Is your Facebook Ad really effective?

For new business runners, it is very likely to be confused by the decent engagement data generated by sponsored Facebook ads. By simply clicking through the ‘boost your post’ button, they can easily gain a great amount of engagement such as likes, comments, and shares, which gives them an illusion that their businesses have been known by many consumers and they will get back to them for profitable transactions very soon. However, is that really what those business owners have imagined? Probably not. I believe if you have purchased engagement ads on Facebook once, you might have realized that that ad could only bring you engagement, but might not bring you traffic for your website or generate high-quality leads.

So, why is this the case? The answer is simple: ad engagement does not equal to revenue. That is to say, no matter how viral your ads can become, if those engagements and interactions can not be converted into leads which ultimately become your real customers, this marketing campaign can not count as a success. Therefore, understanding what your company’s objectives are and have a general idea about different types of ads provided by Facebook is essential for you to conduct an effective marketing campaign and save money. So what choices do we have here on Facebook? Remember, any ad you choose for your business should be based on your specific goals or objectives. 1.Post engagement ads This is the most simple and obvious ad type that you can apply on Facebook. You may have noticed that, under each post of your business Facebook account, there is a ‘boost post’ button. You can customize your requirements such as goals, target audience, budget, and duration under this promotion option. After filling out your payment information, your ads can appear on the Facebook page of your potential customers. If your content is interesting enough, some people may interact with you under this ad by liking, commenting or sharing. This type of ad is suitable for companies that have an engagement goal to build brand awareness. However, it may not be effective in generating leads because if consumers usually would not trust a brand that they see for the first time.

2.Clicks to website ads If your business is content-driven, you may want to leverage your social media platforms to attract more traffic to your website. This traffic goal should rely on ‘Clicks to website ads’. One specific feature of this type of ad is that they provide a ‘call-to-action’ button on the ad page such as subscribe, book now and learn more, etc. If your ad content really attracts your audience, they may want to learn more about your website by clicking those buttons which will direct them to your own website. To make the customer journey smoother, Facebook even provides a cookie that allows your target audience to access your website without leaving the Facebook page so that they are more likely to stay on your page for a longer time.

3.Conversion ads/ Lead ads When online followers leave their personal information in your lead forms, they become a lead for you to follow up, after which they may be converted into your real customers who actually pay you for products or services. To convert people who see your ads into a lead more effectively, the conversion ads or lead ads are a good place to start. A handy tool on Facebook is that you can insert your conversion form into your Facebook ad, which allows your potential customers to fill out their information without leaving their Facebook page. Meanwhile, since Facebook has already collected some basic information of its users such as name and email, it can automatically fill those blanks for them if they want to fill the lead form. This not only creates users a smoother online experience but also increases the possibilities that they are willing to fill your lead form because some information has been automatically filled.

Summary To summarize, the ads you choose for your marketing campaigns should be based on your business goals. 1. Engagement - Post boost ads 2. Traffic - Clicks to web ads 3. Conversion - Conversion ads/Lead ads