread the good word
Selling on facebook is all about ensuring that your business gains the attention that it deserves. The best way to do this is to get fans and customers to recommend products and the brand. A facebook storefront doesn’t just allow customers to buy products but also helps them share them with others. People trust word-of-mouth recommendations by friends and strangers over product descriptions. If a facebook user were looking to buy a certain product they could find the brand on facebook and if the business has a facebook storefront, the customer could buy the product without leaving the social network.
Choosing apps to create the right impact
Sometimes people want to look at a range of products that they can choose from to find a gift for a friend. There are businesses such as Gifts.com that offer a wide range of products that facebook users could gift friends. The app also has a calendar that would help them keep a track of those special days. What’s makes the business truly unique is that it allows customers to become Gift Gurus and recommend products that they have bought. Givvy also has a similar selling social commerce strategy.
Storefront Social is an app that allows businesses to create a facebook shop and customize it to their needs. The social commerce manager can select the colors and photographs that would be used on the store. The navigation will ensure that the customers can quickly find the products that they are looking for. Storefront Social helps businesses offer content in a language of its choice. This makes it a great choice for businesses irrespective of the location on the world map. Another added convenience that the app offers is that customers can pay for their shopping with multiple currencies and also with PayPal.
How to sell more on your facebook store
If you want to sell more on your facebook store the first thing that you need to do is ensure that the storefront offers the entire range of products. There is nothing more irritating for a customer than to find a facebook shop that is badly stocked. A facebook store should ideally offer great navigation and the shop should be structured to help customers find what they are looking for. An app like Storefront Social can make this possible.
Improve trust and confidence in the brand
It is important for a business to inspire confidence in its target audience. This can be achieved by improving engagement on the facebook page. The business can design posts that will elicit a reaction and allow fans to share their experiences with the brand. You could create a board or a community for your facebook fans. This gives customers a chance to express themselves. Sometimes you may encounter negative feedback and it crucial to deal with it effectively and to reassure customers that the brand will do everything to regain their trust and loyalty.
Create a dedicated fan following
Your facebook fan page should offer content that is interesting and likely to keep fans tuned in. To improve brand visibility and promote traffic to the page a business can create daily offers. Such offers will tempt customers to check out the page and the shop, and increase sales. The offer should seem urgent and hence should be for a limited time period. This usually leads to more sales during that time.
Analyze the data and use it
It is important for your business to analyze the data related to the best and worst selling products on the facebook shop. This will help your social media and marketing team come up with a better strategy to sell these products. Sometimes the problem may lie in navigation, while in other instances it may be that some products appear to be more visible than others. Use banners on the home page of the facebook shop to let your customers know what is on offer.
Research indicates that on an average over 65% of online shopping carts are abandoned. It is critical to find out why customers do so. If the reasons are related to navigation or shopping cart problems then these need to be rectified. This would improve sales on the facebook storefront.
Customize your store
Storefront Social helps businesses customize their stores so that they are more appealing to their target audiences. Colors and photos can be used to ensure that the target audience identifies with the brand. Businesses can offer content in a language of their choice and allow customers to pay for their shopping with a currency of their choice or with PayPal. If your business ships to different countries this should be clearly stated on the facebook homepage at the store.
Get ready for the holiday season
Most people shop more during the holiday season. Thus, it is imperative for businesses to capitalize on the extended budget for such occasions. A list of holidays through the year needs to be maintained by businesses so that the social commerce team is well prepared for the holiday season.
What’s selling on social commerce
There are many questions that businesses that are interested in social commerce are concerned about. What’s selling on social commerce is the top concern for businesses. Who is shopping on social media sites is another question that needs answering. Some of the top sellers on social commerce include clothes, celebrity merchandise, games and music.
Lady Gaga’s facebook store is amongst the top social commerce brands. The store sells merchandise such as t-shirts, holiday tags, USB drive, posters, bags and much more. It is ‘the’ place for Lady Gaga fans to shop for celebrity merchandise.
Engage your audiences in order to sell
What sells on facebook is directly related to how the brands interact with their customers and their ability to engage them on their page. The facebook shop must inspire confidence in the store and the brand. To this end it is vital to use an app like Storefront Social that allows a business to customize its facebook storefront so that fans can identify with it. This can be done by choosing specific templates and color schemes. A business manager can also select a preferred language for the content and give customers the option of paying for their shopping with multiple currencies and with PayPal.
There are many of the brands that opened facebook stores and then closed them. This was essentially because they were unable to offer an experience that was different from shopping on the brand’s online store. It is crucial that customers and fans are able to conveniently shop for all the products that interest them. Most people buy a product because they have either heard about it from a friend or are accustomed to using it. If latter is the case, then they are capable of influencing their friends to buy the brand or the product too. After the advent of social media social commerce is the logical step. After all, when people share so much information on everything, from what they wear to what skin products they use and the music they listen to, it makes sense to shop on the platform on which people get and share their information.
How to sell
Big and small brands are choosing social commerce as the sensible way to sell because social media sites are where there audiences lie. For the first time instead of waiting for audiences to visit an online store, a facebook shop is placed where the target audiences visit regularly. The difference between product categories that are bought frequently through social commerce and those that are not, is the manner in which the brand is able to engage its target audiences.
Celebrity pages attract a lot of audience and engage them rather well. And it is not surprising that they are also ranked amongst the best social commerce stores. Some of the top facebook shops include those of Rihanna and Linkin Park. TV Shows such as Dexter and Jersey Shore, and movies like Harry Potter have a large fan following and sell merchandise on social commerce. Celebrity stores such as that of John Cena WWE Universe offers customized products. Play Station also allows its players to buy games on facebook.