Social Media Marketing Management for Merchants

As the retail industry continues to solidify after the last few years of declined overall sales, there is a shift happening within the industry towards Social Media, enabling retailers the ability to build sales and brand awareness through the highly-interactive medium.

In a recent press release, the Association for Retail Technology Standards posted a series of whitepapers intended to help retailers move with the times to build their businesses including a paper on mobile retailing.

“Social media, including applications like Facebook and Twitter, is already impacting the retail experience. In many ways, social media builds a brand’s repertoire,” said Richard Mader, Executive Director of ARTS. “Social networks accentuate the programs that companies already have in place by personifying the people behind the brand and increasing their reach to audiences who may have previously not paid attention.”

Further reinforcing the benefits offered to retailers from Social Media Marketing, Website Magazine recently noted some brand successes thanks to their Facebook presence. Here are some samples:

1. In February 2011, Pretzel Crisps gained more than 3,500 fans and a 53-percent jump in growth within 24 hours of introducing an exclusive coupon for Facebook fans only
2. Outdoor sporting goods retailer Giantnerd.com experienced a 100-percent increase in revenue from Facebook within two weeks of adding the Like button
3. Children’s clothing retailer Tea Collection saw daily revenues increase 10 times after adding the Like button to its sale merchandise
4. Since letting users login to its site from Facebook, ShoeDazzle has learned that those Facebook-connected shoppers are 50-percent more likely to make repeat purchases every month than other shoppers
5. Since adding the Like button to every product on its retail site, American Eagle found that Facebook-referred visitors spend on average 57 percent more than other shoppers
6. Levi’s has seen its referral traffic from Facebook increase by 40 times since implementing the Like button in April 2010

As the cornerstone of the US economy and a $4+ trillion dollar industry, the continued growth of the retail industry is a benefit not only to the shop owners themselves, but to the country’s financial standing as a whole. Retailers who invest in Social Media have the ability to connect with their target market in a truly unique way, while offering special incentives to their contacts in the Social Media realm.

As the media trend continues to move toward the use of Social Media for both B2B and B2C marketing, retailers looking to expand their customer service capabilities or enhance their relationship with their prospective buyers should look into the potential offered by Social Media and budget their marketing dollars to include this engaging medium as part of their existing marketing campaign.