Understanding the Real Value of 'Quality' Facebook Likes

Facebook Page Likes has been questioned not just in legitimacy but in value as well. Although Facebook Fans/Likes have been popular for almost 3 years now, but not everyone understands how they can attract Likes which provide ‘Real’ value.  Recently a Youtube video claiming that most of the " target="_blank">Facebook Likes are Fraud became viral.

I will not attempt to counter " target="_blank">this video, as many experts have already done that and one such great response can be found here. The point here is to understand how to attract ‘Quality Likes’. Almost every digital marketer today understands ‘Real’ Facebook Likes are gained by running Facebook ads. Some also understand that the cost per click and hence the cost per like can vary hugely depending on interest/demographic targeting (between 1 Rs/Like to 50 Rs/Like or more).

However, Facebook advertising has evolved way beyond interest based targeting, making it easier for brand marketers to acquire ‘Quality Likes’. An important question here is that what is the difference between ‘Quality Likes’ and ‘Real Likes’ and for that it is important to understand why people Like a Brand on Facebook. Below is my version of characterization:

1) The Loyalists: These are the rarest of all. Unless you are Apple or a brand who people love or an ‘A’ Grade Actor, it is hard to get loyalists. You don’t need to find them on Facebook, they will find YOU. These fans are the ones who will fight for your brand and promote your brand from their rooftops!  Typically this audience would be in a single digit percentage or less, in your Facebook fan base.

2) The Enthusiasts: This category is biggest of all. These are people who get excited by a cool post or when they see a friend liking/commenting on a nice brand page/post. They might be interested in offers or just information coming from your brand. They typically like a lot of pages, but way less than my third category i.e. The contest geeks!

3) The Contest geeks: These are scouters of Social networks and they only scout for FREE stuff or contests, sometimes just for the fun of it. This audience is following your brand and 100's of other brands only to participate in contests and win! They don’t expect to win a car or a gold watch, but get pleased by vouchers of popular e-commerce portals or movie tickets or an occasional contest to win a tablet! This audience is also in single digit percentages but they are active and more visible than 1 & 2, hence might feel like a much higher percentage of your Likes.

4) The Customers: These are the people who have actually bought a product from you or experienced your service. These are the ones who have “Liked” your page because they really liked your product/brand/service. These are the ones who will recommend your products/services to their friends when they get an opportunity. They might also want to win an occasional voucher or get a special discount… remember everyone likes a special treatment! Depending on how you have build your fan base on Facebook, this audience can be 0 to 90% + of your fan base.

With this characterization and my experience, Quality Likes are a mix of audience 1, 4 and ‘Look Alike’ of this audience. The next big question arises is that how can you find audiences 1, 4 and their lookalikes on Facebook? You can easily find your customers on Facebook through custom audiences and website custom audiences.

Please refer my previous blog to understand these techniques and Lookalike audiences. Once you have this audience following you on Facebook, then there is a very high probability that you will see HUGE ROI from your Facebook page and more! Don’t forget to share your feedback on Facebook Likes and if you find value in it.