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Facebook Likes don't always mean brand loyalty

What does it mean when a user Likes a brand's Facebook Page? Facebook studies are conflicting: are users being loyal to the brand or are they just looking for exclusive offers and freebies?
Written by Emil Protalinski, Contributor

Facebook Likes on Pages and the content on said Pages don't always translate into brand loyalty. That's according to eMarketer, which looked at data from eVoc Insights and the Chief Marking Officers (CMO) Council, only to conclude Facebook users are sending brand marketers mixed signals.

The link between Likes and brand loyalty remains unclear, because although consumers respond favorably about their likelihood to purchase from a brand they Like on Facebook, their Facebook Timelines don't necessarily show this. As such, marketers should remember that consumers consider Facebook a communication platform: where they share experiences and interact with peers. In short, brands should never assume they've earned consumer loyalty simply because a consumer has clicked the Like button, according to eMarketer.

The eVoc study found that 59 percent of Facebook users have Liked the page of a brand or company during the past six months, and that 54 percent of those users who Liked pages said they were somewhat or much more likely to purchase goods or services from those brands. The most Likes were earned in the following categories: food, TV shows, music, movies, and clothing.

Meanwhile, the CMO Council study found that 67 percent of consumers Like a page in the hopes of being eligible for exclusive offers. On the other hand, 57 percent of marketers thought Facebook users Liked their Pages because the content was agreeable.

Last month, a different study found that less than half a percent of people who Like a given brand's Facebook Page actually bother to engage with it. On the flipside, it's good that Facebook users are willing to Like a brand's Page, which essentially advertises it to their friends, for free.

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