If you are a shopaholic in Singapore, you would definitely know that we are in the midst of the Great Singapore Sale season now. Shoppers are flooding the various shopping belts in Singapore scouring for the best deals and to make full use of the discounts available.
While we’re in the midst of the Great Singapore Sale season, Facebook Singapore has shared some data around the check-ins that were made on Facebook by Singapore-based users this time last year.
During the GSS in 2013, shopping-related places, restaurants and tourist attractions generated the highest numbers of check-ins on Facebook. As expected, the number of check-ins peak towards the weekend.
More than half of the check-ins came from female users, and majority of the check-ins came from millennials (16 to 34 years old). For shopping and retail businesses, a high majority of check-ins came from Singaporeans. Out of the remaining, about 1 in 5 came from Southeast Asian tourists.
Top 10 Shopping Mall Check-ins During GSS 2013
- Marina Bay Sands
- Bugis Junction
- Vivocity
- Cathay Cineleisure Orchard
- Bugis Street
- Jurong Point Shopping Centre
- Plaza Singapura
- ION Orchard
- Marina Bay, Singapore
- JEM
We are still waiting for the GSS to be over this year and be able to compare and see how the check in patterns have changed.
So what does this means for retailers?
People are always on Facebook, even while they’re shopping or dining, and Facebook is an effective channel through which marketers can reach them – especially on mobile. As people’s online and offline worlds collide, retailers have more opportunity than ever to reach a large and engaged community of shoppers. With the average person spending 30 minutes per day on mobile, brands can stay top of mind by reaching customers where they are spending a significant amount of their time.
Retailers can capitalize on seasonality by making GSS a tent pole for their marketing campaigns. They can engage people by delivering timely and meaningful content on their Facebook Page about new products, seasonal items, daily specials or in-store events. This kind of timeliness is core to retailers – customers need a reason to shop and timeliness is a key motivator.
Retailers can create a personalized, engaging and seamless experience for shoppers that integrate both online and in-store channels. For example, savvy retailers can run special promotions on Facebook in conjunction with GSS, like using Offers to drive in-store traffic. They can also take advantage of the check-in feature on Facebook by linking deals and discounts to a user’s News Feed and Places. The key target audience for local retailers during GSS 2014 should be Singaporeans – offers and promotions should be largely directed at them.
