What’s the secret to Facebook ads success?
For internet marketers, small businesses and professionals throughout the world, the answer to this question is as elusive, and desirable, as the Fountain of Youth.
Like a modern day Ponce de Leon, the famed explorer legend says traveled to distant lands in search of this mythical fountain, advertisers spend countless hours deciphering reports hoping to uncover the trigger of untold Facebook ads riches.
To say mastering Facebook Ads is a challenge is a massive understatement. Unlike traditional online marketing platforms, success isn’t driven by intent-based advertising methods. Let’s break it down further:
Facebook User Breakdown – Understanding Your Audience
Facebook isn’t a traditional advertising medium. Its users aren’t explicitly searching for a topic, product or service. Psychologically, Facebook users are drawn to this platform to solidify their need to be apart of a larger group while also satisfying a subconscious desire for self-presentation.
While this is an extremely generalized narrative, as advertisers, we must first understand the psychology of a target audience to stimulate lasting intrigue.
As this platform continues to grow and evolve, Facebook users have begun to utilize it as a means of connecting with not just their friends and loved ones, but businesses and professionals.
Evidence of this use is clear when we consider Business Pages. The difference between a company profile and their website boils down to information type.
Internet users visit business websites with a specific intent, which is typically to learn more about a product or make a purchase. Facebook profiles, on the other hand, aren’t designed to specifically sell. Instead, these pages are used to help connect with a target audience or allow previous customers to passively demonstrate their loyalty.
Of course, this topic then goes into setting up a business page. While important, that’s not what we’re talking about in this article. What you must understand is how to connect with a target audience via intrigue marketing tactics. Only then may you learn how to effectively understand how to leverage Facebook Ads objective options for success.
The most important step to master is learning how to choose your audience. Without knowing who you’re targeting, it’s impossible to create an effective campaign.
Think about it. Blindly selecting a large audience demographic is like waking into an operating room and taking charge simply because you watched a lot of Grey’s Anatomy. It’s just not going to end well.
Therefore, the foundation of choosing the best ad type objective is a combination of:
- Understanding your goal (and the steps it takes to accomplish it)
- Understanding your target audience (and how to intrigue them)
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty details of choosing the best Facebook Ads Objectives.
Important Note: The following objective types are current as of publishing this article. Each are subject to change without notice.
Facebook Advertising Objectives – Decoding For Success
As you log into your Facebook Ads Manager, you’ll notice a variety of options regarding ad campaigns and audience selection. However, one of the most important (and fundamental) choices you must make is Advertising Objective. In fact, this is the very first choice Facebook requires when starting a campaign.
Essentially, Facebook Advertising Objectives determine bidding options and optimization techniques for your entire campaign.
While there are various third-party tools capable of boosting campaign optimization, what you choose ultimately determines how Facebook handles your ads. Regardless of content, audience intrigue tactics or other campaign elements, choose the wrong objective type and your entire campaign suffers.
Thankfully, choosing the right Facebook Ads Objective isn’t rocket science. All it takes is understanding the purpose of each type and whether it satisfies your overall goals.
As long as you follow the Golden Rule of Objectives, which is matching objective type that closely matches your overall campaign goals, you won’t have any problems.
Without further ado, let’s get to it!
Primary Objective: Awareness
The ultimate goal of this objective is two parts:
- Generate interest and intrigue in your product
- Market specifically to users who will likely remember your ad
Unless you’re a complete novice in advertising, increasing awareness isn’t a foreign topic. In fact, the foundation of advertising in general is awareness. However, Facebook Ads handles this specific objective differently than you think.
Essentially, Facebook manages this campaign objective by optimizing your ads for specific user groups that are not only active in your niche, but also more likely to remember and discuss your brand/campaign.
Within the Awareness Objective, there are two Complementary Objectives. This is used to further refine how your campaign is handled by Facebook. These include:
- Reach – Targets users based upon explicit factors, such as location.
- Brand Awareness – Targets a larger audience within your niche.
While you may already have a solid understanding of which Complementary Objective may work best for you, let’s break it down further.
Primary Objective: Awareness
Complementary Objective: Brand Awareness
As mentioned above, Brand Awareness is ideal for businesses who wish to connect with a larger audience who are likely to be interested in your product or service. Many advertisers have found success using this objective to boost incoming website traffic. This objective is ideal for long-running campaigns.
Brand Awareness may be used with the following Ad Formats:
- Canvas
- Carousel
- Single Image
- Single Video
- Slideshow
Primary Objective: Awareness
Complementary Objective: Reach
Unlike the aforementioned objective, Reach is used to maximize the total number of users exposed to your campaign within a limited timeframe. For example, advertising a limited-time deal or testing advertising methods. Facebook manages this campaign by optimizing the frequency and use of ads to help garner higher impressions.
Reach may be used with the following Ad Formats:
- Slideshow
- Single Video
- Single Image
- Carousel
Both Reach and Awareness may be used not only on Facebook, but also on Instagram.
Primary Objective: Consideration
Essentially, the purpose of this objective is to intrigue the mental/emotional response of your product or service.
Rather than focusing on traditional marketing techniques, successful use of this primary objective is to stimulate thoughts. Do you feel not enough people actually think about your product or service? If so, this is the Primary Objective for you.
Of course, another reason why Consideration may work best for you is if you want to provide information to audiences. This can be info about your product or entire industry. In many ways, the Consideration Objective forms the cornerstone of intrigue-based marketing.
Within this Primary Objective, there are six Complimentary Objectives. Each offers not only unique supported Ad Formats, but also optimization techniques to accomplish a specific goal. These include:
Primary Objective: Consideration
Complementary Objective: Traffic
The ultimate goal of Traffic is to increase incoming visitors to your website. Do you have an app you want more people to learn about? Traffic is an excellent Ad Objective to boost engagement with your target audience.
Supported on four platforms (Facebook, Messenger, Audience Network, Instagram), Traffic offers excellent intrigue possibilities and fosters more intimate connections than other objective types.
Traffic supports the following Ad Formats:
- Collection
- Carousel
- Single Image
- Single Video
- Slideshow
Primary Objective: Consideration
Complimentary Objective: App Installs
App Installs is pretty self-explanatory. This objective is specifically designed to boost engagement and intrigue for your app with the overall goal of increasing downloads. This objective type can be shown in not only Facebook, but also Messenger, Audience Network and Instagram.
When using App Installs, adjust your message and content to not only increase intrigue, but also communicate in a style and tone that closely matches your target audience.
App Installs can be used with the following Ad Formats:
- Slideshow
- Single Image
- Single Video
- Carousel
Primary Objective: Consideration
Complimentary Objective: Engagement
In terms of how Facebook Users use this platform, Engagement is among the most powerful marketing tools offered. Designed explicitly to not only boost the size of your target audience, but to support maximum interaction, Engagement is a marketers best friend (both the technique and objective).
Along with being managed/optimized to encourage suers to engage with your advertisement, there are four established options. These include:
- Post Engagement by boosting/advertising posts
- Page Likes to encourage intrigue via page promotions
- Offer Claims, which sends users to your page to claim a special offer
- Event Responses designed to boost page visits to increase event attendance
Along with being supported by Facebook and Instagram, you can use the following Ad Formats:
- Slideshow
- Single Video
- Single Image
Primary Objective: Consideration
Complimentary Objective: Video Views
This objective type is specifically designed and optimized to be used with videos. For example, your campaign is made of behind-the-scenes content. Other uses include testimonials and visual product launches, which work brilliantly with this objective type.
Supported by Facebook, Instagram and Audience Network, you can use three Ad Formats:
- Slideshow
- Single Video
- Carousel
Primary Objective: Consideration
Complimentary Objective: Lead Generation
Are you looking to boost your leads? While there are many different methods capable of increasing leads, the Lead Generation objective is among the most effective methods for Facebook.
Optimized to intrigue users with the goal of collecting contact information, such as email addresses, Lead Generation is a solid solution. Moreover, collected leads are oftentimes primed for conversion. Use this objective for Facebook, Messenger and Instagram.
The following Ad Formats are compatible with the Lead Generation objective:
- Slideshow
- Single Image
- Single Video
- Carousel
Primary Objective: Consideration
Complimentary Objective: Messages
When you look at Facebook as a whole, the platform is built around communication. Whether it’s between friends, coworkers or businesses, Facebook brings people together.
This should always remain in your mind while creating campaigns. Unlike traditional online marketing, which is an outward message, Facebook Ads require an openness for dialogue. What better way to accomplish this goal than placing your campaign directly where conversations happen.
Messages is a new addition to the Facebook Advertising Objectives list. While not every campaign is designed for this level of marketing, if you’re looking to not only generate more leads but also demonstrate your business or service support level, this is your ideal objective type.
Supported in not only Facebook, but also Messenger and Instagram, the Messages Objective offers a unique way to connect with audiences while stimulating engagement. You may use Messages with the following Ad Formats:
- Slideshow
- Single Image
- Single Video
- Carousel
Primary Objective: Conversion
Ultimately, the entire purpose of online marketing is to stimulate conversions. Whether this be purchasing a product, subscribing to a service or generating leads, all your efforts boil down to this one word.
So, what better Facebook Advertising Objective to use than Conversion? Overall, the three Complimentary Objectives are optimized and managed to support this vital action. Let’s take a look at each offering and explore their uses:
Primary Objective: Conversion
Complimentary Objective: Conversions
Without a doubt, Conversions is the most popular campaign option among advertisers. This optimized objective type supports maximum leads or new customers. If you’re looking for a way to boost sign-ups, increase sales or subscription purchases, this is the objective for you. There are several unique optimization options, such as Link Clicks, Impressions and Daily Unique Reach, which help bolster its effectiveness.
Along with multi-platform compatibility (Facebook, Messenger, Audience Network, Instagram), Conversions also supports multiple Ad Formats, such as:
- Collection
- Slideshow
- Single Image
- Single Video
- Carousel
Primary Objective: Conversion
Complimentary Objective: Catalog Sales
This Facebook Advertising Complimentary Objective is perhaps the greatest asset for advertisers marketing an eCommerce solution. Whether it be direct sales or an entire eCommerce website, Catalog Sales offers unique optimization and management features.
Many advertisers use this objective when testing new marketing campaigns or remarketing to visitors who have already visited your website/store.
Compatible with Facebook, Audience Network and Instagram, Catalog Sales only supports two Ad Formats, which include:
- Single Image
- Carousel
Primary Objective: Conversion
Complimentary Objective: Store Visits
Designed specifically for those marketing physical (brick and mortar) stores, this Complimentary Objective advertises to users who live nearby a local store. Optimized to demonstrate attractive elements of a store, this managed ad type is constructed to maximum intrigue.
Unlike other Advertising Objectives, Store Visits is only supported on Facebook. While limited to this platform, it supports a variety of Ad Formats, which include:
- Collections
- Carousel
- Slideshow
- Single Image
- Single Video
Leveraging Objectives for Optimum Success – Final Thoughts
There you have it. As you can see, there’s ample opportunity to refine Facebook Ads toward maximum effectiveness. While selecting Advertising Objective is an important step, what you do afterwards determines its overall success.
When the perfect objective is combined with powerfully intuitive Facebook Ads Management Software, such as The Campaign Maker, sky’s the limit. Not only does software solutions simplify testing and scheduling, but upgrades the impact of objective-based marketing.
Ultimately, Facebook Advertising Objectives is only one piece of the puzzle. While important, it’s only as effective as the many other pieces required for success.
