How to Place Ads on Facebook

There are a few things to keep in mind when running Facebook Ads. According to studies, the social network Facebook has 2.45 billion active users worldwide in 2020, making it the largest social media platform in the world. Therefore, Facebook also offers a suitable channel for companies to advertise their own company and to get in contact with customers. More and more companies are now using this channel to attract new customers, increase reach and generate more traffic. Even the small flower shop next door now has a Facebook page on which it can communicate directly with its potential customers. We are giving you instructions here that can help you successfully advertise on Facebook.

Facebook Ads: Definition

Facebook Ads are advertisements that are placed on the Facebook platform and displayed to users based on their interests. This marketing measure offers companies the opportunity to reach a larger target group, thereby increasing awareness at the same time and getting more traffic to their own website through the advertisement. As a result, new customers can ultimately be won and new products, services and company information can be communicated regularly. And that’s exactly why it can be attractive for you to place Facebook ads.

The function of placing ads differs significantly between Facebook and Google . The advertising on Facebook is visible to those users whose interests on the platform match those of the ad. These are based on the information that users publicly share on the platform (musical taste, relationship status, hobbies, place of residence, employer, etc.). Google Ads, on the other hand, places ads based on the search query. So if the user uses the appropriate keyword, the company’s ad will be displayed accordingly.

Place Facebook Ads

In seven steps we will guide you through the creation of a Facebook advertisement and will explain with each step what is important here and what you should absolutely pay attention to. The prerequisite is that you have an account that you can use to advertise . So you can create advertisements using your private login data, but of course also with a special company account.

1. SET THE CAMPAIGN GOAL

To create a Facebook ad, you need to switch to the ad manager. Before you select various functions on Facebook, you should think about what exactly you want to achieve with this ad. The goals can be very different:

• Increase brand awareness
• More reach
• increased traffic
• higher app downloads
• additional lead generation

You then select the appropriate campaign target in Facebook accordingly. These goals are each divided into different categories so that you get a clear overview of the goals and their effects. But the rule is: One campaign goal per ad.

2. DEFINE THE TARGET GROUP

Facebook is a platform that offers you specific possibilities to define a target group to which your advertising will then be displayed. You can define your target group pretty precisely in the settings for the ad and you should have thought about who this ad should reach beforehand. Because if the target group is not adapted, then the ad is not only out of place, but also useless, since the people who see it will most likely have no interest in buying.

When setting the target group for Facebook Ads, it can make sense to be clear about certain key questions:

• Who is a good match for us?
• Where should the customer come from?
• How “big” should the customer be?
• In which price segment should it move?
• And also: who do we not want?

Of course, you don’t have a holistic marketing concept yet , but initial effective considerations for target group definition could look something like this. In the first step, Facebook then offers you the opportunity to select target groups with whom you have already had contact or people who are similar to these customers. In addition, demographic data such as age, gender and place of residence, but also psychographic characteristics (needs, purchasing behavior, etc.) are important.

But now the question arises: How do I get this information? Of course, reason and sometimes logic can help here, but there are certain points within the research where it is important to get first-hand information. The possibilities here are diverse. Analysis tools such as Google Analytics are particularly useful for profile data . In the meantime, the best way to get to the psychographic data is to listen carefully to the people you would like to reach, to interview them, or to talk to colleagues. In the end, it doesn’t matter where the information comes from, as long as it’s sound.

3. SELECT AD PLACEMENT

In the next step you have to choose the location of your Facebook ad. You can either switch the placement of these manually or set them automatically. Depending on your previously selected campaign goal, you will then be suggested different ad placements. Possible places for your advertising are for example:

• Feed
• Stories
• Videos / in-stream
• news
• items
• Apps and websites

4. DETERMINE THE BUDGET AND PERIOD

In order to run Facebook Ads, you have to specify an exact budget and a certain period of time for Facebook. Here you determine how much money you want to spend on the ads and how long your advertising campaign should run. For the costs, you can either enter a daily budget or an entire runtime budget.

There are generally two payment models. CPV (cost per view) and CPC (cost per click) are the two best-known alternatives when it comes to paying the advertising platform for placing your own ad. Both variants have their advantages and disadvantages, but in the end it is usually better if you choose CPC. Here you only pay if the users really click on your advertisement. Of course, the cost per view variant is sometimes also advantageous, but above all because you pay for the ad without the user actually reacting, it is more difficult to achieve a decent conversion rate. A typical example of CPV advertising are pop-up ads – and you know it from your own experience: hardly anyone clicks on them intentionally.

5. DESIGN THE ADVERTISEMENT

Now the point is that you design your Facebook ads. To do this, you have to choose a format in which an advertisement is then visible to the users. You should adapt the format with regard to the content and its scope. Do you only want to advertise one product or several? Does your service come across better in a video ? You have to ask yourself these thoughts and also whether one or the other solution might be more advantageous in order to generate the attention of the user.

In general, the following formats are available:

• Image Ads
• Video Ads
• Slideshow Ads
• Carousel Ads
• Collection Ads
• Instant experience / full screen display
• Lead Ads
• Messenger Ads

Depending on the format you choose, you have to think about suitable images and texts that are important components of your ads. Above all, the texts must be short and concise, have a catchy headline and, depending on the case, contain a call-to-action to encourage the reader to want to see more.

6. PLACE ORDER

As the last step in creating your Facebook ad, it is important to check everything again in order to then place the order. Once you have done this, your task is done for the time being and Facebook will first review the ad you designed. If this contradicts the guidelines of the platform, you will receive a message via the advertising manager. You also have the option of specifying your preferred payment method with which you would like to pay the costs of the advertising measures.

7. MEASURE AND MANAGE ADS

Measuring and managing your Facebook ad is also particularly important. Because if you recognize early on that one or the other advertisement is not working or the advertisements are not performing as well as you would have liked, you can quickly determine this with regular monitoring. Investing money in Facebook ads that don’t meet your marketing goals is pointless. You can track whether your created ad is successful via the manager dashboard in Facebook. If you are a beginner and just starting to run your first Facebook ads, it can make sense to run multiple ads with small audiences and a smaller budget.

Conclusion: the perfect Facebook ad

What exactly you mean by the perfect Facebook ad is difficult to say and always depends on the target group you want to reach. It is important that you become clear about your target audience, define them precisely, place your ad as CPC and then find the right tone or the right means to draw attention to you. With the right methods and a feel for an attractive design, you can place successful Facebook ads within these steps.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ) about Facebook Ads

What are Facebook Ads?

Facebook Ads are advertisements that are placed on the Facebook platform and displayed to users based on their interests.

What are the benefits of Facebook Ads?

This marketing measure offers companies the opportunity to reach a larger target group, thereby increasing awareness at the same time and getting more traffic to their own website through the advertisement. This ultimately allows new customers to be won.

What does a Facebook ad cost?

There is no all-inclusive price for an ad. In order to run Facebook Ads, you need to have a precise budget for Facebook. For the costs, you can either enter a daily budget or an entire runtime budget.

What types of ads are there?

You can choose from the following types: Image Ads, Video Ads, Slideshow Ads, Carousel Ads, Collection Ads, Instant Experience / Full Screen Ads, Lead Ads, Messenger Ads