can facebook drive conversions in less than 6 weeks?
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CAN FACEBOOK DRIVE CONVERSIONS IN LESS THAN 6 WEEKS?
MEASURING RESULTS FOR A RETAIL ELECTRICITY PROVIDER
Brian Bierbaum, Priority Integrated MarketingTony Napolillo, Green Mountain Energy Company
Lauren Albright, Green Mountain Energy Company
THE GOAL
Answer the question:
What conversions can Facebook drive for a
Retail Electricity Provider in less than 6
weeks?2
PRIORITY INTEGRATED MARKETING
• Founded in 1983• Staff of 40+ • Work nationwide with more than 300 clients• Integrating traditional and online marketing is our
specialty• Multi-channel content experts • 60 awards in last two years• Print, email, SEO and content marketing leaders
98% customer service approval rating in recent client survey97% of clients would recommend us to a colleague
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GREEN MOUNTAIN ENERGY COMPANY
• Mission: Use the power of consumer choice to change the way power is made
• Nation’s leading competitive retail provider of cleaner energy and carbon offset solutions
• Founded in 1997 in Vermont• Provides cleaner energy to residential and commercial
customers in regulated and deregulated territories such as Texas, New York, New Jersey, and Oregon
• Largest market is Texas (deregulated)
First in Texas to sell 100% pollution-free electricity
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FACEBOOK PRESENCE
Goals
Primary SecondaryRetention & Customer Care
• Provide a more casual environment for customer interaction
• Engage in the conversations already taking place about Green Mountain
• Add value to customers’ daily lives
• Enable customers/fans to show their support for clean energy
Marketing & Sales• Extension of the Green
Mountain brand and personality
• Improve SEO and Google search rankings
• Reach prospects and encourage friend referrals
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CONTENT STRATEGY• Content Topics:
• Eco-tips
• Energy-efficiency tips
• Customer benefits
• Industry news
• Event photos
• Limited company-focused stories• Limit postings to 2-3 times per week to prevent
oversaturation
• Transparency is key• Publicly address any negative sentiments and treat
Facebook as open forum for discussion
• Never delete content unless offensive or spam6
Social Media Strategy
Overview of what GM has done to date to give some background on where we started with the test.
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FAN GROWTH – SLOW BUT STEADY
• Strategy – let fan base grow organically to ensure positive interactions from “true” fans
• Started with employee fans
• After 6 months of testing, promoted to customers via:
• Welcome kits• Customer newsletters• Links on corporate website
• Tree planting promotion for Earth Month (April ‘10)
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THE EXPERIMENT
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Increase the Fan/Like base of the
Green Mountain Energy
Company Page
Drive prospective new customers to
greenmountain.com to learn more and sign up
THE EXPERIMENT
Conversion
Facebook Ad
Fans and prospects see offer and viral messaging
Ad drives to Facebook page
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INCREASE COMMUNITY SIZE : AD
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SCREENSHOT WITH TAB HIGHLIGHTED
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INCREASE COMMUNITY SIZE : OFFER
Not a Fan Fan
Date
Tab Views (%)
6/30 0
7/04 67.7
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INCREASE COMMUNITY SIZE : VIRAL APP
At various points of the campaign the viral app was receiving upwards of 44% of the page’s visitors.
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RESULTS: INCREASE COMMUNITY SIZE
Date Total Fans
On 6/30 1,337
On 7/14 1,650
On 7/28 1,683
On 8/09 1, 713
22% increase resulting in 376 new fans/likes
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DRIVE NEW CUSTOMER PROSPECTS TO GREENMOUNTAIN.COM – AD
TARGETING• Targeted users in our major Texas markets (deregulated
territories)• Ages 25+ to reach home owners and apartment dwellers• Left “interests” targeting open
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DRIVE NEW CUSTOMER PROSPECTS TO GREENMOUNTAIN.COM
A
Average CTR%0
B
Average CTR%.016
C
Average CTR%.022
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DRIVE NEW CUSTOMER PROSPECTS TO
GREENMOUNTAIN.COM
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Results: Drive New Customer Prospects to GreenMountain.com
Ad Total Clicks
A 0
B 14
C 679
Total Clicks 693
693 targeted visitors driven to
GreenMountain.com
No known sales were directly attributed to the advertisements based on tracking
codes.
However, it is possible that individuals who viewed the advertisements may have revisited the Green Mountain site
later to sign up, without the direct click-through from Facebook.19
Resources
Team and ResourcesTeam 4 people working on average 5
hrs/week
Ad Budget $1,000
Promotion Budget •20% off at Power Perks store (lost revenue share)•$100 gift card offer•$1 per new fan via tree planting
Schedule 6 weeks Jul 1 - Aug 9
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LESSON LEARNED – COMMUNITY GROWTH
• Facebook ads can work to help increase fan base/likes
• Keep the call to action simple and easily understood
• Test different offers/incentives for taking action
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LESSON LEARNED – AD BEST PRACTICES
Before
Average CTR%0
After
Average CTR%.022
• Be direct and avoid marketing jargon
• Keep the ads fresh
• Rotate your tab landing page
• Avoid using your logo
• Try Facebook Ads for Pages
• Test different bid amounts
• Be true to your brand22
LESSON LEARNED – SMALLER COMMITMENTS
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MAJOR TAKEAWAY
People are more likely to act when:
-The commitment on their part is small- The call-to-action stays within Facebook
By focusing our efforts on increasing our fan-base rather than immediate sales, we can build
relationships with prospects through multiple touches to eventually convert them to customers.
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FOLLOW THE RESULTS
The presentation and highlights of the experiment are available for download on Priority Integrated Marketing’s blog.
priorityresults.com/blog
Brian Bierbaumwww.linkedin.com/in/brianbierbaumTwitter: @[email protected]
Tony [email protected]
Lauren Albright [email protected]
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