Facebook Advertising

Collecting these millions of data allows for highly targeted advertising. Advertisers on Facebook can specify exactly what kind of users they want their ads to be shown to. Entrepreneurs know their target audience(s) inside out. On Facebook, they can specify exactly who their target audience is, how old it is, what they like and what they are looking for. This allows Facebook to show the developed ads exactly in the news feed of users that match the target audience description of the advertiser. So your ads are only shown to relevant users.

In addition to ads in the news feed, ads can also be shown in the ad space to the right of the news feed. Within Google, ads are shown in the paid search results only when a user searches for a particular keyword that matches the ad. Within Facebook, a user does not have to search on a particular search term, but the platform already knows which users are relevant to an ad. This allows advertisers to show the ads created to their target audience(s) how often and when they want. Lastly, advertising within Facebook will increase the reach and brand awareness of your business. With a tactical strategy, you then hope to drive relevant users to your website or online store and make conversions.

Facebook forms of advertising

We have seen how advertising on Facebook works and how you can reach your target group(s). But different target groups also require different advertising forms to be stimulated. Within the platform there are therefore numerous possibilities to reach your target. There are also many different goals for business owners to invest in Facebook advertising. Different types of ads apply to different goals. In total, Facebook has 12 different ad forms. Below they are all explained and discussed when which ad form is best to use.

Dynamic Product Ads can be displayed in the news feed or ad space in Facebook as Carousel Ads or Link Ads. The advantage of a Carousel Ad with a Dynamic Product Ad is that the advertiser does not have to create specific ads per product, but it is automatically developed based on a (standard) template. Thus, personalized ads are developed for different customers.

But how can you as an advertiser get started with Dynamic Product Ads? Here is a brief summary of the tasks to be performed:

• 1. First, upload your product feed to Facebook’s Business Manager.
• 2. In the backend of your website/webshop, place a retargeting pixel that includes Product IDs when collecting data.
• 3. Develop a creative but standard template that will be populated by Facebook based on the retargeting pixel.

Text Ads

The least used ad type in practice are Facebook’s Text Ads. Nevertheless, we briefly mention the ad type because it allows an advertiser to promote a page post. This page post consists only of text and can thus be promoted. In Text Ads, the advertiser can use a maximum of 500 characters in the description. The first 150 characters of the description are shown in the ad. The other part of the description can be read by the user by pressing the ‘read more’ button.

Offer Ads

When an advertiser wants to generate additional revenue and sales, using Offer Ads is a strong tactic. Offer Ads are ads that present Facebook users with offers. The ad can be displayed in the news feed and ad space. An Offer Ad contains a “discount code” button that the user can click on to claim his or her discount. In this way, advertisers selling products hope to trigger potential customers to make a purchase. This purchase can often be redeemed online or offline through the discount code. Offer Ads are still little used by advertisers in the Netherlands. This is unfortunate because Offer Ads can be very profitable. Moreover, users who have claimed a discount code can be sent an automatic reminder via an Offer Ad. Finally, the advertiser can always set a limit on the number of claimed discount codes.

Lead Ads

The newest ad type within Facebook are Lead Ads. Lead Ads are ads developed specifically to generate leads. With a Lead Ad, the lead is generated by receiving a contact form. But how does this work? As an advertiser, you develop your Lead Ad in Facebook. This is then shown in the news feed or ad space to relevant users. When a user actively clicks on your Lead Ad, a contact form will be filled out automatically. For this, the platform uses its collected data from users. The user only has to click agree plus submit and you have a completed contact form from a lead.

Event Ads

If you are an entrepreneur organizing an event for your business, Event Ads from Facebook can be very relevant. After all, for an offline event, you can ensure many visitors online and thus a successful event. Once you have created an event within Facebook, you can develop an Event Ads. The Event Ad uses a large cover photo, title, description, address and a button that allows users to indicate that they will attend the event. Event Ads are displayed in users’ news feed and ad space. The big advantage of Event Ads is the link to your event page. Users who insist on attending your event will automatically have it in their Facebook calendar and receive a reminder.

Mobile App Install Ads aim to generate more new users for your app. Mobile App Install Ads are only shown to Facebook users in their news feed. Within Facebook, you can set which type of device and operating system (Android or iOS) should be targeted for your Mobile App Install Ads. In addition, you can also show your ads only to users who are connected to a Wifi connection. This is particularly relevant with Mobile App Install Ads because it allows the user to download your app under a free connection.

Mobile App Engagement Ads aim to increase interaction with current users of your app. An example is showing a Mobile App Install Ad indicating that the user can get a new level of outfit in the app. Important when using Mobile App Install & Engagement Ads is that the user registers the app with Facebook and puts the SDK code in the app’s source code.

Desktop App Ads

The last ad type from Facebook that we will discuss are Desktop App Ads. As the name suggests, Desktop App Ads are ads shown to users who specifically use a desktop. For Desktop App Ads, the same applies as Mobile App Ads; first, the app must be registered with the Facebook App Center. Then, an advertiser can deploy Desktop App Ads for their application.

Desktop App Ads consist of large images or a video, a title, a description and a call to action. This call to action usually takes something in the form of a “Play Now” or “Install Now” button. In addition, a Desktop App Ad indicates the application’s rating. A user can click on a Desktop App Ad, agree to the condition and the app is installed on their desktop.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Facebook advertising?

When setting up your ad campaigns within Facebook, you will run into a lot of issues. And you will see that there are advantages and disadvantages when advertising on the platform. We walk through the advantages and disadvantages of Facebook advertising below.

What are the advantages of Facebook advertising?

1. Facebook ads are targeted

As we have seen above, there are 12 different options within the platform in terms of ad type. Each ad type has its own goals in mind. For example, generating more traffic or conversions or simply increasing your brand awareness. By advertising on Facebook you can be very targeted and always find an ad type that suits your goals.

2. Facebook ads are accurate and affordable

Facebook collects millions of personal data from its users. This makes it possible for Facebook to show your ads to a specific group of users. Within the platform, the advertiser can specify very specifically which users are allowed to see the ad and which are not. This way you can develop very targeted and relevant ads for your target group(s). Moreover, with Facebook advertising you can have a huge reach. Lastly, with the right approach, the ads are very reasonably affordable.

3. Facebook ads are ideal for remarketing

In remarketing, as an advertiser you try to show targeted ads to users who have already shown interest in your products or services. For example, when a user views a product on your webshop but does not proceed to purchase, you can show a targeted ad to this user with a discount code for that particular product. To do this, you must first place a Facebook pixel (piece of code) in the backend of your website/webshop. This then measures, for example, which Facebook ads generate conversions on your website. In addition, you can use the Facebook Pixel to create custom target groups. These specific target groups can then be targeted with remarketing ads.

4. Similar target groups

The Facebookpixel in the backend of your website or webshop can also use the collected data to create similar target groups. Comparable audiences are audiences that are comparable to your existing website visitors. Via the Facebookpixel, advertisers can thus find new potential customers who are comparable and thus relevant to their current customers.

5. Facebook Ads increase visibility and brand awareness

Using Facebook advertising increases your visibility and brand awareness. Users of the social media platform are automatically shown relevant ads in their news feed or ad space.

6. Facebook uses social proof

Social proof means that one consumer increases the trust of another by providing proof that the product or service is correct. Facebook ads take advantage of this by including with an ad who of his or her friends/friends already liked or bought that product. When your friends or friends provide proof or trust something, you are more likely to trust the product in the ad as well.

7. Facebook offers useful analytics tools

Finally, a huge advantage of advertising via Facebook is that it offers very handy and relevant analysis tools. This way, the advertiser can also measure his online marketing activities within the platform where he or she advertises. Ads can thus be quickly adjusted, optimized and reposted. Below are three useful tools from Facebook to analyze your ads:

• Facebook page statistics provides all kinds of statistics about your pages, target audience, their interests and behavior.
• Facebook Pixels and conversion pixels are pieces of code that you can place in the source code of your website or webshop. These pixels keep track of conversions on your website/webshop realized by your Facebook ads. So you know exactly which conversions and how many are realized by which Facebook ad.
• A/B split test is a test that allows you to measure the performance of 2 equivalent ads. This way, as an advertiser, you can compare which of two roughly similar ads performs better.

What are the disadvantages of Facebook advertising?

What does Facebook advertising cost?

The cost of Facebook advertising depends on a number of factors. Namely, the advertiser can make different choices with regard to setting up his ad account and setting up ad campaigns. In addition, choices in managing the campaigns and ad budget also determine the final cost.

What payment models does Facebook use for advertising?

Within Facebook advertising, there are three options in terms of payment models for the advertiser. This does not mean that one of the three is the best or worst. As just mentioned, the final cost of your ads depends on the choices you make in your advertising process. Some ads and intended goals require a different approach, billing model and thus cost. We walk through Facebook’s three billing models below.

• 1. Cost per Mille (CPM)

Facebook’s first billing model is Cost per Mille (CPM). CPM means that the advertiser should pay per 1,000 impressions of his ad within his target audience. If your goal as an advertiser is to generate more brand awareness with your ads, CPM as a billing model is a wise choice.

• 2. Cost per Click (CPC)

Facebook’s second billing model is Cost per Click (CPC). The name says it all, but with CPC, the advertiser pays every time his ad is clicked on by a user in his target audience. So it does not cost the advertiser any money to have his ad displayed in the news feed or ad space of Facebook users. The CPC payment method for advertisers is a good choice at a time when conversions are the goal of your ad campaign.

• 3. Cost per Like (CPL)

Facebook’s final payment model is Cost per Like (CPL). Advertisers then use Page Like Ads with which they want to get more likes/fans for their business page. Page Like Ads contain a like button that users can click on to directly like or follow an advertiser/brand. If the CPL payment model is chosen, advertisers will have to pay the moment a user clicks the like button.

Why is Facebook advertising important?

In this article we have been able to read about what advertising through Facebook means for you as a business owner. Thus, we have seen that there are many advantages to advertising through Facebook. Consumers have an increasingly active online presence and thus also on social media platforms. Facebook also sees this and is constantly trying to optimize its platform. An example of this is the Marketplace on Facebook where users and companies can sell products or services to each other. So it is a big waste if you are an entrepreneur and sell products/services but miss out on sales by not being active on Facebook.

In addition, there is a choice for every advertiser on Facebook to find their target audience(s) through a particular opportunity. Because Facebook offers 12 different ad types, there is always an option that fits your business and target audience. Will you advertise for more brand awareness, traffic, conversions or likes? Plus, with the handy analytics tools, you can instantly see how your ad campaigns are doing and where they can be optimized.

Outsource Facebook advertising to Convident

Now that we know what is involved in Facebook advertising, you may be a bit put off. There are indeed a number of things that need to be completed and tracked when you choose to advertise on the social media platform. It starts with creating a Facebook account and business page, then the advertising account needs to be set up and the various advertising campaigns developed. If you think that everything is then in place and you are therefore ready, you are unfortunately not quite right. Because a big part of advertising through Facebook is analyzing and optimizing your ads. So Facebook advertising is a process that you as an advertiser and business owner need to be constantly engaged in. Facebook changes, its users change, and the possibilities within ad types and payment models change with it. As an entrepreneur, a lot of time, energy and therefore money can go into this method of advertising.

It may be wiser to outsource your Facebook advertising campaigns to Convident. Our online marketers have a lot of experience with advertising through social media channels. Facebook in particular is a platform that our SEA specialist knows all the ins and outs of. Moreover, we provide a clearly outlined social media marketing plan. Because our philosophy is that a success story can only go hand in hand with a clear strategy. We sit down together to get a clear picture of your wishes, then together we formulate goals that we want to work towards. Once our plan of action has been established, the Facebook advertising can begin. Your advertising account is fully set up by us and advertising campaigns are developed with the best types for the desired results. Finally, our social media specialists provide monthly reports on your campaigns. Here you can see how your ads are performing, what the results have been and where improvements can be made. Convident is an advisory party and together we will determine the next steps.

Curious about the possibilities of advertising through Facebook? Feel free to contact us or drop by the office for a cup of coffee! Our online marketers are happy to help.