Find deals on Facebook
Posted
Jul 29 2009, 09:56 AM
by
Teresa Mears
Rating:
We really like Starbucks' Java Chip Frappuccino ice cream. But at $3.79 a pint, it's not usually on our grocery list. The pint we tried was particularly delicious because it was free, thanks to a Starbucks promotion (alas, now over) on Facebook.
Social networking is today's business buzz phrase, and more and more businesses are opting in, creating business pages on Facebook through which they offer deals to their "fans."
Companies are increasing communicating with their customers via Facebook and Twitter, notes Kimberly Palmer, who writes the Alpha Consumer blog for U.S. News and World Report. For some companies, that means offering deals and coupons, sometimes only for Facebook fans. Unlike many national deal sites, Facebook also offers pages and deals for small local businesses. If you run a small business, it's a cheap and easy marketing tool.
Cities, convention and visitors bureaus and tourist agencies also are on Facebook. Friends of Visit Florida, the state's marketing agency, have learned about deals on golf vacations and family trips in the past 24 hours. Becoming fans of nonprofit organizations also can pay off: The West Palm Beach public library, for example, posts on Facebook about its free classes in such subjects as yoga and using Twitter.
You can become a fan of Pizza Hut, Domino's, Papa John's or Pizza King. Or you can become a fan of Pizza Coupons, which posts coupons to various national pizza chains. Become a fan of Sears on Facebook, click on special offers and fill in a form to receive two coupons for $5 off $50, one for in-store and one for online.
Twitter is also a source for deals, but fewer people use that microblogging service.
If you're not already on Facebook, it doesn't pay to sign up just for the deals, Larry Chiagouris, a marketing professor at Pace University in New York City, told Smart Money. But, if you're already there, it can pay to become fans of companies with which you already do business. Especially if it means free ice cream.
Editor's note: Facebook users can become a fan of MSN Money here. Folks who use Twitter can follow Smart Spending, MSN Money, Top Stocks and Market Dispatches.
Related reading:
Is Facebook the new Wal-Mart?
How to protect your privacy on Facebook
Twitter your way to bargains
