Anyone who wants to advertise goods and services with Facebook ads should take the time to plan a campaign before spending any money. Using this social networking giant to reach your target audience can be a wise move as long as you do not make the common beginner mistakes that will see expenses far exceed the return on investment. Once the ad starts running on the site, you must monitor the performance carefully so adjustments can be made as necessary. Many entrepreneurs will spend money for advertising and hope for the best but this can get expensive and is foolish if the advertiser is not seeing the desired results.
I suggest one sure-fire way to get the most out of any Facebook Ad campaign: Split-Testing. Why should you split test your ads? Because split testing works, and it saves money.
Some people will pay the $100 to Facebook for a marketing campaign but fail to recognize the importance of investing in an attractive ad that delivers the right message. If the ad is not drawing the desired response, the problem may lie not with where you are advertising but how or what you are advertising. Often it is necessary to test different ads instead of spending your entire budget on a single design.
Look at the two ads below and make note of the differences. We are conducting a test against two groups of people. The first group consists of people who love eating tuna fish. The other group of people are avid base jumpers. My experience and common sense tell me that base jumpers are probably more passionate about their special interest and will be more likely to respond to a campaign. I do not know which one will be more successful because the ads have not run yet. Testing variations will help us determine which to use. By swapping various components one at a time, we will find an effective design.
When making changes, it helps to change a single component and compare results to find the elements that work best. There are four areas to concentrate on:
– Creative ad copy will draw the reader in and compel further investigation into what you have to offer. Make sure your ad delivers the right message. Giving the reader a chance to click “Like” is a good way to judge response.
– Test various images with different demographic groups. Designs can be geared toward a specific age group, gender or lifestyle choice. Certain groups respond better to specific colors or image styles.
– Identify people who are passionate about their special interests and who are likely to click on an Internet advertisement.
– Target specific demographics within a particular special interest group and design ads to reach them directly. Your cost per click or action will decrease once you start reaching the right audience.
If you do this kind of split testing on your Facebook ads, you can often times cut your costs in half, while increasing your conversions many times. And its so easy to do, you can get started on it right away. So….what are you waiting for? Go for it.
Pat Lindle is the marketing manager and Facebook specialist at his metal deck / steel decking company in Atlanta Georgia. Pat is a firm believer in measuring ROI on any and all marketing initiatives that companies partake in. He currently lives in Roswell wife his wife Julie and his 3 daughters.