In this episode, we’re going to talk about Facebook ads. Why Facebook? Because as of 2023, Facebook has about 244 million users. That’s 72% of the US population, so let’s see how we can take advantage of it.
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Episode 21 Summary
- Advertising through Facebook Ads Manager continues to be a top-performing and cost-effective method of advertising online. Also, because Meta owns both Facebook and Instagram, you can advertise your Instagram ads through the same interface and using the same targeting and ad format options. So really, by learning Facebook Ads, you are learning how to effectively run Instagram ads, too.
- The topic of Facebook ads is quite comprehensive, and not something that can or should try to be taught in one sitting. For those small business owners wanting to get started with Facebook advertising or who have perhaps used the blue Boost button but want to know more about all of the rest of the advertising capabilities Facebook and Instagram provides, this episode is for you.
- Let’s start off with a few important things to know about Facebook advertising
- Make sure you own your Facebook Business Manager, Ads account, and Pixel.
- Boost vs. Ads are different. Listen in to learn how and why.
- There are several ad types…Facebook calls them marketing objectives. For example, Traffic, Conversion, Video views, and Awareness are a few
- You can use one or more photos or videos in ads
- Any place that you can post content organically, you can run an ad. Meaning, you can run Stories ads, Reels ads, Feed ads, etc.
- There are a multitude of ways to target your ads in order to get your ads in front of the right people. You can target by demographics, by interests, by showing an ad to people who follow a large Page, and there are warm targeting options as well. People who have followed your Page, watched your videos, and are on your email list are a few ways.
- Facebook has what it calls a Learning Phase. During that time, Facebook works to find people within your audience who are likely to take the action you need. Because of this, you should plan to run any ad for at least 5 days to get an idea of what its longer-term performance would be.
Next, let’s talk budget and testing
- With ads, you are paying for eyeballs. Meaning, the larger the budget, the more people who will be shown your ad. However, what you need to spend varies based on the type of ad you are running. For example, video views ads are usually the cheapest. You can get a ThruPlay view for as little as a penny. On the opposite side, conversion ads are the most expensive because you need people to click an ad, land on your website, and then take an additional action like sign up for an email list or complete a purchase. So for conversion ads, you really should plan to spend at least $15/day for at least 5 days.
- Testing is another important element for any type of advertising. You should always plan to test your ad campaigns. When testing, you only want to vary 1 part of your campaign at a time. So, you might have 1 image, 1 version of ad copy, and 2 audiences you want to test.
Episode 21 Takeaways
Liz: A purely organic strategy no longer is effective; you need to have some type of ad strategy (regardless of social platform). Knowing that you need to do something paid, stay the course, stay dedicated, think tortoise vs. hair.
Ronda: Make sure you start with a good foundation. Make sure you own your own information and assets.
Resources: Social Media Ads 101, Things You’ll Need when Outsourcing your Online Marketing
Listen On: Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Spotify
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Liz Jostes – LinkedIn, Website
Ronda VanBuren – LinkedIn, Website
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