Sunrise Mall dives into Facebook
In April 2010, motivated by the buzz, potential, and low cost surrounding the social media phenomenon, Sunrise Mall launched a Facebook page.
“Ninety days after our Facebook launch, we had 157 fans,” said marketing director Vickie Sherman. “On Thursday, July 8, we purchased a Facebook ad. It provided ten days of exposure to 132,000 people, and we had 60 more people on board in four days,” she said. “We’ll see where we are when the ad expires.”
Like many companies entering the social media landscape, Sunrise Mall’s Facebook strategy is a combination of traditional marketing, social marketing, and what can be learned by trial and error.
“Social media is now where websites were in the 90’s,” Sherman says. “We can’t sit back and wait for others to work out all the kinks because by nature, the medium is so dynamic. If we delayed, by the time we launched our strategy, we would be way behind in learning the basics. We’re getting into the pool now, and are going to learn as much as we can sooner than later.”
In other words, the best time to plant a tree was several years ago. The second best time is now.
The gist of Sunrise Mall’s current social media strategy is three-fold:
1. Consider your website your home base, the storefront that is open 24 hours a day. It must be strong, clean, concise and easy to navigate. Sunrise Mall’s website is www.sunrisemallonline.com.
2. Build your database of customers that want to hear from you. Permission-based emails are key. Nobody wants spam and even permission-based email blasts must be easy to opt out of. Sunrise Mall collects emails on its website, through gift card drawings, through its weekly Kids Club, and through sales promotions conducted at Customer Service. All blasts have an obvious opt out feature.
3. Social media sites like Facebook offer daily (or more) interaction with your customers. It must be personal, timely, and authentic. Facebook is open on Sherman’s desktop computer during office hours.
“The goal with Sunrise Mall’s Facebook page is to build a dedicated fan base eager to hear the latest on mall events, activities, and promotions,” said Sherman. “Soon we’ll be providing exclusive promotional offers to our fans and are hoping to organically create positive word-of-mouth ambassadors,” said Sherman. “We also hope to listen to our customers, and hear what we can do better to serve them.”
That said, Sherman realizes the global attraction to social media is its authenticity. “We can’t make false claims,” she says. “While we’re certainly not the newest mall in the Sacramento area, we are the consistent choice for many,” she said.
“There’s a tangible sense of loyalty from Sunrise Mall customers and employees. We see the same sixty to seventy faces at our weekly Kids Club, the same hundred or so walkers in the mornings. Some of our store managers have been here more than seven years. Social media users span all demographics and we’re hoping Facebook will be a way we can mobilize more of the people that are already our biggest advocates,” she says. “We’re looking to enhance what is already a strong customer community.”
The creative introduction of a Facebook alter-ego named Summer Sunrise is in Sunrise Mall’s immediate future. The character will fit Sherman’s personal profile and tout the mall from her perspective. “But even when using Summer, we have to be real. Even this early, we’ve already seen examples of how authentic engagement tops commercially-driven content,” said Sherman.
Last month, Sunrise Mall posted a free merchandise giveaway by Pacific Sunwear and allowed the opportunity to name a couple of ducks that visit their management offices during the same week. “The Mallards got twice as many impressions and a dozen comments on our Facebook wall,” she said. “Their names are now Dezi and Lucy. Social media is a whole new ballgame.”
Sunrise Mall is a 1.2 million square foot super-regional shopping center featuring over 120 stores, eateries and services including Macy’s, Macy’s Men & Home, JCPenney, and Sears. For more information about Sunrise Mall stores, events and programs, visit www.sunrisemallonline.com, call Customer Services at 916-961-7150 or join our Facebook community.
Steadfast Commercial Properties owns and operates nearly 3.5 million square feet of retail property. Parent company Steadfast Companies also owns and operates investments in areas of business properties, multifamily housing and hospitality. For more information on Steadfast Companies, visit www.steadfastcompanies.com. For retail leasing information at Sunrise Mall, contact James Martin del Campo at 949-623-9101.
