What if the app that helps you find funny cat pictures could also take your business to the next level?
Most of us only think of Facebook as a silly social media app. However, Facebook ads present a unique opportunity for business owners everywhere.
Think about it: 2.37 billion people
use Facebook every month. Taking out ads on this platform can be a real game-changer for your business.
Still wondering what Facebook ads can do for you? Here are a few of our favorite reasons to use this unique form of advertising.
1. Highly-Targeted Marketing
Since the advent of television, the goal of marketing has been finding the right audience. After all, the exact network, broadcast time, and show demographic makes all the difference in the effectiveness of your ad.
Facebook takes that idea to another level with their Ads. You can target every ad you take out to super-specific communities.
It's a snap to advertise based on customer age or location. You can even advertise based on their interests and online behavior.
In short, Facebook's ads let you take advantage of all the consumer information the social media giant collects every day.
2. Brand Awareness Boost
No matter the size of the business, brand awareness is always a big deal. Taking out ads on Facebook is a great way to directly (and indirectly) boost your brand awareness.
On the most direct level, this strategy boosts brand awareness by putting your ads in front of your key demographic. Your company will be on the radar of countless customers who had never heard of you.
Indirectly, Facebook ads boost brand awareness by generating word-of-mouth and customer referrals (more on this later).
3. Creating An Online Community
While taking out ads on Facebook is a great first step, you should be focusing on social media synergy. For example, you need to create a Facebook page for your business if you haven't done so already.
Creating and running a Facebook page is completely free. It helps you create an online community of loyal users who will serve as your brand ambassadors to others.
Meanwhile, those ads on Facebook can direct people to your social media pages as well as your website. In this way, you are building the kind of online community that will last far longer than your social media marketing campaign.
4. It's Very Economical
Sometimes, the reason to use Facebook Ads is nice and simple. For example, it is a very economical form of advertising!
While exact costs can vary based on your needs, Facebook marketing is cheaper than many alternative forms of marketing. For example, you can easily reach 100,000 people for only $50.
As we noted, these aren't just any potential customers. These highly-targeted ads will be sent to your exact demographic, creating warm leads that are ripe for customer conversion.
What if the ads don't work as well as you were hoping? Remember, you're not locked into a long contract with Facebook. You can use the ads for a short period, evaluate their impact, and then decide whether you will continue using them.
5. Drive Website Traffic
With any luck, your business has a robust online marketing strategy. For instance, you should have a professional-looking website on top of having a highly active social media presence.
As we noted before, these different online elements should work together. Your Facebook Ads should help drive website traffic, as should your social media posts.
Any campaign to drive website clicks benefits from your targeted advertisement. If you need more local customers to visit your store, you can create a campaign that targets your local area.
Ultimately, this is the best of both worlds. You can increase website traffic while focusing primarily on your key demographics.
6. Boost the Entire Sales Funnel
Ever try to explain the sales funnel to someone who is not in marketing or sales? Their reaction will confirm something you already knew: the sales funnel can be pretty complicated.
Making things more complex is that most marketing strategies only focus on one aspect of the funnel. Something that improves your sales may not directly improve your leads, for example.
With Facebook Ads, your entire sales funnel gets a big boost. Boosting sales is easy: by creating marketing campaigns that feature hot products and that directs people to your website, you will see a sales bump very quickly.
The boost in leads is similarly intuitive. Your ability to target specific campaigns to specific demographics and customer segments helps generate leads, and you can also use Facebook's specific Lead Ads feature.
Finally, Facebook makes it easy to calculate exactly how much you are spending to convert each customer. This helps you balance sales and cost, leading to a better understanding of your business revenue.
7. Engagement Refined
One of the best parts about advertising on Facebook is that real customer engagement is baked into each ad.
This is because your ads will take the form of regular posts via the social media platform. That means customers can like, comment, and share on your different advertisements.
Whenever someone likes or shares your ads, it exposes more of their friends and followers to the ad. At the same time, comments on a post help generate conversation and buzz about your products and company.
Put it all together and Facebook can refine your idea of customer engagement.
8. Return of the Referrals
The last reason to use Facebook ads is also the simplest: it helps create "word-of-mouth" advertising about your company.
While Facebook Ads are great, the real goal is to create offline buzz. When customers discover your products and services online, they are likelier to talk about it with others who have similar interests.
In this way, advertising via Facebook can increase referrals and word-of-mouth marketing.
Facebook Ads and Your Business: Making the Next Move
Now you know how Facebook Ads can benefit your business, but do you know who can help you take full advantage of social media marketing?
We specialize in digital marketing strategies that range from SEO and web design to social media marketing. To see how we can transform your social media marketing, contact us today!
