The World Of Facebook Ads

Has this ever happened to you? You’re scrolling through Facebook and you come across a post from someone or some brand that you’ve never heard of. Maybe you have heard of them, but you certainly don’t follow them. Why does this happen? Welcome to the world of Facebook ads and promoted posts! It’s a place where people and companies pay Facebook to show ads or specific posts to potentially interested people. But is this something you should be devoting time and money to? Let’s jump in and explore Facebook ads and promoted posts.

What are Facebook ads?

Let’s start with Facebook ads. These are ads designed to look and act like search ads (the ads you see at the top of the page when you search for something on Google or Bing). When viewed on a desktop, they’ll show up on the bar on the right and also within your newsfeed. On mobile devices, they’ll only show up in your feed. Facebook ads are personalized, or targeted, to specific groups of people who might be interested in buying your product or service. Search ads, on the other hand, are targeting people who are actively searching for things related to your product or service. 

What are the advantages of using Facebook ads?

The main advantage when placing ads on Facebook is that you can target the ad to an audience based on the information Facebook has about its users. This allows you to target your ads beyond age/location/gender with categories like interests, hobbies, jobs, etc. Even though you aren’t targeting people actively looking for your product, you’re able to reach people who are more likely to be interested in it.

Facebook ads' friend: promoted posts. 

Promoted posts, also called boosted posts, are posts that you pay for them to show up directly in newsfeeds and they look just like regular posts. You can choose one of your existing posts, maybe one that is already performing well, to promote (or boost). You can also create a new post that’s purpose is to be promoted. The goal of a promoted post is to get those posts seen by a larger audience than your followers and their friends. You’ll be able to target these posts just like you would target a Facebook ad, using Facebook’s data, to reach people who are likely to be interested in your brand. 

Choosing when to use Facebook Ads.

Now that you know what they are, should you use them? If your brand does anything on Facebook, the answer is, probably, yes. You may hear people say, “Ads aren’t worth it. They don’t deliver good results.” There is a good chance that those people weren’t using them correctly. Here’s the thing. Not all products or services are things that will translate well into an ad on Facebook because people are not typically looking to buy stuff when they’re on it. When they click on an ad or link they want to come back to Facebook. Fast. The trick is to offer small purchases or easy opt-ins (think newsletter or membership sign-ups) so that they can get back to what they’re doing.  

Optimizing your Facebook Ads.

If you’re wondering what a promoted post can do for you, don’t worry. The answer is it can do a lot, as long as it’s used correctly. Think of promoted posts as a way to boost your page’s visibility. Your goal should be to grow your audience, not to sell something. You’ll want to showcase posts that are performing well so that you can draw in followers with your content. You may even want to tempt them with a contest to get them to like, follow, or share for an entry.

In any case, you’ll have to put yourself in your potential customer’s shoes to try and figure out what works, and what doesn’t, to get them to engage with your Facebook ad or promoted post. 

It might surprise you to learn that Facebook made over 84 billion dollars in ad revenue in 2020. So, even if you don’t click on those ads and promoted posts, it’s safe to say someone is otherwise companies wouldn’t continue spending their advertising budgets there. With these Facebook features you’re able to reach a much larger audience with more specific targeting. You’re also able to target competitors and get a hold of ad performance data. All of this makes ads and promoted posts an incredible leg up in any social media campaign. 

Need help running the Facebook Ad campaign of your dreams? Contact us for a no-obligation consultation with our team of experts today!