Are you running a Facebook Ad? This article is for you! We find that Facebook Ads can be AMAZING for businesses especially when you know who to target, when to target and how to target. It is true that you can WASTE hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars on Facebook Ads and complain you did not get one sale. The truth is you must know what your goal is with a Facebook Ad. There are a few reasons why you would use Facebook Ads and selling your services and product is not the only reason.

Today we will break down some simple Facebook Ad Tips. Because they are affordable, in most cases many small business owners run them on their own but without the proper goals and insights – thus producing a very wasted marketing budget. We hope to help some of you who run ads on your own to ensure you are not wasting time and money.

Facebook Targeting 

Targeting is one of the prime advantages of using a Facebook Ad. Their demographic knowledge is extensive and they have done all the work for you! There are 1.74 billion mobile active users (Mobile Facebook MAU) for December 2016 which is an increase of 21% year-over-year” With Facebook having these many active users the data that you have access to is worth every penny. The problem is who do you target and how. This is where you have to take some time and do some research. For instance, you can target a persons purchase behavior – if they buy organic items and you are offering an organically related item you can use their purchase history via Facebook to target them with your product. You can also target life events such as engagements, marriage or having a baby. Since status updates include these types of life events Facebook gives you the ability to target basic life events that might help your photography business for instance. Lastly, if you have some good email lists you can upload these to Facebook and target those lists with ads as well. People who have signed up,  purchased or inquired for information can now be targeted for ads. This is one of our favorites because they are already a warm lead and those are the most convertible kind! Facebook is your friend when it comes to information – so we as businesses can use it for the customers’ advantage. It might take some time to niche in your WHO. You will have to play around a bit to find the best results but once you do, the Facebook Ad will prove to be your best friend targeting the exact people who need your services.

Facebook Retargeting 

Seems a little redundant but it’s really a vital way to determine your ROI and ensure conversions. The key tool for retargeting with your Facebook Ad is their Pixel. This is something that needs to be added to your website coding. They have some step by steps online that can help you. Once that pixel is installed you can now track EVERYTHING! Facebook explains it this way:

“When someone visits your website and takes an action (for example, buying something), the Facebook pixel is triggered and reports this action. This way, you’ll know when a customer took an action after seeing your Facebook ad. You’ll also be able to reach this customer again by using a Custom Audience. When more and more conversions happen on your website, Facebook gets better at delivering your ads to people who are more likely to take certain actions. This is called conversion optimization.”

We have a client that books initial consultations via an online booking app on the website. That pixel reported 86 books in 1 quarter! We now can go through the list and see which ones converted and which ones didn’t. The pixel will also go back and track the ones that came to the page and did not book and promote the ad, almost like a reminder, to return and book. We can also see which pages are the most visited, like google analytics. This information helps formulate content and planning for coming ads and website updates. The Facebook Pixel is a powerful tool that will take your budget further and go after your target audience to result in conversions not just engagement.

Facebook Video Ads

If you are lacking a large budget we always encourage our clients to do video ads! These are very affordable and can be very helpful when building your Facebook Business Page. Online video now accounts for 50% of all mobile traffic! If you want to stand out, a video is the way to go. It does not have to be an overwhelming experience.

  • People want authenticity today and so you or your staff being yourself will work!
  • Having clients give testimonials will work!
  • Doing a product demo or street interviews with the product will work!
  • Giving short tips and sharing your expertise with your audience will work!

These can run from .1 cent to .8 cents per engagement or view and the reach can be quite wide. We find these to be very helpful when building a Facebook Business page that is brand new. It’s great for brand awareness and excellent for conversion since you have established relationship and trust via face to face interactions. You can’t really go wrong with this option. It’s the all the rage.

Facebook Organic Reach Leverage 

This is a bit of a trade secret but we want to share it with you. Facebook LOVES organic reach. When you prepare an ad in your ads manager and send it out with your target audience it can be great but it might take more budget and more time because you do not have any “Facebook Juice.” When creating an ad the best way and the most budget-friendly and optimized way to do so is to use a previous post. This will take a little planning and a little analytics to help you but Facebook will put organic reach over an ad reach any day. For instance – if you want to create an ad promoting a new product with a product demo review that links over to the purchase page of your website than plan a post first. Let it run for a couple days organically allowing likes and shares to happen naturally. After a couple days go ahead and create an ad using an existing post. You are not boosting this ad – you are creating a post. Now target, apply your budget and where you want it to be visible and wah-lah! You have an existing post with already established reach for Facebook to give you the nod which will result in lower costing ads as well as larger reach.

Facebook Funnel 

We are fans of funnels but not the get rich quick ones. A proper funnel is ESSENTIAL to your ad becoming a converting machine. So many companies and influencers overpromise on their “funnel systems” that take your money for the “system” but do not follow through on the conversions. The funnel we are talking about is one that ensures the user finds itself making an informed yes or no when it comes to your services or products. Sure hit them with an ad and a link but then what? You MUST have a funnel in place to catch the leads. We suggest the following funnel. It is very basic and there is quite a bit of work to a funnel but once established it will work for you.

  1. Facebook Post to engage your audience and determine if it is ad worthy (ATTRACT)
  2. Facebook Ad (video or post) using the pixel targets and promotes with a link to purchase or find out more (ENGAGE)
  3. Retarget Your Facebook Ad Audience – custom audiences, pixel (CONVERT)
  4. Purchase, Booking or Email Capture in place to promote engagement and extend the life of the lead (SELL)
  5. Automation (3-5 touches) in place to send out follow up emails with promo products, service offers or coupons if applicable to capture the lead (CONNECT)

If you are running Facebook Ads as a small business owner these 5 tips will help you improve your ads! We have had MUCH success with Facebook Ads for our clients. From Grand Openings to Booking Consultations to Brand Awareness and Page Building. Facebook Ads do work! You just have to ensure you are following some basic tips to ensure results. If you are struggling to see conversions for your ads don’t hesitate to contact us on Facebook Messenger for the quickest response.  We would be happy to engage you and offer a 1-hour Discovery of your efforts at no cost.