Facebook marketer Andrew Foxwell gives his early take on Facebook marketplace + how local businesses and larger brands could start to take advantage. Here at the Location Station we’re curious creatures who love new toys to play with. Ever since the release of the Facebook Marketplace Community in October 2016, we’ve been itching to figure out how we can use it to help local business marketers! 5 Questions You Can Answer After Listening To This Episode On Facebook Marketplace With Andrew Foxwell: 1. What is Facebook Marketplace and how does it work? 2. What sounds better, Andrew’s mouth trumpet or his home-made bagpipes? 3. Can Facebook Marketplace benefit my local business? 4. What other options can I use to market my business on Facebook? 5. Why can’t I get this song out of my head? Here at the Location Station we’re curious creatures who love new toys to play with, so ever since the release of the Facebook Marketplace Community in October last year, we’ve been itching to figure out how we can use it to help local business marketers! In an effort to find out more, we’ve managed to snag Andrew Foxwell, a Facebook direct response marketing specialist, for a chat about Facebook Marketplace and where it could possibly fit into a brand’s local marketing strategy. Andrew is the co-founder of Foxwell Digital, a Wisconsin-based social media advisory firm that collaborates and consults with anyone from Fortune 500 companies to local startups. We reached out to him through the Power Hitters Club because we heard he’s been actively trying to figure out Facebook Marketplace — just like us! INTERLUDE! If you've just discovered Vicinity Marketing, below is a short video about who we are and what we do. If you just came for the article, you can simply skip past the video and keep reading :) .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } Video production by our friends at Thirty3South Films in Newcastle What On Earth Is Facebook Marketplace? Marketplace is basically Facebook’s in-app version of Gumtree in Australia or Craigslist in the US — a free platform where Facebook users can buy and sell items in their local area. With more than 450,000 people already visiting buy/sell Facebook groups every month, the new feature is a great way to streamline the process, connecting buyers with sellers in a space that everyone’s already familiar with. While we know it's awesome for individuals, us marketers obviously want to crash the party. Being designed for people – not brands – however, means there are a few pros & cons to consider first: PROS Of Facebook Marketplace: It’s free! Even if you don’t expect any direct sales from Marketplace, at least your business can gain some free, organic impressions and even do a bit of local market research. Super easy to use. Being integrated into your Facebook app, everything looks familiar and anyone who knows how to work Facebook (even a 117 year old can do it) can work Marketplace. A fantastic way to reach local customers. Users can search by category, price and location, which means you can find potential customers who are not only nearby but ready to buy! People like buying from people, so potential customers might be more likely to trust your brand if it’s fronted by your own personal Facebook profile. CONS Of Facebook Marketplace: Technically anything can be legally posted with the exception of things like guns, drugs, animals or adult services. While this is a very good thing, some pretty sketchy sellers are still getting through due to “technical issues” on Facebook’s end. Our very own rebel Dave decided to test the limits himself and list his friend Dan for sale — listen to the podcast to find out how it went!
Facebook marketer Andrew Foxwell gives his early take on Facebook marketplace + how local businesses and larger brands could start to take advantage. Here at the Location Station we’re curious creatures who love new toys to play with. Ever since the release of the Facebook Marketplace Community in October 2016, we’ve been itching to figure out how we can use it to help local business marketers!
5 Questions You Can Answer After Listening To This Episode On Facebook Marketplace With Andrew Foxwell:
1. What is Facebook Marketplace and how does it work?
2. What sounds better, Andrew’s mouth trumpet or his home-made bagpipes?
3. Can Facebook Marketplace benefit my local business?
4. What other options can I use to market my business on Facebook?
5. Why can’t I get this song out of my head?
Here at the Location Station we’re curious creatures who love new toys to play with, so ever since the release of the Facebook Marketplace Community in October last year, we’ve been itching to figure out how we can use it to help local business marketers!
In an effort to find out more, we’ve managed to snag Andrew Foxwell, a Facebook direct response marketing specialist, for a chat about Facebook Marketplace and where it could possibly fit into a brand’s local marketing strategy.
Andrew is the co-founder of Foxwell Digital, a Wisconsin-based social media advisory firm that collaborates and consults with anyone from Fortune 500 companies to local startups. We reached out to him through the Power Hitters Club because we heard he’s been actively trying to figure out Facebook Marketplace — just like us!
INTERLUDE! If you've just discovered Vicinity Marketing, below is a short video about who we are and what we do. If you just came for the article, you can simply skip past the video and keep reading :)
.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
Video production by our friends at Thirty3South Films in Newcastle
What On Earth Is Facebook Marketplace?
Marketplace is basically Facebook’s in-app version of Gumtree in Australia or Craigslist in the US — a free platform where Facebook users can buy and sell items in their local area.
With more than 450,000 people already visiting buy/sell Facebook groups every month, the new feature is a great way to streamline the process, connecting buyers with sellers in a space that everyone’s already familiar with.
While we know it's awesome for individuals, us marketers obviously want to crash the party. Being designed for people – not brands – however, means there are a few pros & cons to consider first:
...
Facebook marketer Andrew Foxwell gives his early take on Facebook marketplace + how local businesses and larger brands could start to take advantage. Here at the Location Station we’re curious creatures who love new toys to play with. Ever since the release of the Facebook Marketplace Community in October 2016, we’ve been itching to figure out how we can use it to help local business marketers!
Here at the Location Station we’re curious creatures who love new toys to play with, so ever since the release of the Facebook Marketplace Community in October last year, we’ve been itching to figure out how we can use it to help local business marketers!
In an effort to find out more, we’ve managed to snag Andrew Foxwell, a Facebook direct response marketing specialist, for a chat about Facebook Marketplace and where it could possibly fit into a brand’s local marketing strategy.
Andrew is the co-founder of Foxwell Digital, a Wisconsin-based social media advisory firm that collaborates and consults with anyone from Fortune 500 companies to local startups. We reached out to him through the Power Hitters Club because we heard he’s been actively trying to figure out Facebook Marketplace — just like us!
INTERLUDE! If you’ve just discovered Vicinity Marketing, below is a short video about who we are and what we do. If you just came for the article, you can simply skip past the video and keep reading
Marketplace is basically Facebook’s in-app version of Gumtree in Australia or Craigslist in the US — a free platform where Facebook users can buy and sell items in their local area.
With more than 450,000 people already visiting buy/sell Facebook groups every month, the new feature is a great way to streamline the process, connecting buyers with sellers in a space that everyone’s already familiar with.
While we know it’s awesome for individuals, us marketers obviously want to crash the party. Being designed for people – not brands – however, means there are a few pros & cons to consider first:
Yes and no. As we outlined in the cons, only personal Facebook profiles can sell on Marketplace, so technically it’s just for C2C (customer to customer) transactions. This means that yes, your business can sell only if someone in your business is willing to “be the face” and use their personal profile to sell.
Why can’t you just create a fake profile for your shop, you ask? Customers (and Facebook) can spot a fake a mile away and they don’t like it. Nobody is going to buy from a seller that has an obviously bogus account. Not only will it make you and your brand seem untrustworthy but you may even be reported to Facebook and have the account deleted.
One of the biggest challenges with a sharing economy or peer-to-peer customer experience such as Facebook Marketplace is that your brand’s integrity is in the hands of the person on the front line. We recommend combing through your profile for any unsavoury posts before using it as a front for your brand on Marketplace.
Wondering whether or not Marketplace could be viable for your local business? According to Andrew, there are certain types of businesses that can work here, and certain types that can’t.
“It feels very spammy when you try to make it into what it’s not right now”
Brands that don’t really work on Marketplace at this point are e-commerce businesses with lots of products, local service businesses (like trades or B2B) and obviously food/hospitality. Some examples of local businesses that are likely to profit from Marketplace are those that sell unique local products, like creators of art & custom furniture etc.
Even if you decide not to sell there, Mike Templeman from Forbes suggests that Marketplace could potentially be used as a market research tool:
“Businesses can use the feature to gauge the second-hand interest in their products, and even set prices based on what others are willing to pay for the used versions.”
Keep in mind that Facebook Marketplace is a free platform, so if you do have the time and feel like testing it out, it won’t cost you anything and you might be surprised with the results. We’d love to hear about your brand’s experiences with Marketplace, so make sure you share your successes or failures in the comments!
We can’t stress this enough. Remember that whatever profile your business is selling from must be legitimate, appealing and “on brand”.
Payments and shipping are organised separately on Facebook Marketplace, so it can be tempting to save time by snapping of a whole bunch of similar goods and bunching them all together in one listing. Don’t. It’s not worth the time saved and won’t be nearly as successful as several single listings.
The same rule applies here as it does for the rest of Facebook and Instagram, probably even more so because your viewers are not only potential customers, but they’re obviously purchase-ready.
If possible, you may decide to slightly alter your pricing just for Facebook Marketplace. As with other similar selling platforms like Gumtree and eBay, customers are able to make an offer. Make sure that whoever is running your Marketplace account (whether it be yourself or an employee) is prepped to bargain or stand firm on predetermined prices.
So you’ve pimped your profile and created a stellar listing, now what? What if someone actually says they want to buy something? Make sure you’ve got an efficient system in place (it’ll refine itself the more sales you make) for dealing with this particular branch of your business, whether it be organising payment and delivery or simply putting the item aside and directing the customer to their nearest store.
There are many business owners who won’t be too keen on linking their personal Facebook profile with their brand. Others might find that Marketplace is just not the right place for them to sell, not yet anyway.
Being such a new and unknown entity, Facebook Marketplace still has a lot of growing and changing to do that may or may not move away from strictly peer-to-peer transactions. We’ll just have to wait and see.
In the meantime, Facebook ads are still part of some of the most effective marketing strategies and many businesses rely on them for the bulk of their leads.
Why advertise on Facebook instead of (or in addition to) Google? As Dan Shewan from Wordstream so succinctly puts it:
“Paid search helps prospective customers find your business, while paid social helps your business find prospective customers.”
It’s essentially the plethora of advanced targeting options that make Facebook advertising so effective. There are three categories of objectives you can choose from when placing a Facebook ad: Awareness, Consideration and Conversion.
Most brands will want to aim straight for Consideration and Conversion, the “action-based objectives” which include things like engagement, views, store visits, sales, etc.
Interestingly however, around 60-70% of consumers on Facebook are not considered to be within an action based objective. This means that if you choose a Consideration or Conversion objective for your ad, it is likely that less people will see it.
Andrew has found that by selecting Awareness objectives, including brand awareness, local awareness and reach for your ads can work exceptionally well in getting more eyeballs in front of your brand and gaining more leads.
To find out more about today’s guest Andrew Foxwell he’d love you to send him an email, follow him on Twitter and connect with him on LinkedIn or Facebook.
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