You know more about Facebook ads than the average social media marketing bear, but how do you bring all of that together? After all, just knowing what an engagement ad does isn’t enough to get major attention on your posts!
Don’t worry, I’m here to explain what you need to do to have a successful Facebook ad campaign for your local business. Ready? Let’s work out how you’re going to grow your business with Facebook ads!
Set Goals
The mantra you’ll always hear in marketing is that your goals should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. What does that mean in real people speak?
You need to have a firm goal (e.g. a cost-per-click of $0.75), it needs to be something you can track, related to your business and its needs (if you’re trying to get people to visit your website, don’t waste money trying to get comments on your posts), something you can reasonably achieve, and it needs a set deadline. Of course you’ll get 100 clicks on your posts eventually, but it’s only a SMART goal if there’s a reasonable deadline attached to it.
Take a look at what you want to achieve with your ads. Do you want to talk to customers, drive traffic to your website, or something else? Whatever it is, identify exactly what results you’re after before you even think about creating an ad.
Look Nearby
I’m sure your business is great, but very, very few people are going to drive 30 miles to go to a business they’ve never heard of before. You’re a local business, so market locally!
When you’re establishing the audience for your Facebook ad, try putting in specific zip codes or only sending the ad out to people within 15 miles of your store’s location. Yes, you’re reducing the number of people who are going to see your ad, but why would you want your money to go to putting an ad in front of someone who’s too far away to ever purchase from your visit? The beauty of social media advertising is that you can get specific and make the most of your investment, so put that to work with your Facebook ads!
Optimize Timing
Thanks to Facebook’s “Insights” tab, you can track when your followers are online. Those are the times you should be posting! If your target audience works in an office, then posting your ad while they’re working is probably a bad move. But running your ad right after they get off or when they’re on their lunch breaks has a much higher chance of being effective.
Because you’re a local business, this is especially important. There might not be that many people in your immediate area who fit your target audience, so it’s vital that you reach as many of them as possible!
Don’t limit it to specific times, either. What about days? Have you noticed a drop in social media engagement on Tuesdays? Then don’t have your ad run on those days! When I say you can (and should) customize these ads, I mean it. Don’t be so obsessed with appealing to every single person on Facebook that people who might actually like your store never see your ads.
Start Testing
You won’t get your first ad 100% right. That just isn’t a realistic expectation for somebody who’s new to Facebook advertising. But you can use this advice to skip a lot of pitfalls and make your first ad a worthy investment in your business’ future. So put a lot of thought into it, follow my advice here, and be prepared to record your results so you can make your following Facebook ad even better!
Could you use a hand with your Facebook advertising? Get started with a free consultation from The Go! Agency!
