Brands Breaking the 1 Million 'Liker' Mark on Facebook

An increasing number of brands are becoming more active on Facebook these days aware that the more active they are the better the chances of being "Liked." A new crop of retailers recently reached the 1 million liker milestone, but the ways brands are acquiring these likers is changing. This was the key finding from the latest installment of a study on retailers' growth on Facebook and Twitter conducted by marketing agency Media Logic.

When the study was first released in July 2010, only Victoria's Secret could boast over 1 million likers on Facebook. When the next installment of the study concluded in March, 14 other brands joined the club, including J.C. Penney, American Eagle, Kohl's, Forever 21 and Abercrombie & Fitch. The most recent installment of this study welcomes seven more retailers: Kirkland's, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Tommy Hilfiger, Foot Locker and Bass Pro Shops.

Kirkland's recruited 200,000 fans from mid-March to May by enticing likers with a chance to win a $25,000 grand prize just for liking the brand and allowing its "Cha-Ching" application to open where consumers could enter the contest. This translated into a cost of nearly 12 cents per liker, but provided a 280 percent boost in likers.

Build-A-Bear Workshop increased its fan base 137 percent in the three-month period simply by having an open wall where fans could post their thoughts, creating an open dialog with the brand and other fans. Tommy Hilfiger followed suit with the same strategy and increased its likers by 20 percent.

With so many brands surpassing the million liker mark, the days of taking social media lightly are over. Facebook and other social media outlets such as Twitter have transformed into a place to shop in addition to a communications tool. There's no end in sight to the social media craze.