The Ultimate Guide to Optimize Facebook Ads
Last updated on September 17, 2019 by Rodrigo Sengo 12 min readIntroduction
Are you an avid fan of Facebook Advertising who wants to create profitable campaigns and who’s looking for the Facebook Ads optimization master class?
You’ve read about it but found nothing, even though you just need a Facebook Ads optimization tool you can trust?
Feel like you love Facebook Ads because of the targeting abilities and the money making opportunities?
Even so, you believe you’re not making the most of this particular social network?
No worries!
Today, we’re gonna tell you everything you need to know about what is Facebook optimization, and how to optimize Facebook Ads like a pro!
Ready for this Facebook post optimization college lecture?
Let’s go!
What are Facebook Ads?
“How do Facebook Ads work?”
“What’s it all about?”
Time for you to learn!
Facebook Ads are adverts you can promote on Facebook.
These Facebook targeted ads can appear in the News Feed on both desktop and mobile.
On desktop, they can also appear at the right side of Facebook’s page.
This ad content can be mixed with news about certain social activities your friends have been a part of, such as commenting on a particular page.
Do you have a question?
“How much do Facebook Ads cost?”
Facebook ads aren’t that expensive.
This means you can rock it even if you don’t happen to have a huge budget.
The fact is that this social network has the lowest cost per 1000 impressions when compared with other platforms where you can insert online ads.
Moreover, Facebook ads allow you to microtarget particular groups of people.
From a marketing perspective, this is awesome!
Why?
Because it allows you to target your audiences based on age, employment status, location, yearly income, hobbies, marital status, etc.
How specific is this, bro?
It’s awesome.
The cost of Facebook Ads is cheap and you can target like a precise king!
Wicked!
Why Facebook Rules
We’re sure Facebook really is the best social network.
It allows for some seriously massive interaction.
Indeed, it’s super easy to connect with people who share interests, connect with your favorite brands, etc.
And Facebook’s been the king of social media for a while now.
Some have tried to compete and have realized that they can’t beat Facebook.
Some others were a hit for about 5 seconds and disappeared into thin air.
Remember MySpace?
Vine?
Neither do we!
Still not sure Facebook is better than any other network out there?
Check these live stats and recognize the power!
Facebook: An Awesome Source of Traffic
We can now agree that Facebook has tons of users and that it’s nowhere close to stopping this mass conquest of the digital world.
And if we talk about interaction, then Facebook is by far the era’s undisputed champ.
It not only has profiles for private accounts but for companies, fan pages, private and open groups, instant messages, ads, you name it!
This incredibly huge number of daily users means one thing:
These people can be an awesome source of traffic.
Are you interested in buying?
Are you aiming at a target market?
Then Facebook Ads is for you!
Facebook doesn’t only have the numbers in users:
It’s also got the data.
Are you looking for traffic in a particular GEO, a specific gender, age range, language, interests?
You get the idea!
Facebook knows who you are looking for and it can help you reach them.
You can’t wait to start getting this network’s incredible traffic?
Wait!
Hold your horses!
You have to make sure you cover every inch of detail so that you don’t miss anything before diving into Facebook.
Want an introductory Facebook Ads training?
Check CPA on Facebook Ads: Definitive Guide for Beginners!
Now that you’ve read that amazing post and have checked all the items on the list, it’s time to move to another level.
You’re now ready to create Facebook Ads campaigns.
You’re all set.
You’ve created your target audience, have a cool budget, and you’ve included the ad itself on your campaign setup.
It’s been established that Facebook’s power is beyond huge.
This means there are a lot of things to set.
Different aspects to take into account, the pressure of making a targeting mistake, the interminable waiting around before you get reliable data.
It can be stressful.
It can also be overwhelming at the beginning, with so many options to choose from.
Don’t feel lost, though.
You know we’ve got you covered.
Check Mobidea Academy’s Facebook Ads articles right now!
Facebook Ads: Campaign Types
Now you’re thinking:
So many different types of campaigns!
What’s the best type for my particular needs?
We’ll narrow it down for you.
Today, we’ll focus on the three main options.
Pay per Engagement
Facebook goes detective mode!
The social network will effectively identify those people who are more likely to comment, like, or share your ad within the target traffic you’re looking for.
Facebook has tons of remarkably accurate algorithms so you know this is no joke.
You’ll be sure to get precisely those people who matter and who will probably convert like crazy!
What’s so awesome about getting tremendous engagement?
Simple!
The more engagement you get, the more users you can reach at a lower cost!
Pay per Click (Traffic)
Wanna get traffic to your website?
Then this is the way to go!
Within the traffic you’re aiming at, Facebook will identify the people who are more likely to leave Facebook to read content from external sites.
When’s this campaign more likely to be set?
When you use a website related to the offer where you’ll ultimately display it for the user.
Pay per Conversion
With this campaign, you’ll be getting users that are more likely to convert.
It doesn’t matter what you set.
It can be a lead, a sale or a customized conversion, according to your objectives.
Based on what?
It’s all based on the data Facebook has gathered in the past about each user.
Why?
Because Facebook knows everything every single person has done while using their accounts.
It might not be super accurate but – statistically speaking – it’s hyper probable that it actually is!
How to go about it?
You should match the type of campaign with your ultimate goal.
Remember that – when you’re buying traffic – testing is always of the essence.
Getting the best campaign is really up to you.
Now…
Are you ready to go deeper into Facebook Ads optimization?
Let’s go!
Time for some wicked Facebook Ads optimization tricks!
Best Optimization Tips for Facebook Ads
Analyze Data Correlations
This is one of the key aspects for you to understand how to optimize Facebook Ads.
In order to understand the data you’re getting from your campaigns, it’s crucial to have an idea of how Facebook’s algorithm works according to the type of campaign you select and the type of optimization you perform for each campaign.
Based on your campaign setup, always take Facebook’s algorithm into account when you’re analyzing your data.
This is important.
Why?
Because you can later speculate about the behavior of the traffic you’re receiving.
In the end, for each niche and offer, you’ll start to know which type of ad delivery works best.
Bearing that in mind, you can start to correlate your Costs/Bids, Volumes and CTR like a Facebook Ads manager pro.
It’s super crucial that you’re able to understand how different parameters are related and what is causing data variations.
This will make a whole lot of a difference when it comes to your decision-making process.
Related: Correlation Between Volume, Bid and CTR: Karma of Traffic
Even though the article mentioned above may be a bit too specific and more focused on the Media Buying side of things, you can bet the principle is the same!
Remember:
If you understand the “mathematical correlations” of your results, you’ll have more room to speculate about the behavior of all users.
Don’t forget that your data is full of variables you can’t control or understand (people’s emotions, intuition, feelings, etc.)
Even so, if you get the tough analytical part right when it comes to your campaigns, you’ll always be one step ahead of the game.
Moreover, you’ll find out more about possible behavioral correlations.
Standardize Your Tests
Standardizing your tests is mega important if you want those awesomely successful Facebook Ads.
By setting a fixed amount of traffic or cost for your tests, you’ll get to better compare what works and doesn’t work for that specific promotion.
If you don’t fix at least one of your variables, the comparison between the two variables you’re testing may not be meaningful.
Let’s say the volumes are constant.
Now let’s say you’re willing to test setup 1 and setup 2 and spend 10$ on each one.
Remember that the majority of visitors will be different or unique.
Which means?
This could make it harder for you to get the right setup.
In case you want to test it for the same users, you should create your own custom audiences.
Plus:
Test different setups for those specific lookalike audiences.
Bids and Budgets – Test and Find What Works for You
When it comes to campaigns, it’s crucial that you have the right bid and budget management.
Select the option that gives you the best cost/benefit.
Bear this mind when scaling up.
Facebook has plenty of ways of charging your ads.
You need to know which one adapts to your aspirations.
Wondering whether we’re gonna recommend an awesome article for you to get to know this like a genius?
Check this Facebook Ads cost optimization guide!
Why is it important for you to read this article?
Why should you care about how and what Facebook is gonna charge you?
Because it allows you to better explore Tier 1 GEOs where you normally can’t afford that many mistakes, since they’ll end up being very expensive.
Moreover, this pure knowledge also helps you get more data from your creative tests.
Most of the times, you can see that you need to optimize your creatives, because Facebook is charging you a high CPC, normally related to a poor interaction from your users.
Let’s think about the following scenario:
Imagine the other parameters (few conversions, and considerable time spent on the LP, etc.) perform well, but the Facebook Ads cost is still high.
What does that mean?
It probably means that the problem is on the creative/headline side.
You’ll be able to grasp this just by understanding how users are interacting with your promotions and how Facebook is charging you.
Learn More: How to Write Clickable Facebook Ads Headlines
A/B Testing – Use it Well
Yes!
You’ll find this tip all over the articles we’ve got about Facebook optimization.
A/B testing is the way to go if you really want to know what ad type or ad format gives you the highest profit over time.
Test different ad sets, images, videos, texts, headlines, calls-to-action, offers and even audiences.
Wanna get an awesome A/B Testing masterclass?
Check this A/B Testing article!
It’s interesting to study and read more about A/B Testing on Facebook Ads.
Some studies have found that a more personal approach on the landers used can yield higher CTRs.
You should also be able to come up with your own conclusions from your tests, and use that information to create something different that works wonders.
The time to scale up often relates to when you find the perfect way to promote that offer.
Makes sense, right?
Scale up once you’re sure you have the right settings and ads.
Optimize the Post: Sell the Click, not the Offer
The main goal should be for users to click the post and go to the landing page (LP).
The LP is THE thing!
That’s where you sell the offer and aim for sweet conversions, becoming the Facebook conversion optimization pro.
Before you showcase just how cool your offer really is and why the user should get it, make sure the user actually gets to the offer.
It’s not as easy as it sounds, since the first contact with users is the post.
Having said that, it’s clear that the post has to be positively appealing, simple, and unmissable.
Once you get the audience engaged with your ad, you’re almost done.
It means they’ve clicked and have gotten to your LP.
Only after this part will the user be able to know how awesome your offer is.
Since we’re writing about Facebook, a proven technique is to try to get emotional in order to trigger the attention or engagement of the audience.
We can guarantee that – if the post gets to users at an emotional level – they’ll react, like, comment, and click away.
In order to succeed, the only way is to get into the audience’s mind.
How do they feel?
What really appeals to them?
Understand the feelings and what really drives them to be crazy about the theme you’re working on.
You can only create something different and relevant if you have access to this fundamental info.
Go Deeper: Explore Dayparting Opportunities
Want to know how to make money posting ads on Facebook?
Easy.
Try dayparting.
You know us Mobidea Academy writers love talking about the importance of dayparting.
In fact, the “best time to post” is one of the staples of affiliate marketing debates.
There are many influential studies on the best time to post on Facebook.
These articles can show you when exactly are people more likely to click and interact with your promotions.
Using dayparting, you can take advantage of those golden hours like a master who makes money faster.
However, bear in mind that these stats tend to be super general.
If you’re a true marketer, our advice is to find what the best time is yourself, understanding what the best time is from empirical experience.
If you really want to go into dayparting, find the patterns from your active users, and build your campaigns based on that information.
Normally, those patterns will be correlated with people’s age and occupations.
Facebook’s Pixel: Keep Track of the Golden Users
It’s now clear how important it is for you to take advantage of all the data you can gather from your traffic in case you really want to create the best Facebook Ads in the world.
But that doesn’t only mean their interests.
Just like it was explained before, you can check the time of day or days of the week when your users are more active and more likely to go nuts over your promotion.
Wanna find out more info about the engagement and the behavior of your dear audience?
Tag your audiences to get to know them better:
- Tag users that share but don’t open your promotion
- Tag users that get to your landing page but don’t convert
- Tag users that buy the first time they get to your landing page
- Tag users that buy within a range of $10 to $30
You get the idea, bro.
The tags are made using Facebook’s Pixel tool, which you’ll integrate into your promotion (LP) to get the data that’s a result from the activity of your users.
How to optimize using this important data?
Use it to create customized audiences that do different things.
This trick will allow you to segment into new niches based on your knowledge of the behavior of your traffic.
There are two ways for you to take max advantage of the “Audiences” tab!
Ready?
1. Retarget
Got pesky users who have engaged but haven’t yet converted?
Create an audience and follow them up.
Keep on trying new methods and we’re sure you’re gonna come up with the very best ads on Facebook.
2. Lookalike Audiences (LAAs)
You’re probably asking yourself:
“Do Facebook Ads work?”
Yes!
But you can’t forget:
The first thing you have to do is to create a base audience for different types of Facebook Ads.
After you’ve conquered a certain audience, it’s time to expand.
Look for users that are similar to the ones you’ve targeted before.
The LAAs are mainly based on demographics and buyer’s behavior.
The interests tend to be similar but not necessarily.
Lookalike audiences are no joke.
Master them and you’ll become a Facebook Ads expert.
Beware, though:
Facebook is kind of strict.
You have to read Facebook Ads guidelines so as to avoid doing anything stupid which can put your good Facebook Ads in jeopardy.
Don’t get banned, learn the rules, play with intelligence, and we’re sure you’ll be successful with Facebook Ads.
Conclusion
You probably want to start right away, now that you’ve read this guide on how to optimize your ads on Facebook Ads!
Your enthusiasm to apply all these tips will be key in your journey to the top of your Facebook product ads journey.
Don’t rush yourself.
Don’t attempt to try them all at the same time.
Choose one or two to get started.
Remember:
It’s all about trying new things and figuring out what works best for you when you manage Facebook Ads for max results.
Make sure to remember that your goals should guide you.
And your goals can differ from the goals of other publishers.
That’s perfectly fine.
Don’t try to buy a formula or a recipe from someone else because you may not get the same results and fail to get great Facebook Ads which convert like magic.
You just need to get the traffic, analyze it, split, conquer, and scale up.
Don’t be afraid to test!
Bring out the daredevil in you.
Learn, study, be dedicated and always check the latest examples of Facebook Ads so that you adopt current and proven techniques for super targeted Facebook Ads!
Thorough optimization is the difference between amateurs and pros.
Time to decide where you’ll stand.
Cheers!
See also:
Rodrigo Sengo
Business Intelligence Team Member
Rodrigo Sengo is an easy-going Portuguese master who works hard to make you richer by the minute! This good fella joined Mobidea in 2016 and, since then, his expertise has been social traffic. Remember those Facebook Ads? He’s the kind of guy that can monetize them like a true professional! Rodrigo loves to travel to distant countries with an exotic vibe, discover new cultures that shape and change lives, and is really passionate about surfing.
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