It’s one thing to like a Facebook page, another thing to know what that thumbs up means for your business. Many companies have a tough time figuring out what the real return on investment is for social media outlets such as Facebook. New Belgium Brewing sunk $235,000 into their social media budget last year, most of that going to Facebook. Was it worth it? They asked their roughly 400,000 fans to fill out a survey. With almost 3,000 responses, they were able to calculate Facebook’s worth to New Belgium. The final number? The average fan spends about $260 dollars a year on the brand. Ad Age reports:
… Colorado’s New Belgium Brewing recently commissioned a survey of its Facebook followers in which it determined the average New Belgium Facebook fan spends $260 per year on the brand. That translates to $50.7 million annually – or roughly half the brewery’s sales each year.
New Belgium plans to expand their use of social media in 2012, for its seasonal releases in particular, that will now be exclusively advertised on on digital and social media outlets. 20% of the $1 million advertising budget for the release of new brew Shift will go toward digital media.
In looming beer release news, New Belgium is rolling out a new beer in April. The brewery has set aside $1 million for the launch. 20% of that spend going to social media. [CNBC]
