How to Create Better Facebook Ads That Convert at an Impressive Rate

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Podcast: How to Create Small Business Facebook Ads - Part One

Facebook advertising can be highly profitable for small businesses, but you need to know how to use it. Otherwise, you’ll end up throwing money down a bottomless drain with nothing to show for it.

Why Facebook Ads?

When it comes to pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, there are a variety of platforms to choose from. Facebook is one of the most popular – but does it generate real value for its users? The answer is yes – if you know how to use it.

Facebook advertising isn’t cheap. Depending on the industry you’re in and how much competition there is for your keywords, the cost per click is going to be more expensive than other websites and PPC networks. However, if you set your campaign up correctly, you’ll find that Facebook campaigns generate higher quality clicks that are more likely to produce profitable conversions.

Facebook has something its competitors don’t: an unlimited data supply that allows them to carefully segment users and provide more effective targeting for advertisers. Facebook knows everything about its users – including basic demographic information, as well as income, purchase behavior, hobbies, favorite brands, and other pertinent details.

There’s also wider exposure than just about any other platform – AdWords excluded. Everyone is on Facebook and there’s an organic sense of interaction with newsfeed content that makes it possible to generate positive exposure and high conversion rates.

5 Tactics for Better Facebook Ads

Segmentation and targeting are hugely important topics. If you need more information on how to select the right audiences for your Facebook ads, this is a great resource. But in this article, we’re going to provide some helpful tips for enhancing individual ads.

Take a look and see where you can improve:

1. Ensure Visual-Copy Consistency

With low marketing budgets and limited in-house resources, many businesses are handcuffed when it comes to visual content. As a result, they resort to boring stock photography and canned graphics that have to be forced alongside Facebook ad copy. Unfortunately, this results in inconsistent ads where the image doesn’t coincide with the copy.

If you’re struggling to create good visuals and images for Facebook ads, try working with a freelance graphic designer or photographer. You can also utilize a platform like Canva, which makes it easy to create simple, visually pleasing graphics.

2. Try Your Hand at Video

No content medium is as persuasive as video. Why not use it in your Facebook ad strategy?

If you’re worried about the cost of creating video, or your lack of in-house video production experience, have no fear. Platforms like Promo.com allow you to create video ads in minutes. They have a rich library of content, graphics, overlays, and templates to make it as easy as dragging, dropping, copying, and pasting.

3. Keep CTAs Simple

A Facebook ad is only as effective as its clickability. And if you want to make an ad more clickable, it needs a clear and persuasive call-to-action (CTA).

When writing CTAs, think about the benefits and value that you’re adding to your target customer’s life. This is why they click. Stop with the “Buy Now” or “Click Here” CTAs and get specific. The MyUndies brand is a great example. They often use a simple CTA that reads: “Feel Good in Your Undies.” It’s simple, yet effective.

4. Use News Feed Placement

Facebook gives you a few different ad placement choices, but it’s a good idea to stick with the desktop news feed option. These ads are much more natural and have been shown to have consistently superior engagement rates and clicks. While they can be more expensive, the ROI is significantly higher.

5. Prioritize the Metric That Matters Most

Facebook gives you the ability to track dozens of different analytics and metrics, but be wary of getting caught up in vanity metrics like impressions and clicks. While these may seem like important numbers to track, they don’t really tell you whether or not your ad campaign is successful. The only thing that truly matters is conversions/sales.

As you analyze your ads, be sure to focus your energy on conversions. If the sales figures aren’t there, something needs to be tweaked. Optimize your campaign until you’re within a profitable threshold.

Maximize Your Facebook Ad Spend

When improperly leveraged, Facebook ads are expensive and low-returning. When used correctly, the platform has the potential to be one of your greatest advertising resources. Take the time to learn how it works from the inside out. Slowly build up your ad spend and optimize as you get results in real time. This is the formula for sustainable success.

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Anna is the founder and CEO of Johansson Consulting where she works with businesses to create marketing and PR campaigns.