If you have a personal Facebook account, you already know that the Facebook newsfeed is a tornado of content for the senses.
From every imaginable direction, you’re bombarded by pictures of friends taking selfies, family updates, advertisements from Pages you liked and Facebook suggesting people you may know or Pages you may like.
As a business owner or marketer, this is a noisy environment and you must do everything in your power to ensure your ads makes the most noise. How do you achieve this? By following this 4 tips:
- Keep your copy simple
“Less is more” – Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
The average Facebook user’s attention span is extremely short. They are not going to stop scrolling to read 3 paragraphs of your advert or hit the read more button to learn more about your offer. Your copy must use simple language, be easy to read, free of spelling mistakes with normal punctuation and capitalization.
This type of Facebook copy receives more engagement as users are more likely to read a few lines of text than long winded paragraphs or complex words.
Socialbakers use two short sentences to describe their offer, nothing long winded or fancy:
It’s simple, easy on the eyes and uses can consume the content in just a few seconds.
- Use images that stand out
As prospects scroll down their newsfeeds at lightning speeds, only content that stands out will grab their attention. Images are the biggest tool you have to ensure ad sticks out like a saw thumb.
Using the right contrast tones (light against dark) will naturally draw eyes to your ad. Take a look at this example from Nok Air, their image is broken up into two sections:
The yellow circle is a steep contrast from the rest of the image, grabbing prospects’ attention (oh, and the attractive girl helps too).
If you compare that image to Smartly.io, you can see the contrast in Nok Air’s ad in full effect:
Using blue as the primary color for ads on Facebook should be done with caution, as it can often blend in with the Facebook theme reducing visibility, especially when placed in the right-hand column.
- Place your ads in the right section
Facebook allows you to display ads in 3 positions, they are:
- Desktop newsfeed
- Mobile newsfeed
- Right-hand column
According to the latest studies, newsfeed ads for both desktop and mobile receive the greatest CTR:
Source: Daze Info
They also are the places that cost the most to advertise:
To find the best place to serve ads I suggest using the Audience Insights tool to gather metrics on which devices your audience uses to access Facebook, and where they are most likely to interact.
If you’re thinking about using the right-hand column, use clean and simple images as these ad units are much smaller and images with text are harder to read:
- Add a call-to-action
All adverts you promote on Facebook can and should be combined with a call-to-action. You can add them to:
- Book Now
- Contact Us
- Use App
- Play Game
- Shop Now
- Sign Up
- Watch Video
Add the most appropriate CTA to each paid ad you create. You may not think these buttons are useful, but Facebook users are often in a dreamlike state and having a simple call-to-action can be the difference between getting them to engage with your ad, or consuming it and not taking action.
Summary
Applying these 4 simple tips to your next Facebook ad will see your relevance score, and CTR and conversions increase. Targeting the right audience is not enough to guarantee engagement and positive results. Your ads are jostling for position in a busy newsfeed and you must do everything in your power to make them standout.
Nick Bridges
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