Top Facebook Advertising Mistakes Affecting Your Results (Part II)

Part II is here and we’re rounding out our list of the top 10 Facebook advertising mistakes affecting your results. Check out mistakes #6-10 below, as identified by our digital experts, to see if you can make impactful changes today.

Underutilizing Facebook’s targeting options

You can try a “one-size-fits-all” approach for your Facebook ads, but by doing so you are missing out on one of the key benefits of advertising on the platform. The more you know about your intended audience – the better, and the better you know them, the more this section of Facebook advertising will be your new best friend.

Want to serve ads to 35-44 year old females who live in Seattle, like yoga, and are active with nonprofits? Facebook will let you do that. In fact, you can get even more granular – meaning your ads will be so tailored to your ideal ad viewer, it will be challenging for them to ignore. The reduction in wasted impressions is astounding – so long as you’re using the targeting tools to their fullest potential.

Treating Facebook ads like Google AdWords ads

Some people think to themselves, hey, I have high performing ads in Google AdWords, why don’t I just drop my top performers here into Facebook and call the job done? The problem with that approach is the distinct difference in the “intent” of the two platforms.

With Google, we can infer quite a bit from what and how they are punching in those “key phrases.” “Haircut near me” is most likely a fantastic keyword for a nearby salon to bid on because the person using this phrase is probably going to get their haircut within the next few days, if not hours. High performing ads from Google probably fit the context a little better.

Compare this to Facebook ads where the user may not have a particular end goal in mind, other than to unwind and find out what their friends are up to. You can see why the same AdWords ad wouldn’t quite work here. You’re trying to capture attention and generate interest in a totally different context.

We’re not saying there’s nothing to be gleaned from a successful Google AdWords campaign to use in Facebook (or vice versa), but be sure to set up a good test (see #4 in Part I) to validate your theories on which ad copy would work in the new environment.

Not utilizing lookalike and/or custom audiences

If you have an email list that contains some of your best clients, you’re in luck. Facebook can match a good portion of the people on your email list and target those people specifically, assuming they have Facebook accounts. Then to top this off, Facebook will allow you to build a “lookalike” audience that matches across a variety of characteristics detected in your email list.

As if these features weren’t great enough, think about the possibility of sorting your list based on individuals with high Lifetime Value (LTV), and THEN building a lookalike group based on your most engaged “superstars” in your email list.

We haven’t even scratched the surface on how to create audience based off of quality of web traffic, interaction with previous Facebook advertising, responses to events, and so much more. You’ll find a treasure trove of capability within the custom audience segment that you can then build lookalike audiences on. Mixed in with #6’s targeting options, we’re talking pinpoint accuracy on the customer persona you have in mind, and how to keep the conversation going in a hopefully fun (and not creepy) way.

Letting “ad fatigue” settle in

There’s a “frequency” counter on any given ad set or individual ad, and it lets you know roughly how many times someone has viewed an ad. Individual mileage on how many impressions you can put out before it gets annoying may vary, but keep a close eye on it.

There will come a day when you see your once starchild, rockstar ad fall off in performance, but don’t be sad to retire ol’ faithful. Make a few notes on why you think it worked, and go ahead and toggle that “off” button. Try and channel some of that wisdom into the next new batch of ad creative.

Not setting aside enough monthly budget

You’re using these marketing tools because you’re trying to help someone solve a problem. You can solve that problem for them, right? Maybe it’s to sell them something, maybe it’s to connect them with a cause they care deeply about. They are going to be thrilled with the brilliant way you solve this problem for them, right?

So if all the above is true, there HAS to be some combination of words and pictures that will get the two of you talking to one another. You may get lucky and find your first starchild ad in 10 creative attempts, but realistically, we’re talking somewhere in the 100+ range. And that’s just to get your FIRST success.

We’re not going to sugarcoat it, the failures are going to cost you ad budget. And it’s going to be painful to watch. But, if you’re the problem-slayer you promised you were above, it’s just a matter of time (okay – and money, and effort) before you start honing in on what will work for your organization. A light at the end of the tunnel will come.

So there you have it. Take some risks and adjust your Facebook advertising strategy accordingly based on these tips. As always, feel free to reach out to the digital experts here at Production Solutions to assist with your Facebook advertising needs. We love this stuff and want to help your organization improve results.