Want more friends? Buy them.
Acquiring fans, friends and followers is formulaic these days. And it’s not as complicated as you think. PAID MEDIA.
Brands spend boatloads of money on ATL/BTL media every day. They spend it to get eyeballs on a new message, to create awareness of a new product or to drive traffic into stores. Why should social media be any different.
Sure, if you are the most genuine, conversational, open, community-driven, dynamic and personable brand, perhaps you don’t need to buy media. You simply open your digital mouth and people pay attention and invite friends to hear what you have to say.
But you could be all (or none) of these things and people still wouldn’t know you have a Facebook page. Paid media let’s people know. This could include a TV ad tagged with a Facebook URL. This could be something innovative like Gap’s “Born To Fit” campaign where the URL (www.borntofit.com) redirected to Gap’s Facebook page. But it could also be a paid media buy on Facebook (you know, those sponsored ads on the right hand side).
Many brands are taking advantage of Facebook’s paid media and they’re putting up huge numbers. There are a whole host of new ways to buy fans. Yes, I said it. Buy them. And once you’ve hit a critical mass, that’s when the “viral” growth will come.
Just saying.
