Retail Marketing - Shopping Center Marketing

Despite this growth and the benefits social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter afford, online retailers should recognize these sites as a starting point for online interaction. Ultimately, retailers should actively leverage these networks to drive fans back to their sites.
Why Retailers Should Drive Fans Back to Their Sites

• Retailers should use social networks as the jumping off point for a deeper relationship that can take place at their site where a larger investment was made, can be leveraged.
• Social networks often have limited options for brand-building
• The data available from social networks is limited
• Encourage ‘porting conversations’ allowing consumers to continue their conversations on your site (i.e. email to IM to Facebook to your site)
• Ultimately, the retailer’s site - not the third party social network - is where the purchase is going to take place.

How to Leverage Social Networks to Engage Consumers

• Users of social networks are primarily on the sites to interact with friends, family and business interests - not to shop. Include a “share” button where fans can send products they like out to their friend networks
• Integrate your activities on multiple social media sites to drive site traffic
• Understand what demographics are using which sites and tailor your message for those sites.
• Use social networks to alert fans of online sales, new products or new site features and functionality, and continually update the site.
• Make sure to link to a page on your site that continues the type of interaction that began on the social network.
• In addition to the obvious ways of measuring your activity on social networks (site traffic, conversion rates, order sizes, etc.), consider measuring the relationship and not necessarily the instance.

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