There is a lot of noise out there about advertising through Facebook Ads and whether or not it’s worth it.
We’re not going to debate that issue, I mean, we are a marketing agency specialising in this stuff so we know it’s worth it…when it works.
The truth is though, that 80% of Facebook ads do fail.
By fail, we refer to the ad not gaining any traction or return on your investment. But that doesn’t mean the platform isn’t worth using? We don’t think so.
So why aren’t your ads reaching anyone? Why aren’t you selling more products? Why aren’t people connecting to you through your ads?
Here are the top 5 reasons we’ve found that Facebook Ads fail.
FACEBOOK ADS TARGETING
Here is a fun example.
I’m lucky enough to live in the beautiful sunshine state of Queensland, Australia. I was scrolling through Instagram the other day and a sponsored post came up for a lawn mowing service. That in itself wasn’t strange, I had recently been searching some landscaping related topics (not as boring as it sounds).
The strange part about it was that it was a small town lawn mowing business in South Australia, almost 2000km away. So they had the interest targeting done right but forgot to restrict the location.
This is just one example, but time and time again we see ads that are reaching the wrong people. Facebook has powerful targeting tools based on users interest and behaviour, job titles, lookalike audiences even let you target people that fit the profile of those who are already using your service. The list goes on and on.
Getting your ads in front of the right people is the first step to making it work for you.
THE CREATIVE & COPY
So your ads are in front of the right people, but that how do you ensure they click on your ads?
If you use Facebook or Instagram personally, I’m sure you would be aware of the sheer amount of ads that are popping up. Without the right creative and copy, the chances are your potential customers will scroll right on by.
The copy of the ad needs to call out the audience and show immediate value. The video or image should reflect your brand and your offering. And whilst professional videos and images always look great, we have seen many creatives captured on a phone and perform well.
The main goal with creative & copy is to make sure it grabs the attention of the user. The more people that stop instead of scrolling by, the better your results will be!
CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVE
Facebook Advertising has a number of different campaign objectives depending on what you want to achieve.
Do you want more sales? more traffic? More likes on your page?
Often a boosted post will just be directed to get the post in front of a person. By choosing the right objective for your campaign, Facebook will put your ads in front of people who are most likely to take that desired action.
If you are looking to get more sales, but your campaign is just set to get people to see your ad in a brand awareness campaign, your amount of click-throughs and therefore sales will be really low because as far as Facebook is concerned, having a brand awareness campaign, you just want people to see your ad and that’s it.
FACEBOOK PIXEL
If you are running any Facebook advertising, the first step to making it work for you is to have a Facebook Pixel installed on your website.
A Pixel is coded into your website and tracks any activity on your website, particularly and activity from Facebook ads.
From an e-commerce perspective, this allows you to track how many people have landed on your website, how many have gone through and looked at specific products and how many people have actually purchased as a direct result from your ads. It also allows you to get ads back in front of people who have recently visited your website.
Essentially, ensuring a pixel is installed on your website will massively increase the effectiveness of your Facebook ads.
FACEBOOK CHANGES
Facebook advertising is constantly evolving. With that means that the platform is ever changing.
There doesn’t seem to be a week that goes by that there isn’t a change that appears. A lot of the time they are minor changes or the addition of a new feature that is designed to make your advertising life just that little bit more simpler.
But along with these minor changes, every now and then there are major changes that can affect the way that your existing campaigns are working. Whilst it is great to see these improvements constantly coming through, if you are not in the platform every day, the chances are you won’t even notice these changes.
If you are going to spend money on Facebook advertising, be prepared to spend time on the platform so that when changes happen you know how it will affect your campaigns.
WRAP UP
Like any advertising, you want to know that the money you are spending is worth it and that your campaigns are going to get the desired results.
The truth is in the Facebook world, this doesn’t always happen. By keeping on top of these few areas, you will give your ads the best possible chance of seeing success.
It does take time and learning, but we assure you it’s worth it. On the other hand, if you don’t really have the time to learn all things Facebook ads, we would love to chat with you about our Facebook Advertising packages!
Does this resonate with you?
Maybe you run a business and you are wanting to see better returns from your ad spend?
Maybe you would like to see better results but don’t have the time to learn the platform?
We would love to have a chat with you about how we can help you achieve the results you want to see!
