Valuable Tips for Selling on Facebook
Back when the concepts of online marketing and social media marketing were only just starting out, marketers were scrambling to find ways to get their audience from Facebook to their dedicated web pages. More often than not, SMEs would have a website first before any social media page because at the time, social media platforms weren’t seen as a basic need for a marketing strategy. So as time wore on, pre-established websites had more information on them, and it just seemed practical to ask people to visit sites instead of trying to pack Facebook pages with the same amount of information.
Unfortunately, it was easy to see that this specific method wasn’t working out for a large chunk of the market. Buyers are already where they want to be - they want to be on Facebook. So, asking them to glide off from their comfort zone and into your web page was often seen as impractical and tedious - especially if there were other similar brands in the market that offer pretty much the same thing without asking them to leave Facebook.
Of course, the good people of the platform realized this, too, so they decided to make it easier for sellers to market their products and generate sales from Facebook itself.
As a unique Facebook business page feature, the Shop section allows marketers to post listings on their page to offer as items or services for sale. For any business that’s anchored on revenue, this is one of the most important aspects of the Facebook marketing strategy, leading you to an actual opportunity to do what you’ve been aiming to get done all alone - make sales.
You can find the Shop option along the left-hand panel of your page, bunched together with the other options that Facebook offers. Upon clicking it, you’ll be asked to agree to Merchant Terms and Policies. Then it’s as simple as choosing how buyers can make a purchase, and then deciding the currency of your shop.
Message to Buy means that users would have to go through the Messenger app to make a purchase. It’s a manual process that requires your response to move forward. Check Out on Another Website redirects users to your e-commerce web page where they can purchase your item outside of Facebook. Since not a lot of small businesses have a dedicated e-commerce page, Message to Buy makes the more practical solution.
Once all of that is done, Facebook then offers you the option to start posting your items for sale. The process entails filling out a pop-up form that requires a bit of information about your product to give buyers specific details on what you offer.
Clicking save gives you a pop-up that tells you your product post has been submitted for review. After a few minutes, your new item should be ready and viewable on your Shop Section. This requirement is a necessary part of Facebook’s process since the platform wants to make sure that all listings follow their strict guidelines and rules.
Facebook allows page owners the option to post an unrestricted number of items on their page, and even provides the opportunity for marketers to create collections so that buyers can browse items more effortlessly. Once there are items in your shop, your page also gets the Shop widget added to the home page. This makes it easier for prospects to see what you sell and empowers profitable consumer action.
Perhaps the only flaw that Facebook has when it comes to its selling facet is that it doesn’t have a payment center. That is, it still isn’t an e-commerce platform. So, buyers who message you to inquire about your items will have to be provided other payment channels such as PayPal or online bank transfers that still require them to leave the platform.
The beauty of the Facebook shop though is that it hooks your audience more securely so that they feel compelled to make a purchase. As they continue to explore your page, learn your story, see your identity, and of course, browse your items, they begin to feel a stronger sense of want making the initially tedious process of leaving Facebook worth it because they need to have your products.
While many of us could only dream of the day that Facebook adds payments to the list of features they let pages’ leverage, there are a few other things you can do while waiting. These techniques help make generating sales more seamless and effortless, letting you boost profitable consumer action through your Facebook page to bump up revenue and make all those marketing efforts worth it.
Don’t Overdo It
Imagine having lunch with a few friends at the mall and then having some solicitor sit down at your table to share some information on a product or service he’s trying to sell. You ask him politely to leave, but he says only after you’ve checked out his offers. What do you think your next move would be? Probably to get up and get away. Whatever it was he was trying to sell, you’ve probably got a bad impression of it permanently ingrained into your consciousness.
In the same light, people on Facebook aren’t here to be sold to. They’re here to have a good time, to socialize, to learn, and to share what they find interesting. So, pushing your items on them too aggressively could mean pushing them away from your brand and giving them the wrong impression altogether.
While it would be smart to keep your products and promotional offers constantly updated, being all about the revenue leaves a bad impression on your audience, especially if you’re not sharing any relevant, informational, or interesting content in between. Consider spending one day of the week updating sale information, and the rest of the week engaging your audience.
Emphasize Use
Most prospective buyers respond best to brands that show them how products can be used. That’s why influencers become so effective - because they show their audience how to style a top, a pair of pants, or a fresh take on a new pair of designer heels. Their fashion inspires and makes their viewers think, “Hey, that looks good. I could probably rock that, too!”
That said, you might want to consider selling the concept of your items instead of just the items themselves. Case in point: The North Face. This brand focuses on outdoor gear and sporting goods, offering some of the best performing winter clothing essentials on the market. On their Facebook, you’ll notice that the central point of their posts aren’t the products themselves, but the experiences that their users have had while wearing the items.
Provide a Price Range
A powerful psychological tool used across a variety of marketplaces and e-commerce platforms is the anchoring bias. Designed to designate the concept cheap and expensive, this psychological online selling tactic helps encourage prospects to make a purchase because it shows that your items aren’t all that expensive. Check out how it’s done on Amazon for the Kindle: A basic marketing truth is that people will gravitate more readily towards the cheapest option when presented a comparison of prices. This helps designate an anchor, making it easier to figure out whether the more expensive choices are worth it or impractical.
Heighten the Fear (of Missing Out)
Deals and offers that last a limited amount of time increase the sense of urgency in buyers. “FREE shipping, TODAY ONLY!” Of course, shipping fees rarely ever cost a lot anyway, but just the fact that it’s being offered free for a short period of time makes people not want to miss out on the chance, even if what they’re buying isn’t necessary anyway.
When seeing offers like these, especially from brands that don’t do it often, a buyer’s knee-jerk response would be to engage and take advantage of the deal because they might not be able to get the same perks later on. But how can you present it powerfully on your page?
Along the left-hand panel, you’ll see a tab labeled “Offers.” Here, you can create unique publications that give buyers promotional or discount offers that expire after a certain period of time. The offer gets posted as a publication on your page, featuring an image, an expiration date, and a title to go with it. If you’re offering a unique promo code for your e-commerce website, you have the option to add the unique code to the offer so that users can copy it and key it in when they make a purchase on your web page.
Amp It Up
Creating hype around a product launch or a brand-new facet to your business can draw in more attention at the get-go to fuel more sales. One of the ways you can increase revenue with your Facebook page would be to use it to spark interest in your audience on a brand-new line of items that you’re offering.
The pre-launch hype is a powerful tool that many businesses use these days. Posts don’t need to be definitive or descriptive, and simply need to leave consumers hanging, asking questions in their heads, and marking their calendars to find out what all the hype is about.
It doesn’t say anything beyond the fact that they’re giving away vouchers, but the information provided is more than enough to keep prospects on the look-out for their upcoming offers. On the business’s page, you’ll also see that they post updates on their fast-approaching sale almost every day. This increases excitement and anticipation amongst their buyers and helps guarantee that there will be sales on the day that they finally release their discount offers and vouchers.