How to make a Facebook Ad

Why should you try Facebook?

Marketing your business online can be intimidating, but it has never been easier or cheaper to advertise on social media platforms. Over the past few years Facebook ads have become very effective. Users pay for advertisements and target customers in extreme detail. It's possible to create an ad so specific that it targets a known individual without using their name or identification. One person targeted a Facebook ad so specifically that he was able to create an ad that went only to his roommate. Facebook ads can be a huge asset to business owners if you know how to use them. We've created a step by step guide to help you more effectively and easily promote your business online.

Back to the Basics

The first step in setting up a Facebook ad campaign is making sure you have a Facebook page for your business. Use your personal account to create a page. Facebook will walk you through the setup process and best of all: it's free! We encourage you to fill out all of the information while creating the Facebook page. Information such as location, website and phone number will all be pertinent to the success of your ad.

First steps to an Ad

Once your business page is set up you can then begin to advertise. Come up with an idea for an advertisement such as creating an event, a coupon or a special promotion. You can also simply drive traffic to your website, promote your page, or promote a specific post you've created.

Once you have your advertisement in mind consider one of the following options Facebook offers you:

Ongoing Promotions
Build Your Business
Get more Website Visitors
Promote Your Page
Share Page With Friends

Ongoing Promotions lets you set up monthly payments so you can create an ad and let it run for a long period of time.

The Build Your Business feature puts a "like now" button on the promotion so that people don't have to leave their feed to like your page. That provides you with a major advantage because it makes it much easier for users to like your page. This style can be good if you have fun and exciting content on Facebook. Another benefit is now that people have liked your page they will receive your future posts in their feed. That's some free future advertising!

The Get More Website Visitors ad will contain a button linked directly to your website so that when people click on the advertisement they will be redirected to the webpage of your choice. This can be very advantageous if you run an online store or blog and you're trying to increase your web traffic. It's an excellent option if your emphasis is on your business website more than social media.

Promote Your Page is very similar to The Build Your Business option in that it asks a person to like your page in the ad. The difference is that your company name and how many people have liked the page will be displayed. If you have a lot of followers this can be a great option. Customers like to see that a lot of people have liked a page and that momentum lends you instant credibility.

Finally, the Share Page With Friends tab should be one of your very first steps. If you already have a personal Facebook page and some friends, inviting people is a great way to get free views and likes on your page.

Headline & Content

When choosing content make sure you have your end goal in mind. whether it's brand recognition, website views, or sales make sure viewers know the purpose. The purpose of the ad should be included in the headline. Asking a question to your target audience can be a great catch but make sure it's concise. Stay as close to five words as possible.

Content is important because it is the bridge between the eye-catching headline and a click. 14 words is the recommend amount for most ads. Give a little more detail about what you can do for a potential viewer. Using words like free, new, and instantly will also help people stay interested.

Targeting Your Market

Facebook allows you to market your ads very specifically, making it so only the type of people you choose will see your ads. You can choose the age, gender, relationship status, income level, job title, hobbies and many other details pertaining to your ad. Only people of your specification will receive the ad and you can even choose who you would like to exclude from the ad.

When it comes to choosing the audience your ad will target, decide if you want to target broadly or narrowly. For example, If you own a girl's retail clothing store in Northwest California, you can be that specific. Only girls in Northwest California with interest in clothing or fashion will receive your ads if that's what you choose.

Exclusions can be very useful for getting rid of people who are within the parameters you set but have no chance of becoming customers. If you own a bar for example, exclude people who don't drink or are below the required age. You want to narrow the field as much as possible to ensure none of your ad dollars are being wasted.

Conclusion

Creating a Facebook ad really can be easy. If you know who you want to target it is also extremely effective. If you think you have an audience on Facebook, advertising with Facebook ads is almost guaranteed to help them find you. Using the analytics tab on your business page will tell you how well your advertisement did. The feedback you get will help you decide whether you should continue the ad or change to a different strategy. You will probably discover there is no better place to experiment with inexpensive advertising.

This basic guide should help you create your first Facebook ad. You can visit the Facebook Help Page for more information or you can contact us and we will help you create more advanced and effective Facebook ads. It's possible you have a huge audience just waiting for you so go try creating your own Facebook ad.

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