Target The Right Audience And Check Back In Regularly
First and foremost, to make your Facebook Ad effective you must develop a firm strategy before you even think about optimizing the rest of the Ad. And a solid strategy always begins with knowing your exactly who your target audience is. These are the people you want to market your products and services to, as they’ll be the ones most likely to buy from you.
The good thing is, that as a Small Business Owner, you’ll likely have a very good understanding of your target audience already: what they want and what they'll likely respond to. This is because you probably have at least some form of direct contact with them on a more or less daily basis.
When setting up your Facebook Ad, it’s no longer enough to just define your target audience and fill in the targeting options. You’ll also need to conduct regular Facebook Ad reports, that show you stats on age, gender, demographics, where clicks are coming from and the time and day the Ad is clicked. All this information will give you a better understanding of your market, as well as their Online behaviour. It is however, necessary to do this regularly. Peoples Online searching and browsing patterns change frequently, and it’s important that you keep your finger on the pulse so you don’t fall behind your competitors.
Optimize Ads From The End Of The Conversion Funnel
The statistics that best gauge whether or not your Facebook Ad is doing well are those at the end of your conversion funnel. That is, whether or not your end desired result is being fulfilled. This could be anything from getting people to opt in to a newsletter, make a purchase or download a document.
By looking at the end of the conversion funnel, instead of just focusing on click-through rates and reach, you’ll know which areas of your Ad and the funnel needs adjusting. For example, if plenty of people are clicking on your Facebook Ad which takes them through to a blog post, but then not taking up the offer on that post, perhaps you need to make the offer stand out more. Or maybe the content or deign needs to be reworked.
Whatever it is, by focusing on your Conversion statistics, not just Click-Through-Rates, you’ll know how to best optimize your Ad for greater success.
Prioritise Your Existing Clients
While its assumed that it’s best to target completely new, or ‘cold’ customers, why would you spend all that time and money chasing them when you can target people who you know already like your Business or have purchased from you before?
By promoting your content to your existing audience first, you’ll have to do a lot less work to entice them to your content. They’ve already shown an interest in your products, perhaps know your brand name, and have maybe even purchased from you before. Even just having this connection with your Business will make them more likely to engage with your Facebook Ad.
One of the benefits of targeting existing customers first, followed by the wider industry, is that your Facebook Ads will already have quality feedback from your existing clients. This means, by the time it reaches your cold audience, the higher the chances of a click or a call to action because of the social proof attached to the promoted content.
Don’t Be Just Another Generic Ad
Digital Marketing studies have shown that a lot of users can be deterred from clicking on an obvious Ad banner, or a “Sponsored” Ad, because it feels like a forced sale. Customers want the freedom to decide for themselves if they should buy your products and services.
For this reason, it can be highly effective to simply insert a URL to your Website or landing page into your Ad content. This will see your viewer taken away from Facebook and onto your page, making it feel more like a genuine experience, rather than simply a ‘just another Facebook Ad’ scenario. They have committed to your Business by actively deciding to click away from Facebook. And that commitment means a lot in terms of Marketing success.
Adding your URL in the Ad copy also gives the user the option to act quickly. If they like what they’ve read and want to respond, give them the option to do so without having to get all the way down to the button.
Make Your Ad Attractive
Sometimes the best hacks are the simplest. Designing an Ad that is visually appealing is often overlooked in favour of keyword text and prices. But you should never (we repeat!), never underestimate the power of good design when it comes to your Marketing efforts.
Facebook even offers a “Creative Tips” feature to offer assistance, as they know this is a big factor for the Online audience. The best way to draw attention to your Ad is to incorporate attractive photos, cool animations and fun videos. Even if they make the user stop for half a second, that’s more than enough time to make them decide if they want to keep reading, or click on your Ad. Achieve that and it’s Mission Accomplished!
Stay On Top Of Industry Trends
Knowing your market involves a little bit of research and, if done consistently, it will pay off in your Facebook Ads. As mentioned previously, Facebook Ads are terrific for targeting a specific type of user, meaning you should always keep up-to-date with what your target audience like and are talking about. This will give you the best idea of how to appeal to them and stand out against your competition.
A well-researched and thought out custom-designed Facebook Ad allows you to make the necessary changes when you feel it’s time to target a particular customer at a specific time. As your market changes, your Facebook Ad should too, as well as your Website.
Remember too, that not only will you receive more clicks on your Facebook Ad if you’re more appealing, but users are more likely to remember your brand and like your Business if you’re offering them things they actually want or need.
Hopefully, these key Facebook Ad Hacks will help you create an effective Ad Campaign that will give you more customers, leads and sales! With solid research and monitoring, clever text and appealing visuals, you’ll be able to run a successful Ad Campaign that gets your Small Business the clicks it needs and your Conversion Rates up.
