Stop Everything, You’re Doing it Wrong
It takes great restraint to enter the informational candy store that is Facebook Ads Manager and not salivate and hand them your money. It seems so easy! So intuitive! So cheap! For just $5 you can reach all of your potential fans and customers and exponentially grow your business!
Kind of.
It is not false that Facebook Ads is an extremely powerful, effective, and easy way to grow your business. However, it is also an extremely easy way to waste money, annoy potential customers, and become extremely frustrated. Want to make sure you do none of the above? Well, keep reading to see some common mistakes people make when advertising on Facebook, and what you should be doing instead.
You Don’t Have a Purpose
A broad and harsh statement, I know, but you really need to ask yourself what the point of your ad is if you don’t want to virtually set your money on fire. I don’t know about you, but I frequently see “Sponsored” posts in my newsfeed that tell me nothing, don’t direct me anywhere, and aren’t engaging in any way. Ads such as these are typically the result of a page manager “boosting” a post and are almost always a waste of your money.
Have a plan in place. Map out a buyer’s journey for your product or service, and create an ad strategy that will funnel people into it. [INSERT EXAMPLE]
You Are Coming on Too Strong
Advertising is a lot like dating (except I’m not bad at advertising). You have to be an exceptionally charming individual to walk up to a stranger, propose marriage, have them accept, and then live happily-ever-after, correct? Well, in advertising, you are your product and a purchase is an accepted marriage proposal. I’ve gotten ads from companies I have never heard of for products I know nothing about that immediately ask me to buy something. Pardon? Buy a girl dinner first…or at least offer her a free trial!
Date your future customers. Build your relationship. Will your audience pool get smaller as you move down the funnel? Yes. But that is ok! That is great! You (hopefully) wouldn’t spend time and money dating someone who actively avoided you, right? Well, don’t advertise to them either.
You Are Missing Out on Data
You know how scientists catch sharks, tag them with a tracker, and then follow their journeys to learn more about them? Facebook does the same thing to you, it just happens to be on your computer rather than your dorsal fin. It’s called a Pixel and it is amazing. They are relatively easy to install on your website, and one of the best ways to really get to know your audience. Have you ever wondered how companies deliver ads to you about what you left in your cart? Well, this is how they do it, and how you can too!
You’re Being Boring
You wrote an awesome (in your opinion) ad. Great! Now change it. You can easily duplicate your ads in the Ads Manager, so try some stuff out! Does a button work for this ad, or do people respond more when it doesn’t? Should you ask a question in your copy, or do your customers want you to make a statement? There are so many variables you can test- so go ahead and do it! Then, once your ad has been running for a few days, you will be able to slowly week out ads that aren’t getting engagement, and funnel your budget to the good ads with full confidence! Which brings me to my next point…
You’re a Negligent Caretaker
Checking in on your ads every hour isn’t a fruitful use of your time, but never checking in is worse. There are several factors that determine how frequently you should be looking at your performance results such as how long your ad will be running and the size of your audience. However, you should aim to have a good idea of your stats at all times. As you start to see some ads lag behind the pack, take note and consider turning that particular ad off. Making sure your ads are relevant and engaging will ensure good standing with Facebook and will be the most effective use of your budget. So, DO IT!