“Tipping Point for Geo-Marketing”—Facebook Places (and what the Like Button already tells marketers)

You have to follow your data [and your friends and networks]–that’s how the money is generated in online marketing.  This article via DM News explains that:“…Facebook continues to gather more information about what people do and where they are – critical data for marketers. “What I find interesting is where people check in says even more about what they like. Now we’re actually looking at their real-world behavior, instead of just a button they click on a website,” he said [Augie Ray, senior analyst at Forrester Research]. “I think this really will continue to help Facebook offer much better targeting and permit marketers to do a better job of understanding their consumers and targeting ads at those consumers.  The very scale that Facebook Places creates is a welcome event for marketers, said industry professionals.  “I would say this is a tipping point for geo-marketing,” said Lawrence Kimmel, CEO of the Direct Marketing Association…Maria Mandel, VP of marketing and media innovation at AT&T Advanced Ad Solutions, agreed that the service makes geo-marketing much more mainstream. “It certainly brings location-based social media to the mass market,” she said. “It validates the relevance of the location-based check-ins and may offer substantial new opportunities for advertisers.”  Leveraging location may prompt innovative promotional campaigns, such as scavenger hunt contests, Mandel noted. There is also the scope to build long-term loyalty programs by rewarding people for checking in at certain locations to build toward prizes, offers or discounts, she said.

source:  Marketers See Potential in Facebook Places.  Shahnaz Mahmud.  DMNews.  August 20, 2010.

PS:  One social media marketing company writes that:  “…Facebook already provides marketers with a comprehensive list of your interests and favorite things with the integration of the Like button. Retailers, like Amazon, have already begun to leverage this information to create purchase suggestions for you and your Facebook friends…Now, with Facebook Places…[M]arketers can (and should) use this invaluable information to direct promotions and advertisements to consumers…This information is highly valuable as social media once again allows businesses to gain access to the exact niche of consumers they are striving to reach.”