 |
Social networking tools Twitter and Facebook are widely used to post current status and instantly distribute that information to friends, family and followers. Now that Twitter and Facebook are more popular than ever, how will these tools change how consumers act on Black Friday, the mega shopping day after Thanksgiving?
|
Traditionally, many Black Friday shoppers line up outside the local mega store (eg Walmart) at 4am to be the first in the door for that $99 LCD television or hard to find toy of the year. Unfortunately, two major problems exist with this model: 1) there is not enough supply to meet demand and those not in the door first lose out, and 2) other stores with similar prices or inventory are overlooked because they lack the ability to advertise or simply don’t have the customer traffic. Enter social networking – once the pile of tv’s is savagely consumed at a mega store imagine frustrated consumers tweeting “No more $99 tv’s at Walmart” then distributing that message to hundreds of people in the local vicinity. Then, a response “Fred’s electronics has tons of them.” You can hear the thunderous stomping of feet heading to the parking lot and screeching tires to get to Fred’s.
The real time and vast distribution qualities of social networking empower consumers to share information quickly and efficiently regarding the current status of retailers on Black Friday. While mega retailers may be experiencing this trend in consumer communication for the first time this year, they certainly must realize that social networking will exist for the foreseeable future. Therefore, retailers must identify methods for capitalizing or protecting themselves from this trend and at a minimum measuring its impact on their Black Friday sales. Here's how...
Capitalizing on Social Media
It is possible for social networking to enhance a retailers Black Friday experience. Assuming retailers have the proper inventory, pricing and friendly staff to accommodate consumer demand the social network updates could be very flattering. “Walmart is awesome – got everything I needed for Christmas in 15 minutes” could cause additional shoppers to migrate towards Walmart that might otherwise stay away. Retailers could further enhance consumer traffic on Black Friday by encouraging shoppers to tweet or post their experience while in the store to spread the word of a (presumably) great experience. Additionally, retailers could encourage shoppers post-checkout to tweet about specials the following day.
Protection from Social Media
No – I don’t mean installing cell phone jamming technologies to keep shoppers from updating Twitter or Facebook. Retailers can protect themselves from the power of social networking by having a plan in place to ensure customer service, inventory, large crowd logistics and pricing meet consumer expectations on Black Friday. This will increase the chances that consumers’ social network updates are more positive than negative. “Line was long at BestBuy this morning but they handed out free coffee to warm us up!” is a great example – after all, what else is a consumer to do while waiting in line but tweet and Facebook?
Measuring Social Media
Technologies exist that allow retailers to track posts on social networks mentioning their brand or products. MetroplexInteractive provides this service on a monthly basis including detailed reports and statistics for such retailers. In addition to tracking in store foot traffic retailers should also track (in real time) social network posts on Black Friday to identify successes or immediately address issues. The savvy marketer will also use this information to help justify the ad spend for Black Friday.
Retailers giving social networking is appropriate due will find added success this holiday season. Those that don’t have been warned.
Click here to learn more about MetroplexInteractive Social Media expertise and services.
|
MI Blog