How much is a Facebook Fan Worth?

Report says average Facebook Fan is worth $174

The New York Times ran a story this week that puts a dollar value on Facebook Fans. Social media marketing firm, Syncapse, has published a report that says the average value of a Facebook fan is $174.17.

How much is a Facebook fan worth to you? While $174.17 sounds outrageously high, fans obviously have value.

For this study, the value of a Facebook fan was determined by comparing actual fans versus nonfans across key criteria that determine enterprise value. In the study, the newspaper reports, the fan value calculation considers: One, product spending within the past 12 months. Two, loyalty and purchase intent in the future. Three, the propensity to recommend the brand to other potential customers. Four, the media and messaging value that is inherent with fan membership. Five, the propensity for fans to organically lure more fans. And Six, the emotional draw felt by brands or brand affinity.

Key findings of the report

11 percent of brand fans are more likely to continue using the brands than non-Facebook fans

Facebook fans spend 43 percent more in respective categories versus non-fans

Lessons from the story

“Observe your customers and see how they use Facebook. If they are on Facebook, then you have an amazing opportunity to connect with them in a new way — as do your competitors. Second, you should experiment and learn firsthand.

“As you scale up, you’ll want to designate formal accountability for the social marketing efforts, and that often falls under the person responsible for marketing and customer acquisition.

“The biggest barrier to success is the time investment. Third, connect social marketing to business outcome. That may be awareness, lead generation, trials or even cold, hard sales. State your goal, define the success criteria, measure, and invest accordingly.”

How do you get more Facebook fans?

First, ask all of your Facebook friends to “like” your business page.

Second, ask your fans and friends for help spreading the message.

Put a Facebook logo and link and a live Facebook feed on your website.

Include a badge and link to your business page in your email signature.

One of the easiest ways to get more Facebook fans is to use Facebook advertising. Set the ad campaign to target your local area, or categories, and first select friends of fans. Set the campaign to focus on acquiring new likes. Try it for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of a month to test the effectiveness. Using this strategy most companies can gain fans at a cost of $1 to $2 each.

The more advanced methods for growing your fan base involve creating compelling content that your fans want to share. Having a sense of humor and being a valuable resource will earn you fans without the ad expense.