The first quarter of 2017 showed US digital ad spend is up 23 percent to $19.6 billion. And Facebook and Google are expected to pull in 63 percent of US digital ad spend in 2017.
When it comes to Facebook advertising spend specifically, eMarketer reported that “2017 will be the first year when Facebook captures more than one in five US digital ad dollars. The company’s total digital revenues in the US will grow 40.4% to $17.37 billion, pushing its share of the US digital ad business to 20.9%.” Facebook will bank $15.28 billion in mobile ad revenue in 2017. 2018 is promising to bring in even more revenue for the social media giant.
Facebook ads will continue to be a top way for brands to advertise their goods and services in 2018—and for good reason, too. Brands can use Facebook ads as a form of lead generation by pushing out messages to encourage potential customers to sign up for their emails or newsletters, thus capturing critical customer data.
But with an influx of ads hitting the screens of social media users every day, you need to ensure your ads are actually generating the types of qualified leads you are hoping for.
That means starting with a savvy Facebook lead generation ad plan and outline. In order to properly construct your Facebook lead generation ads, you’ll have to take note of the following campaign best practices:
1. Define and Narrow Your Audience
Facebook ads allow you to drill down on who you specifically want to target. If your ideal customer is a woman living in Texas between the ages of 25-35 who has an interest in yoga, you can set-up these specific guidelines.
It’s important to define and narrow your audience so you can spend your dollars efficiently by targeting potential customers who are the most likely group to purchase your product or be interested in your brand. There is no point in “spraying and praying” your ads to everyone and anyone hoping you will get great lead generation—that’s expensive and a waste of time.
2. Make the Most of Your Budget
Budget is important, especially if you are running a small business with limited funds. It’s easy to make a costly mistake when setting up your budget for your Facebook lead generation ads. Here are some options to consider when trying to figure out which is right for your lead generation campaign:
- Set a daily budget, which will cap the number of clicks, views, etc. per day and keep costs low
- Set a lifetime budget, which will be a bucket of money until it runs out
- Automatic bid, which allows Facebook to set up your bid that helps you to get results at the best price
- Manual, which is where you enter your bid on what results are worth to you
- Bid high enough to get reach for your ad, but not too high that you are overpaying
3. Creative is Key
With thousands of messages and images penetrating a single social media user per day, you need to set your ad apart. You can do so by having top-notch creative. Grab a potential customer’s attention with engaging headlines, captivating images, and short blurbs. Having it be mobile friendly is a must.
You can decide the type of creative that is best for your specific brand and ad campaign, whether it’s a carousel of photos, a video, or a single image. Also, be sure to give a desirable reason for your potential customers to opt-in to what you’re advertising. Offer them a coupon, give them a discount, provide some type of incentive, etc., to sweeten the deal and get more clicks.
4. Create a Lead Form and Then Use the Information
Create a lead form to ask specific questions, but be sure to ask only questions you truly need. You don’t want to ask so many questions that a potential customer will bow out from answering due to the length.
And once you receive results from your lead form, make sure you’re actually using this information to your benefit. Follow up with your leads as soon as you can, or retarget them in future ad campaigns.
5. Determine What’s It Worth To You
Facebook lead generation ads are a great way to build your customer base and increase your sales. As long as you follow the guidelines and set your ads up properly, you’ll be fine. When in doubt, think about how much one lead is worth to you. If you’re selling a product that is $100, you wouldn’t spend $200 trying to capture one lead. You would likely want to spend under $15-$20, so that you’re still turning a fair profit.
