5 Things You Need to Know to Run Facebook Ads
By Latisha S. | latisha@pancakedigitalsolutions.com
Are you wondering what are the 5 things you need know to run Facebook ads?
A great way to grow your business online is by utilizing Facebook ads.
But, a lot of business owners miss out on this opportunity because they become overwhelmed with all the ways that Facebook ads can be used.
We want to break that down today and hopefully make Facebook ads a little less overwhelming.
1. Know your goal
The first thing you need to know about running a Facebook ad campaign is your goal.
Your goal could be:
- Brand Awareness- To get people familiar with who you are and what you do
- Engagement- To get conversations going on your page & interest in you, your services or products
- Email Sign-Ups- This could be for a freebie, a challenge, a webinar, etc
- Launch- To get people to sign-up for a course, membership, coaching program, etc
- Purchase- This is typically for purchasing a product, but can also be to purchase services
Without knowing your goal, you can’t create an effective ad campaign strategy and won’t be able correctly monitor your campaigns, adjust your strategies, or even measure your results.
2. Know your audience
You HAVE to know your audience when running Facebook ads! And more precisely, you have to know where you are meeting them in their buyer’s journey.
For example, if you are launching a high-ticket coaching program, you are not likely to have a high conversion rate with a cold audience.
Why?
Because a cold audience does not know you, your services, or how you can help them (and they definitely don’t trust you yet!)
They have to be warmed up to you first in order to invest in a high-price point product or service.
However, if you hit a cold audience with a freebie or a “no-brain” offer (think small item or digital product with a low price point-usually less than $50), then they are more likely to buy and start following you. Then you can retarget them later for the high-ticket services.
3. Have your sequences in place
Once you know your goals for your campaign and the audience that you will be targeting to meet that goal, you will want to map out your sequences.
A sequence doesn’t have to be complicated and doesn’t always require a lot of steps.
Think of it in this way…
You create a brand awareness ad campaign for a lookalike or cold audience and then you retarget the people who engage with that ad to a freebie sign-up. From there, you can retarget those who sign-up for your freebie to your course, membership, or coaching program.
If you have physical products, you can do the same thing.
Start with brand awareness. Then retarget to your store and you can also retarget those who may have added items to their cart, but did not purchase.
4. Creative & Copy
This is where a lot of people get hung up with their Facebook ads.
What do you say? What image or video do you use?
The answer is…there is no one-size-fits-all answer.
It’s different for every business and it also depends on your goals for the campaign.
However, there are a few things to keep in mind when creating the creative and copy for your ad campaign.
- You can and should use Emojis- Don’t stuff your copy with only emojis, but you should use them to emphasis a point!
- Little to No Text in the Image- Facebook disfavors ad images when they have too much text on them, therefore limiting the reach
- Test the length of your copy- Shorter copy usually works better for cold audiences, but you should also test this for your audiences
- Do NOT use spammy words such as “share”, “tag”, “comment”, etc.
- Do NOT make vague or misleading promises regarding diets, making money, etc
- Don’t use before and after pictures (such as those promoting weight loss products or supplements)
For a more detailed list of Facebook ads policies for running ads, click here.
5. Test, test, test
Facebook ads can take off immediately and start yielding massive results, however, you should be prepared to TEST, TEST, and TEST everything until you find the sweet spot for your campaign. And even then, if and when it stops working, you will need to test again!
Test your copy, test your images, test your audiences….don’t be afraid to test it all!
However, keep in mind that you need to wait at least 2-3 days before you start editing your ads (unless they are already eating your money away with no results).
On the Table…
Facebook ads are a great opportunity for businesses to promote their services and products. When done correctly, they can yield a great return on ad spend and help you build your audience and business!
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