I recently ran a poll of my Facebook Group members about online forms. I asked: When is the last time you provided your email or phone number via lead forms to get a white paper, report, coupon or other asset?
Half of respondents said they’d done so in the last six months. Sixteen per cent had done so in the last month. Only two respondents said it had been more than year since they’d filled out an online form or that they had never done so.
The results of this poll surprised me, but I guess it shouldn’t have. I expected to see a stronger trend against using forms. I think this group, as marketing pros, tends to participate more.
The trend I’m seeing among the general population is that the use of lead forms is on the wan. As a Facebook PRO Partner I run hundreds of ad campaigns for clients targeting consumer audiences, and I can see a clear drop off in lead forms.
That said, there’s a spike in the use of “Messenger” as an effective call to action on Facebook Ads. People want immediate action and response, and a lead form just can’t give them that.
Think about ‘real life’. Would you ever go into a business, fill in a form and leave? Then wait and hope someone will contact you to allow you to make a purchase. No way!
In real life when you visit a business, you expect to see someone and speak to them. Facebook Messenger makes this happen online. Auto responses that make it smart and scalable.
If you are not using Facebook Messenger strategically for your business, you are missing a trick.
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