12/2/10
The advantages for marketers who allow consumers to order food through Facebook seems obvious – a savings of $20,000 - $30,000, which they would have spent on building a website. There is also the possibility that the platform will allow them to better understand and communicate with customers, since it allows for two-way conversations. (Sullivan, 2010)
But what is the advantage for consumers? Is convenience enough? Or is knowing what others like to eat important?
Initial tests have showed a 10% increase in sales, and average checks that are three times higher than offline orders. Why?
Sullivan, L. (2010, November 17) Would You ‘Like’ Soup Along With That Facebook App? mediapost.com. Retrieved December 12, 2020, from
http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=139643&nid=120828
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8 comments:
I think part of the success around this move is simple convenience and frequency. I'm never on a pizza place's website, but I am on facebook a lot and the idea of a pizza button is really appealing. This seems to make sense on some level since I do customize my facebook to show a great deal of information about myself and my preferences but it's kind of strange since it shows nothing about my food tastes. I think part of the reasoning behind this may be not necessarily to drive people straight to order food, but just to make them think about it and get them hungry.
I think I would mention my food preferences on facebook. and it would be cool to see which of my friends like the what I like. However honestly, I don't think that I would go to a restaurant just because I saw that my friends liked it. But since facebook can be used as a dating site, I can see how this could be used as a way to increase customers going on dates to the restaurant. A sort of matchmaking marketing technique.
All together I think it is worth it and I think that the sales increase is because facebook is so popular right now. I do not think Facebook is going to have a dramatic decline in the next few years, so this should continue.
Posting your food preferences and favorite restaurants is a great idea. This is a way to reach the friends of friends friends in a very short period of time. Word of mouth is the best advertisement and to reach so many in a matter of a few clicks is extremely valuable. The restaurants no longer have to wait until people actually visit with each other to recommend a favorite eatery. It is right there for all a persons friends to see at once. I think seeing the fav foods of our friends does make an impact on us and makes us want to try what they like. Food is a product where this "like it" tagging works. We are always wanting to recommend and have recommended good, fun, and entertaining spots to enjoy.
ordering on facebook would be very convenient and definitely would bring in more orders. also, i do think that seeing what friends like would impact my decision. whether it be restaurants as a whole, or certain items.
i couldn't tell from the article if it meant you would have to see on your friends' pages the specific things they liked… but i think it would reeeally be a good idea if while you are on the ordering page, there would be facts or sidebar things saying things like "12 of your friends have ordered this item" or "your friend has ordered this item 4 times."
i'm a very easily influenceable person in that way with decisions that i find extremely difficult (like food). if i'm at a restaurant i always ask the server what their favorite dish is, and i ask for their recommendations and opinions on items. so knowing what my friends like would definitely help me out.
also, if you're just surfing facebook and see a sidebar thing saying that a friend has ordered something numerous times, maybe it would convince you to try it, and would bring you in as a new customer even if you knew nothing about it before.
I think that knowing what other people like to eat is very important. From personal experience I know that when I hear that a friend likes food from a certain place I am more likely to try food from there because if they like it then why shouldn't I. I not saying I'm someone who likes to follow crowds but knowing that a food place have positive reviews is comforting in trying a new food place. Facebook then becomes the perfect outlet for this type of interaction. My friends on facebook can post in their news feeds that they like a certain place and I can see what all my friends are liking.
As I've said before, I am a fan of pickles on Facebook. However, this particular pickle group was not created by a pickle company, so it would most likely not have as much effect on a pickle brand's sales as it would if I were a fan of, say, Vlasic. Becoming a fan of a general food could potentially effect sales, but of course the brand would probably be random, or depend on brand loyalty.
I think liking restaurants on Facebook is a great marketing strategy. People are often on the look out for a good, new restaurant and who better to trust than your friends?
I think it is a little bit of both. Facebook has become a staple in a lot of people’s lives. Most of my friends including myself log in everyday to see what friends and family are doing. Being a food fanatic, I will be influenced if I saw friends liking a certain food item. Y? Because these are real people saying or showing that they actually like this food. They are not actors paid to act like they like the food. I can ask my friends questions about the meal and so forth. It will also be very convenient for me because I can then just order it, without the hassle of going to the place. The convenience factor will definetly increase sales for these marketers.
I would definitely be inclined to order food on Facebook if available. Marketers need to work with Facebook however, to make sure the ordering process is quicker and easier than ordering for another delivery site. I think being able to store your credit card number in your Facebook account would be a great, but not necessarily safe way to make purchases quickly.
Seeing what my friends eat may draw my attention to new restaurants or products but not necessarily make me want to buy it. I think it would be helpful if Facebook would be able to suggest new places based on your previous purchases. This would introduce consumers to new products and most likely increase sales.
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