Taking the time to truly understand what type of ads and messaging can work for you is key.
If you’re anything like me, you probably love seeing real examples of ads that work. This is why I recommend you to spend time looking at success stories Facebook has collected, to learn more about how real businesses advertise on the platform.
Examples, like this Uber Eats campaign, give you a goal for the campaign, the results, a brief, and real examples of the ads used — a wealth of information.
This resource also reminds us that whether you’re an e-commerce, a corporate business like Linkedin, a brand like Guinness, or an online coach looking to launch a program — you can make ads work for you.
Facebook Ads for Retargeting
“Your top of the funnel content must be intellectually divorced from your product but emotionally wed to it.” — Joe Chernov
When evaluating whether Facebook ads are worth your time, you need to consider the power of retargeting.
With custom audiences such as a customer list or website traffic (remember, you’ll need to install a Facebook Pixel for that) you can create efficient ads for warm leads and master retargeting.
Why is retargeting important for Facebook ads?
Because by retargeting warm leads from your whole website (or specific pages) or a customer list (like Mailchimp or an existing database) you can upsell anything to people who already know you and love you.
E-commerce integration can go as far as targeting people who did not purchase your product or stopped at checkout with Facebook custom conversions.
I specialize in ads for digital campaigns and personal brands, yet I also use custom conversions when looking at big launches.
Retargeting is a powerful strategy for your Facebook ads.
Simple Tips to Make Your Ads Work
Yes, setting up, running and analyzing Facebook ads will take time and effort.
You need to spend a day or two getting familiar with the platform, understanding how it works, and setting up your key audiences, to make Ads work for you.
I know, just clicking on “boost post” can definitely be tempting when you have little time to spend on marketing. But you need to do more if you want your Facebook ads to succeed.
This series of tips can work in two scenarios:
- You’re looking to set up your own ads.
- You want to outsource your ads to a professional.
Even when outsourcing your ads, you want to make sure you have these three elements in place:
- Set a clear goal for your ads: As you can see below, each success story has a clear goal. Instead of looking at ads as a quick fix, spend the time to set goals for your campaigns that you can analyze and quantify.
- Create a simple funnel: Always outline how the ad fits in your funnel. What are the different steps your audience will take for you to reach your goal?
- Set up reporting for your test ads and your overall campaign: Unless you track performance, you won’t know what works and what doesn’t. It’s as simple as that. You can see some results from the Lidl campaign shared above as an example.
Final Thoughts
“Your brand is a story unfolding across all customer touchpoints.” — Jonah Sachs
As a Facebook Ads convert, I realized that the real secret to making Ads work for me was understanding who my customers are and what they want.
Once I booked two days to fully immerse myself in how the Facebook ads platform has evolved, and how I could make the most of it, I found that my campaigns were driving tangible results.
Overall, ads require a budget and time. Yet, more than anything, ads require a true understanding of what your customer needs and wants from you.
If you can take the time to understand that, your return on investment will grow tenfold.
This article was originally written by Fab Giovannetti for Better Marketing, a publication providing advice that works and covering digital and social media marketing, tools, and case studies.
