• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, October 12, 2011

Facebook Fan pages have become nirvana for marketers looking for a solid earned media strategy, but who also want a data and targeting platform that improves accountability for marketing budgets and one-on-one relationship with potential and existing customers. Consider this the next form of behavioral targeting. And as the holidays quickly approach, marketers need to find way to increase traffic to Facebook Fan pages. Barilliance co-founder Ido Ariel thinks he has the answer. 

It turns out the average Fan visits his favorite brand's Facebook page less than once monthly, according to Ariel. Barilliance, a Tel Aviv-based company, provides support to e-commerce sites with recommendations and targeted content, such as coupons, specials and ads.

The product -- Facebook Fan Page Personalization -- part of the Barilliance’s eCommerce personalization suite, includes solutions for shopping cart abandonment, personalized product recommendations, email personalization, and onsite behavioral targeting. 

Consider this type of technology a more relevant form of behavioral targeting. Barilliance lets online retailers offer a brand's Fans discounts and coupons on products they are most likely to buy based on advanced recommendation algorithms and other signals. Cookies dropped in browsers allow the platform to serve up special offers to Fans. Products views, categories visits, and purchase information support recommendations and targeted ads, content and specials, Ariel explains.

There are more than 100 online retailers working with Barilliance using the company's other products, but a handful of companies will roll out on Facebook Fan Page Personalization this week. Testing has been done in a lab environment, but not with a brand. Ariel believes once the Facebook Fan page adds personalization and targeting it will work. "If the ad doesn't have any connection to what I'm interested in looking for it won't be engaging," he said. "People look for relevant products."

Behavioral targeting will move from the stiff definition and mechanical processes that brought it to the forefront of online advertising and into the next generation of technologies. This next generation of targeting will become more relevant to consumer location, behavior and predictive analytics.