About to Give Up on Your Facebook Ads?
If you're about to tear your hair out because all your time, money and effort put into creating Facebook ads has shown you a very pathetic return on investment, don't despair. Ask not what Facebook ads can do for you, but what you can do for Facebook ads. In other words, it may be time to revisit your existing campaigns and give them some much-needed TLC. Here are 5 questions you should ask yourself if your Facebook ads aren't generating clicks.
#1: Are you Sure You're Targeting Properly?
Here's an example of lazy ad targeting: you sell shoes. Women typically like shoes. Older women don't generally wear the shoes you sell. Therefore, you target all women below a certain age. While you're not
wrong to think that young women like to wear shoes,
there are a lot of ways to improve your targeting so that you're not wasting your time and money on a broad, unresponsive audience. Some women like shoes, but they can't afford your high prices. Some women have never even shopped for shoes online before. Targeting too vast of an audience is expensive and not very lucrative. Alternatively, setting super-exclusive criteria that only reaches a very limited audience is also not very productive.
How should you start targeting?
- Don't just base your target on a general demographic, such as age or gender. Instead, start thinking about putting your ads in front of people based on their interest.
Facebook has many resources to help you find the targeting sweet spot. For more information on audience targeting, click here.
#2: Are Your Ads Duller Than a Box of Crackers?
We humans are simple creatures. We naturally gravitate toward brightness and beauty. It's an instinctive impulse that you should be tapping into. Your audience will barely give your ad a glance, so you have to make sure to immediately grab their interest in that fraction of a second they'll spend hovering over your ad. The easiest way to catch their eye is to provide beautiful, high-quality images and compelling text that will actually make them click.
Check out Facebook's inspiration gallery to motivate your next campaign.
#3: Are You Spending Enough on Your Facebook Ads?
Facebook is not like a newspaper where an ad can cost as much as a mortgage for a weekend print run. There are options for everyone, from the small one-person business to large corporations. Your advertising costs will largely depend on your target audience and the nature of your business. That being said, the better your strategy the further your money will go. Not being willing to spend money on your ad means that another ad will likely outbid you. Consider the maximum amount you spend on an ad. Is it always getting outbid? Try increasing it. You can do this manually and change it whenever.
For more information about how Facebook ad bidding works, click here.
#4: Are You Using the Right Type of Facebook Ad?
Facebook doesn't want to inundate people with the same old ad format over and over again. There are so many different styles of advertisements that all you have to do is choose one that your audience is responding to. For instance, an online high-end sock retailer will probably want to capitalize on Carousel's bright images and the ability to show multiple pictures in one advertising space. On the other hand, a neighbourhood family doctor will get better ad value from using a Local Awareness advert.
#5: Are You Testing Your Ads?
If you're spending money on an ad, you may as well make sure it's working for you. Often businesses do A/B Testing to figure out what's working and what isn't. A/B Testing is essentially putting out two advertisements and finding out which one is getting a better response. How should
Ad B differ from
Ad A?
- The copy
- Any images
- The placement of images of text
- The design of the ad, such as the colours and fonts.
- Your target audience
Testing out different design elements on a different audience will give you a better understanding of what people are responding to and who's responding to them. You can even run your A/B versions through an A/B Test.
It's All About the Brand
Without your brand, no one will distinguish you from the rest of the crowd. You'll quickly find that if your brand isn't strong enough to begin with, your Facebook advertising (or any advertising for that matter) won't go anywhere. Successful branding is one of the most important aspects of business. Before you even try to advertise, make sure you have top-of-the-line branding. If you're looking for a brand-obsessed company to create the most beautiful representation of your business, contact
Awkward Media today.
