For consumers who like retail offers and want them sent to their mobile devices, the news from Facebook should be welcomed. Offers will be pushed to users in a more strategic way, and consumers will have easier access to them, with less friction at checkout. For consumers who are weary of advertising, the news simply means more noise.
Facebook has set new features for its Offers ad units and Page posts, it told SocialTimes on Tuesday (Aug. 30), a move that is aimed at the mobile user. Facebook’s Offers program was launched in 2012, before mobile ads accounted for most of the company’s revenues. Mobile ads provided almost 84 percent of Facebook’s revenues in Q2 2016.
The new features will help advertisers to reach consumers on their mobile devices with online and in-store offers. Retailers can share Offers either in an Offers ad or in a Page post, which will show in the News Feed section of the social media platform.
Advertisers will gain better targeting in their Offers by sending them only to the consumers most likely to purchase their products. The new features will also record how many Offers are claimed.
Offers received via mobile devices or desktop can be automatically bookmarked by the consumer under the Offers bookmark. When a shopper clicks on “Get Offer,” a Copy Code button appears, and the user can paste that on the retailer’s site. Consumers can access in-store Offers through the Offers bookmark and pull it up on their smartphone at the register. Retailers use a barcode or QR code to scan the coupon at checkout.
Reminders of Offers expiration dates will be sent to the user’s devices. If a consumer claims an Offer on a smartphone, Facebook will show a reminder when the user logs into Facebook on desktop.
For advertisers, coupon codes can be targeted to individuals when they claim an Offer so that advertisers no longer have to distribute Offers on a large scale. Carousel ads, which display videos and images, can also be featured by advertisers.
Facebook tested the new features, and during the test, Maurices, a women’s clothing store, saw close to a 30 percent increase in return on its advertising expenditure in ads that offered a $15 online discount.
Currently, retailers can offer only one Offer code for every barcode claimed. Facebook hopes to allow retailers to offer separate Offer codes to different groups of shoppers to give better discounts to some, while preventing the passing of Offers to friends.
Online Offer ads are now available; in-store Offer ads will roll out soon.
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