Facebook Adverts can bring amazing results to your business… but very easily they can also become a money pit and you end up with a large credit card bill and nothing to show for the expense.
Very few people set up a Facebook Advert with a clear vision… a goal for what results they want from the advert and that is the first mistake.
Ask yourself, why are you placing the ad? Do you want more Page Likes? Are you hoping to increase your Edgerank score on a particular post? Do you have a product to sell or give away?
I’d better just explain Edgerank here… Facebook applies an algorithm to how many and which of your Page likers see your status updates. The average is 16% which means for every 100 people who have liked your page, an average of only 16 of them see what you post from your Page.
Edgerank is the name given to the algorithm and nobody really knows how it works… but what we do know is that only (paid) Facebook Adverts can improve your Edgerank score.
Canny eh?!
Anyway, once you have decided what you want to achieve from Facebook Adverts, the next step is to decide the best way of getting the results you want.
When you visit the Facebook Adverts page, the first thing you’ll see is that you have two main options to choose from; Sponsored Ads or Facebook Ads.
Sponsored Adverts appear at the very top of the listings so generally speaking produce better results as they are more visible.
However, there is less customisation potential on Sponsored Adverts and the keyword cost tends to be slightly higher.
But if you want to increase your Page likes, a Sponsored Page like advert is your best choice. You can also opt for a Sponsored Page Post or Sponsored Offer too.
Bear in mind, there are only 90 characters available in the advert body so before you write the post you wish to advertise, write is out in Word and play around with the copy to ensure you get the best use of your 90 characters.
Facebook Adverts appear lower down in the listings but you can customise the image you use… choose a compelling image that won’t get lost against the Facebook branding colours.
TIP: Split testing has shown that images that are encased within a red border receive more clicks. You can use a graphics program to add a red border to the image you choose before uploading it to Facebook.
So, you’ve thought about the advert but now let’s talk about the next step… the destination. Where will you send people who click on your advert?
I recommend you NEVER send Advert clicks to an external URL! Why? Because if they click on the ad and hotfoot it over to your website, look at your offer and don’t want to proceed so leave your site… that’s it… they’ve gone!
You’ve paid for the click but you have no trace of them at all.
Whereas if you point the advert at your Facebook Page, there is a good chance they will at least like your Page… and if you point them to a Landing Tab on your Page with a free enticement for them to opt in to your list, you’ll have their details on your database to continue marketing to them.
A Landing Tab/App is a page built on 3rd party software that sits within your Facebook Page and can be used as a squeeze/fangate (where visitors are required to enter their details before they receive access to further details) and linked to your existing email list provider.
For an example of a Squeeze Page, visit http://www.socialmediaprospector.com and this page is also replicated on a tab on my Facebook Page so I can point my Facebook Adverts to the Landing Tab on my Facebook Page… collecting likes and opt-ins from those who clicked on my adverts.
If your objective is to sell or give away a product, then using a Landing Tab will give you greater success with achieving your advert objective.
TARGETING:
You can target people very tightly using the information they have entered into their Facebook Profile including age, sex, education, relationships and interests.
Think very clearly about who your advert should target as you only want to pay for clicks from people with a genuine interest in what you offer and who will be engaging with your content. The broader your targeting, the larger your potential audience but the less valuable the clicks will be for your business.
TEST:
Have several different variations of your advert in play at any one time… use different images, copy and targeting then review after a few days to see which one is producing the best results and stop the ones that aren’t working.
Your Advert Report will tell you what Click Through Rate (CTR) you are achieving and as a guide, any advert with a CTR of between 0.04% and 0.08% is doing well.
I’ve been using Facebook Adverts for different reasons over the last 18 months and I have discovered I get the best results when I;
- Run the advert for a maximum of 5 days
- Place my keyword bid at the higher end of the suggested bid range. For example, if Facebook suggests bids of between £0.22 and £0.47 per click, I will bid £0.40.
The price you bid isn’t always the price you pay but bidding high over a shorter period generates best results in my split tests. I’ve noticed that the longer the advert campaign runs, the less often it is displayed and my results are lower too… whichever result I am aiming for in that particular campaign.
I’ve got a couple of secrets to share with you now….
Secret #1:
If you visit http://www.facebook.com/ads/adboard you will see all the adverts that are targeted towards you. Take a look at them and emulate the ones that catch your attention.
Ultimately, it will be the adverts that attract the eye of your targeted users that will get clicked so this is a worthwhile exercise.
Secret #2:
Yesterday Facebook Marketing UK launched a new “Business Boost” program which offers up to £80 of FREE Facebook Adverts credits!!
To qualify: Your Page must be a local business and you must have over 50 likes on the Page. You receive £20 credit now and if your advert brings an additional 100 likes before it expires, you will be awarded a further £60 of credit!
To apply, visit their page and click on the Business Boost app underneath the cover picture. Complete the form and you will be told instantly if you have been successful. NB you’ll need to allow access to the Involver Facebook App to proceed to the form.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you would like to run an Advert campaign but aren’t sure of the best way to approach it, we offer a consultancy or fully managed service for Facebook Adverts. If you’d like to discuss us helping you, please get in touch with Veronica.
...and if you liked this post, check out this one too on Veronica's own 'Word of Mouth Local' Blog
You need to be a member of Networking in Surrey to add comments!
Join Networking in Surrey