It’s a digital strategy that many big businesses are already embracing and one that small and medium-size companies are rapidly trending towards. Growing a network of Facebook “friends” is an effort that has become a high priority for many businesses who are now diverting resources and time toward social media – resources that before were spent on other marketing and advertising avenues. With more than 200 million users (if Facebook were a country it would be the third largest in the world) it comes as no surprise to many that businesses are flocking toward the social networking giant to reach consumers. “A brand will really get stagnant if you just stay with conventional advertising,” said Mitch Sebolosky, head of U.S. marketing for CaesarStone, a company that manufactures quartz surfaces and countertops. “Social media is really a way to build a community around a brand and garner people’s loyalty.” Like other companies, CaesarStone has amped up its Facebook presence over the last year, working to enhance its social media marketing strategy and take full advantage of digital tools available. The Van Nuys-based company has increased its fan base on Facebook by 500 percent in the last eight months in the U.S. alone. The growth has been fueled in large part by promotions and contests that entice participants with rewards and prizes. CaesarStone recently announced the first of four iPad winners of its Facebook “become a fan” sweepstakes. Facebook users are eligible to win the Apple iPad simply by clicking “Like” on the manufacturer’s Facebook site. “We’re encouraging our Facebook fans to post stories, to share their new and interesting projects, and share their thoughts on new products,” said Sebolosky. The CaesarStone site is constantly being updated with photos of trade shows and new product information and even fun trivia questions that test fans’ design knowledge and sense of humor, he said. The idea is to build an online community of architects, designers, kitchen and bath builders, as well as the end user of the CaesarStone Products. Such a strategy is a growing trend among larger businesses that are using promotions on their Facebook sites to boost their numbers of “friends” or “fans”. Universal Studios Home Entertainment is promoting the Dec. 14 DVD and Blu-ray release of Despicable Me with “Minion Madness,” a points-based reward and social marketing program running through January 2011. Participation Large financial services company Citi is encouraging participation on its Facebook page by donating $10 to Toys for Tots for each story posted about a favorite childhood toy. As the sponsor of the Super Bowl halftime show, tire company Bridgestone is running a Facebook sweepstakes promotion where the prize is a round-trip airfare for two, a four-night/five-day stay in North Texas, two prime seats at Super Bowl XLV, and $1,000 in spending money. In another example, Internet diamond company, Brian Gavin Diamonds recently launched its Diamonds in Your Facebook Sweepstakes, as part of its ongoing efforts to embrace social networking. To encourage people to link to their Facebook page the jeweler is enticing people with the chance to win a signature diamond pendant valued at $2,000. “I think the growing influence of social media has been spotlighted by what the big companies are doing,” said Leif E. Martinez, founder and owner of Jigsaw Social Media, an agency in Woodland Hills that helps small businesses integrate social media into their marketing plans. Companies like Baja Fresh and McDonalds have started promoting their social media sites in national TV commercials, and this has elevated the power and influence of sites like Facebook, he said. “There is a huge trend towards social media, it’s definitely gaining a lot of steam and a lot of attention,” said Martinez, who is working with brands such as Lexus, Land Rover, and other car dealerships, helping them integrate social media into the franchises’ overall marketing strategy. “And this is just starting out now; it hasn’t reached its full potential for businesses yet.” New applications Catching on to the trend, Facebook has started introducing applications that help businesses better harness the social network as a powerful marketing tool. Last August the company launched Facebook Places, a location-based application that allows users to share their location with others, and find people and places that are nearby. Now the social networking company has released a new feature called Facebook Deals that allows people to find deals at nearby businesses by checking in through their phones. A number of top brands including Macy’s, American Eagle Outfitters, Chipotle Mexican Grill, McDonald’s and JC Penney are currently testing the application out, and it will begin to be rolled out to other businesses in the coming month, said Martinez. Social media marketing is inevitably becoming the new way of reaching out to consumers, he said. “It’s like the next gold rush.” Yet, at companies like CaesarStone, the correlation between the number of “friends” and increased sales has not been quantified yet, however. Sebolosky said the company is currently working on evaluating the impact of their recent social media efforts to determine how effective they have been at driving business. But despite the lack of a clear link to the company’s bottom line, online marketing efforts, such as growing the company’s “fans” on Facebook, have significantly diverted CaesarStone’s ad spend from more conventional advertising, said Sebolosky. “Social media has really become a very strong avenue for us,” he said.
