Here’s a fast fact about Facebook advertising: According to Hootsuite, Facebook mobile ads have 9.1x higher click-through rates than ads found anywhere else on the web.
The takeaway? If you’re not advertising on Facebook yet, you should be.
The good news is that Facebook ads are pretty cheap — you can start advertising on a budget of $5 a day!
With that said, small businesses do have small budgets, so the name of the game is maximizing every single advertising dollar you spend. We’ll help you do that with these tips on how to advertise on Facebook on a budget.
Understanding Facebook Advertising Auctions
Facebook runs their ads a bit different than the rest of the world. There’s no flat rate, no pay-per-click option, and most of all, no guarantees. If you want your ad to be seen, you need to win an auction.
When you submit a Facebook ad, Facebook gives it a perceived “value” and throws it into an auction pool with other similarly-valued ads. Then it’s time for the bidding to begin. You can allow Facebook to bid automatically for you using your specified budget, or you can do it manually by setting the maximum amount you’re willing to pay.
However, the winner isn’t necessarily the one who spends the most money. (Weird, right?) In fact, Facebook uses three criteria to decide who comes out on top:
- The bid. (Of course.)
- The ad quality and relevance. (Facebook has to keep its users in mind, too!)
- The estimated action rate. (Advertisers aren’t going to keep handing over advertising bucks if they’re not seeing any return.)
This means even if you’re not the highest bidder, you may still win the auction if your ad is top-notch and Facebook believes you’ll see more conversion rates than another ad in the auction.
Confused? You can get all the details straight from the horse’s mouth here.
Set a Goal
Facebook advertising is a choose-your-own-adventure game. You don’t just throw your ad out into the wild and hope for the best — you need to have a specific goal in mind. Do you want to get more page likes and followers? Are you looking for click-throughs to your website? Do you want to make the sale right then and there on your page?
Whatever you decide, a clear call-to-action is necessary. The best ad in the world won’t deliver a return unless your audience knows what you want them to do.
If you have the cash to spend, you can test out a few different combos and keep track of what works and what doesn’t. But if you’re stretched too thin, go with what’s working until you can generate some more revenue.
Aim for the Correct Target
Facebook advertising allows you to go after a target audience — and you should put some real thought into this before you ever submit a single ad.
Currently, Facebook allows you to select your audience based on location, demographics, interests, behavior and connections. If you’re looking to target a 24-year-old woman from St. Paul, Minnesota, who loves photography and has recently purchased a camera, you’re in luck — with Facebook ads, you can do just that!
Narrowing down your audience helps you weed out the people who aren’t interested in your goods or services. But beware — if you get too picky with your selections, you run the risk of dipping from a very shallow pool.
Facebook offers some tremendous bang for your marketing buck — if you know how to use it correctly. Create relevant ads, have a goal in mind and shoot for the right target, and you’ll see the benefits (and the returns!) for yourself!
Still confused about Facebook advertising auctions and audiences? Mischa Communications can help clear it up! Get in touch with us today and we’ll help you maximize your small business advertising dollars — wherever you choose to spend them!