5 Tips for Creating Effective Facebook Ads

Do Facebook ads even work? Before last month I would have answered NO to this question.

After all, I have a Facebook account that I use for both personal reasons (to keep in touch with family and friends) and for business reasons (to build communities and communicate with customers).

Despite being on Facebook every day, I have never clicked on an ad on Facebook. So, I assumed everyone was like me and just ignored those annoying ads.

Boy, was I wrong. The Facebook ad budget of both large corporations and small businesses is increasing each and every year. This is because Facebook advertising is proving effective to businesses.

Kenshoo Social recently reported statistics showing that the click-through rates and sales conversions from Facebook ads are increasing at over 10% each year. Ads are becoming more effective because of the advanced audience targeting that is possible on Facebook.

It is no secret that businesses can reach their ideal customers on Facebook. However, an ad is useless if it cannot attract your ideal prospects in the first place.

Here are 5 tips for helping you to create effective Facebook ads – ones that get the attention needed:

Tip #1: Red Border Around Ad Image

The purpose of the Ad Image is to get attention. Let’s face it, most people on Facebook are not looking for advertisements. So, your ad must “interrupt” their time on Facebook.

The way to do this is with the Ad Image. You want your image to have visual elements that attract eyeballs. One of the best methods for doing this is to put a red border around the image that you use for your ad. The red contrasts with the white and blue of the Facebook website pages.

Tip #2: Use a Question as Your Ad Headline

When someone reads a question, they automatically answer that question in their mind. By asking a question, you are getting an additional few seconds of engagement and that is what you want when you are working to get the attention of your target market.

Tip #3: Short Punchy Description (Not Too Wordy)

When it comes to other advertisement options, like classified ads and pay-per-click on Google, business owners want to use the maximum amount of characters allowed.

With Facebook ads, the opposite is true. You want short punchy ad copy. This is so that it is easier and faster to read. With longer ad copy your ad will not be read by Facebook users.

Tip #4: Extreme Targeting

The reason Facebook is currently one of the most effective advertising platforms is its ability to laser target an audience for an ad. Take advantage of this audience targeting.

First, create an avatar of your ideal customer. Is this person a male or female, what age group, what interests? Then use the ads manager platform to laser target the audience that will see your ads.

This tip is so important because without proper targeting – you could lose a lot of money.

Tip #5: Split Test Obsessively

This last tip is one that we all know we should do, but most of us will not do it. Advertising is a numbers game. You are always asking yourself am I making more in revenue from my advertisement than I am spending to place that ad?

Ads are more of an art than a science, and the process of split testing and adjusting to improve your sales conversions is an essential requirement for having ads that work for the long term.

Always have a control ad (your best performing ad) and send 75% of traffic to that ad. On Facebook, you do that by having 3 exact ads in a campaign. Then for the 4th ad always be testing a different one. Gather the results and keep improving the control ad.

Conclusion

For the home business owner, Facebook offers a goldmine opportunity to reach your target market without having to spend thousands of dollars on advertising.

Take advantage of this opportunity but follow the tips above and keep working on your ad images, headlines, copy, and targeting until you have an ad that consistently performs in bringing a return on investment for your business!

Amyli McDaniel is the Founder of Parent Entrepreneurs, a community dedicated to supporting and teaching parents how to build lifestyle supportive businesses as a means to have more financial security and time freedom so that they and their families can live life on their own terms.