Facebook is basically just a huge popularity contest. And for companies currently using Facebook, it all comes down to how many people “like” you.
As more and more companies adopt social media strategies, we thought this was the perfect time to see who’s winning and who’s losing on Facebook.
This list focuses specifically on companies that market products to consumers, and is pulled from data generated by Likester, which operates a marketing platform called Likester AdCenter. (We excluded entertainment brands, celebrities and companies like YouTube, which obviously get the most likes of anyone.)
While many of the companies on the list are huge brands, there are some surprises. Companies that are smaller and more niche have discovered that using Facebook effectively can make them hugely popular.
20. Burberry – 13.2 Million Likes
Burberry recently rolled out a new website called “Burberry World.” The site is intended to connect customers with all aspects of the company’s history, music, video, and products. Burberry’s Facebook page works as it transports fans to a Burberry world of fashion and culture. Fans can access Burberry Acoustic an interactive set of videos and playlists curated specially for fans.
19. Levi’s – 13.4 Million Likes
Lately, Levi’s has been using Facebook as a platform to help shift the company’s brand image from classic to classic-cool. “Levi Strauss was the first major retailer to add Facebook’s ‘Like’ button to its commerce site, and it created the first Facebook-oriented social shopping experience, the Levi’s Friends Store,” according to InformationWeek. Fans are able to share with each other what they purchase and like, potentially influencing additional buying decisions.
18. Zara – 14.2 Million Likes
In the past year, Zara has done a lot to enhance its social media presence by posting as often as possible to Facebook. Nearly every post focuses on fashion and current trends that the company is passionate about. For example, the company updates the Zara Lookbook on a weekly, monthly, and seasonal basis to keep fans current on the latest trends. The Lookbook is an interactive app within the Facebook page that links fans to photos, videos, and mobile apps that showcase the current styles.
17. Disneyland – 14.9 Million Likes
The Disneyland Facebook encourages park-goers to post pictures of their recent visits, and give feedback about their experiences. Disney enhances this strategy by including an interactive app called Disney Memories where fans can build their own Disney Park Castle out of their favorite park memories. The tactic creates a social community that feels open and useful to fans but not contrived or forced.
16. Adidas Originals – 15.4 Million Likes
Adidas Originals’ Facebook page relies on celebrity endorsements, originality, and fashion to drive social media traffic. The company often runs fan contests that focus on creativity as well as product engagement. The latest contest was called Adidas Originals #represent. Fans were asked to submit a video, photo, or audio file that showed what they stand for. The contest served as a public platform for fans to share their own work while also engaging deeply with the brand.
15. Nutella – 16 Million Likes
Nutella’s Facebook page uses cheerful images to tap into the emotional connection fans have for the product. Most recently, Nutella’s program has linked content with messaging related to the Olympic games. The company posted images with messaging such as “Like this image if diving is your favorite sport and … spread your passion by sharing it :).” The approach is friendly, and plays on the cult-like following of the brand.
14. Ferrero Rocher – 16.2 Million Likes
Ferrero Rocher benefits from the fact that people simply love the company’s chocolate — and not much else. The Facebook page does not use much fan-generated content or encourage interaction, relying instead on colorful, well-produced photos. The company hasn’t needed to make a single new post to its page since March 30, and that was only for a new cover photo. If only all companies could be so lucky.
13. Target – 17.5 Million Likes
Target’s Facebook page mixes product promotion with creative photo opportunities to drive viral sharing and comments by fans. As a nod to the Olympics, the company posted a series of images like the one above with cheeky messaging such as, “What time is it? Does anyone know the time? When in London…” This post alone resulted in 15,630 likes, 1,592 comments, and 231 shares.
12. Monster Energy – 18 Million Likes
Monster Energy is primarily known for its sponsorship of extreme sports events and athletes. Leveraging this fan base of mainly young males, Monster Energy’s Facebook relies on fan-generated content that is edgy with a strong point of view. The company Facebook page also interacts extensively with celebrities through videos and posts to drive viral engagement. The most recent celebrity post was a picture of a champion, off-road racer and his truck facing a desert sunset, with a short caption: “Ballistic BJ Baldwin enjoying the view!” and a link to the Monster Energy off-road team’s website and schedule. The post resulted in 37,782 likes — not too shabby.
11. Walmart – 19 Million Likes
America’s largest employer has found a way to use Facebook to add an individual touch. Through an integrated series of Facebook pages, for everything from individual stores to employees, Walmart is able to get a grassroots level of engagement that most large companies don’t have. Walmart interacts with customers as much as possible with fans — it is not unusual see Walmart respond to numerous unique, customer comments.
10. Victoria’s Secret – 19.3 Million Likes
Victoria’s Secret knows people will go to the company Facebook page for no other reason than to see the pictures. To take its social engagement to another level, the page focuses on integrating with the company’s other social media sites to create a more fluid conversation among their fans. For example, the company promoted a Pinterest contest this month on Facebook that encouraged Facebook fans to create Victoria’s Secret Pinterest boards.
9. Pringles – 20.1 Million Likes
The Pringle’s Facebook page posts often use the same creative seen in Pringles TV and print advertising, but posts questions and contests along side the creative to generate interaction. Most of the written content is generated by fans of the company, letting them freely ask questions and post comments about the product. For example, this past Monday, Pringles simply posted a close-up photo of a stack of Pringles, with a caption stating “Look what fell into Monday!” More than 18,000 fans liked the image, and 501 fans made comments about Pringles expressing everything from their love for the product to their hatred for Mondays.
8. McDonald’s – 21.7 Million Likes
The McDonald’s Facebook page drives most of its traffic through promotion of recent sponsorships and campaigns with videos and dramatic images. For example, the page is currently focusing on the Olympics. The company implemented a Facebook campaign that followed five employees as they discovered London and the games. The campaign was a glimpse into the lives of the people working at McDonald’s, illuminating the people-side and social-side of McDonald’s.
7. Skittles 22.7 Million Likes
Everything Skittles does is highly social. The company has developed an integrated social media strategy that moves between its website and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. The company posts videos, games, and quirky creative that moves fans easily between platforms and the website. (Skittles weird advertising also has a big YouTube presence.)
6. Oreo – 27.6 Likes
Oreo uses the company’s Facebook page as the de facto website for the brand. Oreo’s strategy is to mix fan generated content, such as the photo above, with call-to-action posts that will drive comments. Company posts often take the shape of fill-in-the-blank messages or questions, such as: “Oreo cookies make everyday a little more ______.” Fans cannot help but fill in the blanks — 7,400 fans have already commented on that call-out.
5. Red Bull – 29.6 Million Likes
Red Bull is more than an energy drink, it is a content-generating machine. The company creates “professional-grade news articles, feature stories and videos each day, pushing them to social marketing channels such as Facebook and Twitter. This fuels the company’s social media accounts with content and points followers back to Red Bull’s site, rather than elsewhere on the Internet,” according to Mashable. Red Bull’s strategy is all about catching your attention, often with celebrity athletes and high-profile event sponsorships.
4. Starbucks – 31.3 Million Likes
The core of Starbuck’s Facebook strategy is to develop meaningful and relevant relationships with customers both inside and outside the retail stores. The company uses location-based applications like Four Square, as well as Facebook and Twitter to connect with users on different platforms. In an interview with Forbes, Starbuck’s Chief Digital Officer Adam Brotman said, “we are expanding and enhancing our core web platform globally, creating world class mobile applications for iOS and Android, as well as developing an in-house e-commerce platform and business, a branded and differentiated Wi-Fi strategy (which includes the Starbucks Digital Network), a social media engagement platform, and building the Starbucks card and loyalty programs globally.” In other words, there is not a mobile or social stone left uncovered by Starbucks.
3. Converse – 32.7 Million Likes
Converse is the perfect party guest: a good listener, funny, smart, and never boring. Which is exactly the company’s approach to Facebook. In an interview with Mashable, Converse Chief Marketing Officer Geoff Cottrill explained, “we bring something to the table, and we listen more than we talk. It also means not bringing campaigns from other channels verbatim to a platform that’s about conversation.” They want to see and hear what fans have to think and how they use the product. The company trusts their fans, giving them carte blanche on posts, as long as they follow the house rules: essentially, “be nice.” By running Facebook programs, like this year’s “Show Me Yours” campaign the company develops a dialogue with fans that is uncensored and authentic.
2. Disney – 37.8 Million Likes
Mashable describes Disney’s Facebook approach as “the happiest social media strategy on earth.” And it doesn’t feel “salesy.” The page has a casual tone that allows fans to interact with the company. The company achieves this by linking the main Facebook page to a series of 268 sub-fan pages where fans can chat about specific products and share reviews and feedback.
1. Coca-Cola – 47.6 Million Likes
The history of Coca-Cola’s Facebook page says it all. Four years ago, two fans of the company were unsatisfied with the lack of an authentic Coca-Cola presence on Facebook — so they made their own page. Instead of demanding the page be shut down, the company decided to work with the fans on building out the page, according to FastGush. The company has since sourced most of its content from fans and artists in film, television, and music to create viral storytelling content.MarketingWeek writes, “Coca Cola wants consumer feedback to shape the creativity of the business and no longer relies on traditional agencies for ideas.”
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