Facebook will launch an analytics tool designed to enable companies to measure the impact of brand pages on Oct. 5, said Grady Burnett, VP of global marketing solutions at Facebook.
Speaking at the Direct Marketing Association 2011 Conference & Exhibition, Burnett said Facebook’s New Page Insights tool will provide brands with a “deeper understanding of what happens on their Facebook pages” by enabling them to track comments, the impact of media spend and product performance.
Burnett said the tool is “not just about showing how many people ‘liked’ your page.” Instead, he said, the product will measure how many people have commented on products and messages and how consumers have responded to marketing messages.
“We’ve done a mediocre to poor job showcasing brands’ success on Facebook,” he said. “We’ve worked hard to create the metrics. We need to do more.”
Burnett referenced 1-800-Flowers and Levi’s as examples of social marketing success. In a video, Chris McCann, president of 1-800-Flowers, called Facebook “the most effective marketing channel we’ve found to date.” He added that his company leverages the social network to respond to service queries, answer product questions and understand consumer enthusiasm for new releases in addition to marketing new products.
Facebook has more than 800 million global users, said Burnett. Fifty percent of active users log in daily, and the average user has 130 friends. Fifteen million connections happen daily and 30 billion pieces of content are shared on Facebook each month.
Sixty-eight percent of consumers are more likely to remember an advertisement when associated with a friend’s name and four times more likely to purchase a product after seeing an advertisement associated with a friend’s name, he said.
“Marketing is not just a one-way dialogue,” said Burnett. “Traditionally, a lot of marketing was you talking to your customers. Facebook allows relevant and authentic connections that inspire people to talk on your behalf.”
Twenty-seven percent of all time spent on Facebook is spent on the news feed page, said Burnett. “This time is the equivalent to roughly 4% of all time spent on the Internet.”
