One of the big things to look for in the immediate future as social commerce and social networking integration continue to evolve is which specific social media channels start to separate themselves from the rest as preferred resources by businesses.
In the e-commerce industry, as with most others, Facebook and Twitter have risen to the top of the social media priority list. And in fact, it could be argued that both resources have actually been the driving forces behind businesses of every type making social media a bigger part of their broader marketing, promotional and customer service offerings. While other sites preceded the two and even more that have arrived since, none have enjoyed the success of Facebook and Twitter.
So if we’re left to assume that these two are gold standard for social media now and in the near future, an obvious question arises: which one is more effective for businesses?
Well one event marketing company, Eventbrite, has released some internal data that suggests a Facebook “Like” carries a lot more weight, and is ultimately more profitable, than a Tweet.
Eventbrite’s research was unveiled earlier this week and details how each social media site contributed to the success of individual events the company prepared. The data shows that the average Facebook like produced an additional $1.34 in profit, while a Tweet only added about $.80.
While obviously the effects of using both Twitter and Facebook will vary from industry to industry, the data does indeed have relevance for e-commerce companies, says Eventbrite’s Tamara Mendelsohn:
“…the findings apply broadly to all e-commerce businesses, because the foundations of e-commerce are shifting as the social graph becomes a meaningful influence in driving transactions,” says the company’s marketing director.
Eventbrite’s experiences are the result solely of its own marketing efforts, so we’d guard against reading too much into them. You can check out more details of their research right here on their company blog.
However, it did get us thinking that this could prove to be a great discussion point for e-tailers and online marketers so we’re going to especially encourage you to comment on this post. Leave us a comment with your thoughts or opinions and any relevant experience you may have in determining whether Facebook or Twitter is more effective.
Let’s get a good discussion going here, don’t be shy!
I think that there is a greater value in Facebook only because i feel that Facebook offers a much greater environment for interacting and engaging customers. I also feel that twitter involves a different type of interaction then on Facebook, and stores are even able to open up their stores on Facebook.
Thanks for this article!
Molly
If those numbers are correct, Twitter would win. Tweeting is free and tools like Futuretweets or Socialoomph allow scheduling tweets.
Facebook likes can not be automated or pre-scheduled. So this seems so much harder to generate in high volumes.
Based on experience, during a month we’d get 600 tweets and 50 Likes in a month. So based on volume, Twitter again would win.