Mediaboss Marketing

A new research effort backs Facebook Exchange (FBX) as a potentially powerful social marketing tool for advertisers to target their audiences on the leading social network.

Recent research by digital marketing agency NetMining shows that Facebooks real-time ad tool, FBX, could be especially useful when paired with retail offerings. The data found that retail marketers saw a huge boost in FBX performance, earning 62 percent higher impressions and 42 percent more clicks from the first quarter of the year to the second quarter. Retailers are also pouring bigger budgets into this ad model, as spending increased by 59 percent.

By comparison, FBX growth in the travel sector is slower, yet consistent overall. Impressions only rose by 5 percent, while clicks were actually down 13 percent from quarter to quarter. Spending, however, increased by 15 percent, indicating that more brands are showing interest in this aggressive form of social marketing.

As TechCrunch explained, Facebook started testing its Exchange platform back in June 2013. Built on a concept called retargeting, FBX allows marketers to target users with ads that are relevant to their browsing history. So, if someone browses a site that sells security software, the company that operates that site could target them with anti-virus apps, spyware removal tools and similar products when they visit Facebook later. The idea is that the added relevance that comes from showing the user something they have active interest in will drive intrigue and engagement.

Digital marketing companies play a huge role in the FBX process as they work diligently to execute campaigns on behalf of their clients. For example, companies deploy the cookies that track the visitor, contact Facebook to pass along the visitor ID info and conduct the real-time bidding that determines which brands ad will be served up to the user. The marketing content is created in advance, so if the company outbids their agency counterparts, their clients ad is instantly delivered when the user visits the social network.

Facebook just recently removed the beta label, but content marketers can be encouraged by the fact that FBX appears to be off to a great start. An AdExchanger article aggregates results from several marketing agencies who acted as platform partners during the test period. AppNexus was among them, reporting increased reach and up to a 25 percent reduction in cost per acquisition for its clients. AdRoll reported that its clients are seeing 16 times better ROI on average.

Trending Worldwide

Tracking activity across multiple nations during the first two quarters of 2013, NetMinings research revealed that FBX is experiencing massive growth on a global scale. International growth trumped domestic progress by far, due in large part to Brazil, which it found had the largest volume increase of any regional market during the period. Growth in the US increased across the board, including in spending, which saw a 42 percent lift.

Photo credit: Flickr

Tags: Exchange, Facebook, facebook ads, FBX, Netmining, social marketing, social media, social network, Techcrunch

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Facebook's FBX a Potential Social Marketing Powerhouse, Suggests New Research