If you aren’t spending targeted advertising dollars on Facebook ads, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity. It can be tricky trying to promote your business with Facebook ads, but if you’re serious about growth on the social media giant, here’s what you need to know.
Facebook Isn’t Free
The bad news is social media is not free. The good news is Facebook advertising is extremely effective and one of the most affordable ways to get more business. The problem is the temptation to think of Facebook as just a place where people hang out and talk for free. The reality is, if your business has a Like page (you had better), its posts are only being seen by about 1-5% of the people you’re connected with. This would explain why your posts average a reach of 4 when you have 100 fans. Fortunately, the following tips will help you overcome this challenge. Stop hitting that Boost button, and start making a real difference for your business with Facebook Ads.
7 Tips for Getting Real Results from Facebook Ads
1. Use the Facebook Pixel: Add the Facebook pixel to your website to track conversions and build a list of people who come to your site from Facebook. You can use this to remarket to them with unbelievably targeted Facebook ads.
2. Create Custom Audiences: If you are just hitting that Boost button, you’re basically throwing your money away. Instead, you can create custom audiences and then market to them in ways you know they will appreciate. For example, feed your email list into Facebook and create an ad directed at those people you know are already interested in your business (because they took the time to give you their email address).
3. Choose Catchy Graphics: Facebook used to enforce a strict 20% rule that disallowed any ad graphic with text covering more than 20% of the graphic. They’re no longer enforcing this as strictly, because they have found ads with text simply don’t convert well and therefore do not get shown. Keep the text to a minimum if any in your graphic. Choose something with bright colors that evokes an emotional response.
4. Don’t Overlook the Writing: The catchy graphic creative is only part of the equation. The writing is one of the most important success factors with Facebook ads. You must carefully write your ad in a way that is succinct, but also highly targeted to a specific individual. This isn’t the time to write a sales pitch. In fact, the less your ad sounds like an ad, the better it will do. Write your ads carefully.
5. Placement Is Everything: If you want to get more business with Facebook ads, place those ads in the right locations. Mobile ads are very hot and work especially well for like campaigns. It’s easy for someone scrolling their phone to like your page if that’s what your ad is for. But if you’re trying to sell or get signups, desktop will work best (it’s easier to type info on a keyboard than on a mobile device).
6. Target, Target, Target: Boosting a post may be simple, but it’s not very targeted. You need to get into the Ads Manager (or even Power Editor) and start targeting these ads to specific audiences. Facebook has the most targeting ability of any other social platforms, so take advantage of it. Facebook ads can be targeted by age, location, language, interests, spending habits, political orientation, and more.
7. Hire a Professional: If it were easy to boost your business with Facebook ads, everyone would be successful. But the most successful brands on social media entrust their Facebook ad campaigns to the professionals, because that’s what they do best. Free yourself up to do what you do best. Invest in a professional social media manager who knows how to leverage this powerful platform for your business.
Ask us about our Facebook advertising strategies to see how we can help boost your business with Facebook ads!
