If you’re a timeshare marketer and you think Facebook is only about likes – and not about conversions – then this post is for you. The reality is that Facebook can help you connect with current and potential timeshare owners on their terms, and turn their engagement into a conversion action.
This post is not so much about the how-to’s of Facebook advertising, but instead the why’s – as well as the really smart ways that you can reach current and potential customers and monetize their interactions.
But before we get into how Facebook fits into this new approach to sales & marketing, let’s talk about the Internet.
To a timeshare marketer, the Internet is like a really packed lazy river
A familiar analogy for us in the timeshare industry is this: The Internet is like one really packed lazy river, full of people all trying to get somewhere, having conversations as they float along, taking advantage of a current when it comes once and awhile.
And the lazy river-goers come in all shapes and sizes – some like to spend their money on really decked-out “Platinum Edition” tubes, others keep it simple and go with the entry-option tubes. Some have a few kids with them, while others are empty-nesters. Still others are just checking out this “lazy river thing” for the first time, choosing the “try it before you buy it” trial tube.
As timeshare marketers, we could either try to intercept every one of them floating downstream, see if they’ll stop and talk with us, tour with us, login, signup, refer their friends to our lazy river for another trip – that is, basically see if they’ll follow us down a specific lazy river path.
Or, we could intercept just the ones who matter most to us, who already have a relationship with us (or look a lot like the customers we have already relationships with), and move them into an action that can be monetized.
Enter Facebook advertising.
You, the psychic marketer
There’s a lot to know about Facebook advertising. And while there’s a learning curve in how the best tactics can be executed, the fun part is in the many creative ways that you, as a timeshare marketer, can use Facebook.
In the old days of direct mail, it was hard to talk with just the people we need to talk to. You’d have to mass mail to thousands of people you don’t want to talk to before you get to the few that you want to reach.
Facebook advertising allows you to display your marketing message to just the people you want to reach – and you’re only paying to display your message to people with the propensity to respond to it.
Plus, although ads are everywhere on Facebook, their displays for advertising are unlike traditional marketing, which may seem impersonal, random or rude. A Facebook ad is not like a phone call about a product you never expressed interest in, and it’s not the same as a random piece of mail about something you supposedly won.
Applications for timeshare marketing via Facebook are endless
Strategic Facebook marketing goes beyond “page likes” and gets you focused on conversions. So what are the ways you can specifically benefit from timeshare advertising on Facebook? Here are just a few ways:
- Monetize Tour No-Buys
- Capture customers who’ve visited your website, market to them on Facebook and directly track booking conversions
- Encourage a mini-vac purchaser to book their dates and tour
- Retargeting of messaging to convert abandons to conversions
Amazingly, it costs 68% less to get a customer on Facebook than most online channels. And while Facebook can be a great way to connect with new customers, it’s an even better way to get more out of the customers you’ve already touched – those who’ve rented with you via an OTA, those who’ve toured with you but didn’t buy, those who’ve visited your website but didn’t transact, and of course your owners, creating referral opportunities and more. And all these translate into reduced lead costs and higher VPGs.
What’s more, Facebook can be an extension of your existing marketing campaigns, allowing you to squeeze more conversions out of what you’re already doing. Now there’s some real value.
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In the next post, we’ll talk about custom audiences, remarketing and privacy issues on Facebook. In the meantime, if you’d like to discuss how to build an integrated timeshare digital marketing strategy that combines all of these ideas and more, contact the timeshare marketing experts at Seychelle Media. Request a quote for more details.
