The potential of Facebook as an advertising tool should not be underestimated.\u00a0 Currently, Facebook has more than 400 million users and many of these use the site on a daily basis.\u00a0 It makes sense to consider that there are many potential customers among them.\u00a0 Many businesses already have a Facebook page and using targeted Facebook ads can also help you to drive more potential customers to your own page or website.<\/p>\n
Facebook allows businesses to put small ads in the sidebar of the pages and profiles on Facebook.\u00a0 These can be targeted by selecting through a few variable factors.\u00a0 You can use keywords, target by location, age, education and gender in order to reach the type of customer that you\u2019re looking for.<\/p>\n
What do you want the customer to do?<\/strong><\/p>\n When you start a Facebook advertising campaign you need to decide if you want to direct customers to your own webpage or send them first to your Facebook page.\u00a0 You might want to use the advertising to draw attention to an event or a special offer.\u00a0 By directing people to your other activities on Facebook the ad can also include a button that allows an instant response from the customer so that they can \u2018like\u2019 the page or \u2018RSVP\u2019 to an event.\u00a0 Remember that some of their actions can be seen on Facebook by their own friends and followers and this can help you to reach even more people.<\/p>\n Keep an eye on the budget<\/strong><\/p>\n The ads work by bidding for keywords and then you compete so that your ads appear.\u00a0 You have to make sure that your keywords are effective.\u00a0 There is a CPC (cost per click) model or you can opt for a CPM (cost per thousand impressions) model.\u00a0 Research suggests that CPC is much more effective.\u00a0 Work out your bid per click and then set a daily budget (the minimum is $5 per day).\u00a0 Facebook will suggest amounts, but you need to consider if this is going to be effective for you.\u00a0 Budgets can be adjusted at any time.<\/p>\n Give it a trial run!<\/strong><\/p>\n Set your first ad up and give it a test run!\u00a0 You can create multiple ads and then work out which are the most effective.\u00a0 You should also make sure you follow the guidelines set out by Facebook for using their advertising service, but they will review your ad before making it public anyway.\u00a0 Test out the image too.\u00a0 If a specific ad is not performing as you expected, then change the image and see if that improves the conversion rate.<\/p>\n Remember that when you put your ad together there is not a lot of space.\u00a0 Your headline, for example, should be no more than 25 characters so short and snappy is important!\u00a0 The body of the ad is just 135 characters \u2013 again you need to use them wisely.\u00a0 The option to upload an image is there and you should do this as this could be what catches the eye of the customers.<\/p>\n