Facebook Campaign Examples: 4 Case Studies
Learn the simple ecommerce tricks that inspired purchase
In these 4 Facebook Campaign case studies, Samantha (Alexanders’ content writer) examines the subtle steps that were involved in the journey that moved her from viewing a Facebook ad through to purchase.
1: Calm App
The Calm App is an app you can access on your phone or your laptop and it provides guided meditations covering a range of topics from anxiety, mindfulness, relationships, and sleep to name a few. It also offers musical tracks to help focus, sleep and relax, provides sleep stories, masterclasses, ‘Body’ programmes and reminders to take time to meditate.
Customer Journey:
I had heard about this app. It is super popular and well-documented by many media outlets. It has also been a featured app many times on the Apple App Store. I saw an ad on my Facebook feed promoting a 7 day free trial. The call to action button was “Try Calm for Free.” The offer was a new mediation every day, called “Daily Calm.”
You can access Calm online or on the App Store. Being able to try the app for free helped to draw me in.
On my research on their landing page, there was an option to purchase a yearly-subscription at $84.99 NZD. They also offer a life subscription for $599.99 NZD. However, the subscription price put me off.
I liked the idea but was not sold on it. However, my flatmate has this app and she was able to give me a 30 day free trial with the “gift to a friend” option that the app offers.
Once I signed up (having had to put in my credit card details), it automatically ticks over and withdraws the yearly subscription amount from your account if you don’t cancel the free trial before the seven days are up. This is an easy way to catch customers! I had access to the entire library of Calm meditations.
Each day the app sent me meditation reminders. As the seven day trial came to an end, I had the choice of cancelling subscription, or letting it tick over.
If I cancelled the subscription, I still had access to a few meditations and still received the daily reminders – which, when you see them after a particularly stressful day, easily pull you into subscribing again.
The desire to subscribe is also strengthened into action as Calm sends out weekly emails, describing new additions to the app, often with a special discount price.
I used the app quite a few times and really enjoyed the meditations. However, the subscription price definitely put me off and I ended up cancelling my subscription.
The daily reminders and emails eventually wore me down however, and the email offering 40% off the annual price won me over and I subscribed to the app.
https://www.calm.com
2: Adobe Creative Cloud Suite training bundles
What: A couple of online shops called Stack Social and the Entrepreneur Store sell bundles of tutorials centred around teaching you how to use specific programmes, such as the Adobe Creative Cloud Suite, and how to improve on your writing, copywriting, understanding of marketing.
Customer Journey:
Facebook knows that I’m interested in writing and marketing. I saw an ad for an Adobe course on my Facebook feed. Purchasing the All-in-One Adobe Creative Cloud Suite Certification Bundle promised me lifetime access to 537 lessons spread over eight different courses.
Each individual tutorial within the bundle is advertised at its individual price, so all up it should cost around $USD1600.00. However, it was marketed as a sale that “expires in one day,” with a discounted price of $USD33.99 – “97% off.” The cheap price drew me in.
I clicked the advert and went to the online shop website, where it explained what each individual course within the bundle was about.
The $1600.00 amount was crossed out and the “Add to cart” green button showed the discounted $33.99 amount. The discounted price was advertised as only being available for a short amount of time with the words, “Ending In: 1 day,” featured just under the course title’s name.
I saved the page and then checked back a few times during the day and saw the “Ending In:” had now gone down to a matter of hours. Not wanting to miss out on the deal I bought! I accessed after purchase through a site called Stack Skills – Teachable.
3: Yoga: The Core Play by Karin Dimitrovova
What: Karin Dimitrovova is a writer and a yoga teacher who offers three online programs – Beyond Flexibility, The Core Play, and Aligned. Core Play is a 28 day program inspired by yoga for better core and upper body strength.
Customer Journey:
A sponsored advert for Core Play came up on my social media feed. As I’ve been wanting to learn how to actually do push-ups (I’m super weak in my upper body) and have always wanted to do a hand-stand, I clicked the link to investigate
“With only 15 minutes of your day, you can build strength,” the ad promised. The program includes a four week, step-by-step training plan comprising of yoga flows, core and upper body strength drills, and you also have access to a “Members Area,” with extra resources offered, like meditations, and a Facebook Group community.
It is a one-off purchase which you have lifetime access too. The purchase price is $99.00 USD usually, but a discount was offered.
<a href=”https://go.karindimitrovova.com/tcp-ig”>https://go.karindimitrovova.com/tcp-ig</a>
After I clicked it, it took me to a website page explaining everything you need and want to know about Core Play. There was lots of reading involved:
The page began by asking you about how I felt in my yoga practice, offering answers such as “uninspired, frustrated, etc.” Karin then went on to explain WHY she created this program and how it works, week by week.
The page also featured written reviews from those who have already purchased and tried out the program, as well a couple of review videos.
As I neared the end of the page, it also described a couple of extra bonuses you get when you purchase the program, such as meditations and relaxing yoga flows. These were all presented with their “value” in price, which was crossed out.
It finally offered a 30 day money back guarantee and then summarised all you would get with the program, coming to the price offer of $47.00 USD. This amount was a discounted price. The regular amount is usually $99.00 USD.
The page states that the 52% discount is only available for a short amount of time and featured a “counting down” discount button (the discount was to expire in 4 hours).
From this, I googled how much it would cost in NZD. Then, I looked up Karin and found her website, describing who she was and the other courses she offered. I looked up reviews online to check that it wasn’t a scam!
Over the course of this, the time slowly was ticking down for the discount so I decided to purchase.
4: Jewellery: a ring from Linjer
What: Linjer is a design studio that creates handbags, watches and jewellery for men and women. They market themselves with the tagline “Sustainably-made jewelry, bags and watches without the luxury markup.”
Customer Journey:
Advertisements for their products came up on my social media feed.
The adverts featured clean photography, usually of a single product e.g. a ring, alongside simple design which used the words “sustainable.”
I clicked the link which took me to the product page on their website. The product was shown via a multitude of clean and bright photos. The costs of the product automatically came up in my home country pricing.
Below the low pricing, there was a line saying, “Compare to $…. NZD Estimated Retail.” This was proof to me that the product was much cheaper than usual – but still sustainably made.
Each product had reviews. There was a simple add to cart button. I want to mention that it was their tagline and use of “sustainable” that really drew me in. I researched more into the sustainable side of their business before finally purchasing. https://www.linjer.co
Extra Note – nearly hooked by another brand’s focus on sustainability
Saye is a brand of shoes which also drew me in with their “sustainable” advertising. I did not purchase anything from here, but the focus on sustainability was something that I connected with, and almost prompted me to purchase. The words “Vegan,” “eco-friendly” and “sustainable” feature throughout Saye’s advertising and websites. They make their shoes from organic and recycled materials. Their shoes are made in Europe, they pay their workers well and they plant two trees for every pair of sneakers you buy (this you all see on their homepage).
Chasing Unicorns:
I also bought a dress after seeing a Facebook post from Chasing Unicorns, which is a small design company based in Byron Bay Australia. Their pieces are one-off, often hand-made, and are created as a stand against fast-fashion, hence are often more on the expensive side e.g. the dress I bought was $250.00 AUD on sale. Their brand story grabbed me. They have a large focus on sustainability and use natural fibres, known for their longevity, and thus their items are known to last (“pieces of clothing you pass down to your daughter”). This idea really drew me in (not that I have daughters yet!). This showcases the idea of a strong brand message. https://www.chasingunicorns.com.au
Conclusion:
Sam noticed a clear pattern in the way she purchased programs, subscriptions and items online. What drew her in to clicking on the adverts was strong photographic imagery with simple, clean designs (so it was immediately clear what was being sold).
There was a clear theme of sustainability which piqued her curiosity to investigate further. The use of scarcity or count-down elements, backed by good reviews and social proof, sealed the deal.
She always researched the brand itself to ensure it was a legitimate product. She used reviews and checked back a few times before purchasing.
The discounts were alluring, especially the countdowns. However, she has since realised that a lot of discounted offers continue on, e.g. one advert said the discount ended at midnight, but she has been seeing the advert for months.
Would you like some help to craft your next social media campaign? The team at Alexanders offer social media campaign coaching to build your confidence. Get in touch today to discuss your ideas for upcoming campaigns.
