Mastering social media ads: A comprehensive guide

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Social media advertising has become a powerful tool for businesses hoping to reach their audience. With ad spending on social media reaching more than $173 billion in 2022, social media accounted for 33% of all digital advertising spending.

With extensive targeting options and advertising available on almost every budget, it’s easy to understand the appeal, however the range of options and settings available can be confusing for small business owners hoping to save money on DIY ads.

A small budget and minimal experience is a recipe for disaster for small businesses to be seen on social media. Many see their small budget drained with little return for their efforts in a frustrating and often business ending cycle of A/B testing, targeting, and placement woes.

With Instagram still the most downloaded app in the world, and almost 37% of the entire world's population being Facebook users Meta remains the platform of choice for many businesses. Which is why Meta will be the focus platform for this article, but that’s not to say the key takeaways here aren’t relevant to other social media platforms.

Whatever platform you chose for your social media advertising campaign, there are five key elements you must understand to get the best results possible:

1) Types of ads

Images, videos, carousels, stories, and more. Each ad format offers a unique way to convey your message to your target audience. When choosing your ad format, try to choose the one that gets the most engagement from your target audience. To decipher which format that is, you can look back at the engagement analytic data from your organic social media posts, (That’s posts that you haven’t paid to promote) or base your choice on your target demographics user habits.

For example, if you’re targeting gen z, video-based content might be the way to go. If you’re a B2B company targeting baby boomers, then an eye-catching image and informative text might read better.

2) Targeting

The heart of what makes social media advertising so valuable is its targeting capabilities. You can target based on demographic data, interests, behaviours and even create look alike audiences. The key to targeting on any social media platform is understanding your audience. There are a couple of ways you can gain added insights into your audience.

The first is to look at the analytics available for your already established social media. If you don’t already have an established social media, then I highly recommend creating one first. Fast track the growth of your platforms with my small business social media survival guide.

Once you have an established platform, you can access more information on your audience by heading to Meta Business Suite, clicking insights, and then audiences. Alongside lots of other valuable information, you’ll be able to see the basic demographic data of your current and potential audience, including age, gender, and location. Heading to ‘content overview’ allows you to see your reach, engagement, and top performing posts.

The second is to install Meta Pixel on your website. Pixel uses cookies to track user’s behaviour and data. This allows you to track captured leads after they leave the Meta platforms and land on your website. That helps Meta algorithms make better automated audience targeting decisions, provides more accurate analytics, and gives you more information on the effectiveness of your campaigns. Pixel is fairly easy to install especially if you used one of their supported popular website platforms. Even if you didn’t, it’s as simple as adding a few lines of code, and if you used Bizdorks to create and host your site, their service support is fantastic.

3) Budgeting and bidding

Whether you plan to spend $5 a day or $50, choosing the right bid strategy is essential. Many platforms allow you to choose when you are charged, whether that’s cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-impression (CPM) chose the option that best aligns with your marketing goals and key performance indicators (KPI’s). It’s important to note that certain budget and bidding choices are available based on your campaign type and goal. If you can’t see the option you’re looking for, try changing your other settings. Meta has lots of great resources for business owners looking to learn more about advertising with them. You just have to know where to look. Check out these free courses and resources provided by Meta themselves.

4) Ad placement

This determines where your ad will be placed and is often restricted by the type of ad you chose to use. Wherever you chose to put your ads, it’s a good idea to format your ad images and copy to fit each placement. If you’re using placements with a video element, ensure that the production is professional and don’t forget about the audio element!

5) Analytics

All platforms now offer analytics for advertising. Make sure you use it. Key information about who is clicking on your ad can help you narrow your targeting for a better return on investment and, combined with website traffic and email campaign data, can help you improve your conversion rates.

Analytics on for Meta advertising campaigns can be accessed via the ad centre. I recommend running your ads for at least a week or two before diving into your performance analytics. This is to give the platform opportunity to gather enough data for reliable conclusions.

If you plan to use Meta’s platforms for your advertising, check out their free to access resources that tell you everything you need to know about setting up and launching your first campaign.

Social media is a goldmine of opportunity when you know how to use it. Understanding the basics, utilising learning resources like Meta’s online training and being cautious about the words and images you use can ensure that your campaigns are both compliant and effective.

Crafting ads with the right brand-driven copy is the key to ensuring your campaigns are successful.

Writing Ad copy that converts

Writing ad copy, like any copywriting, is a complex task with many components working together to drive readers to take action. There are many different approaches to creating ad copy, but there are a few common best practices that can improve your conversion rates and get people clicking those links.

1) Length

Social media is built on constant consumption and shortening attention spans. So, you’d think that short, sharp ads perform the best, but that’s not always the case. Your ads need to be short enough to keep attention but long enough to promote the benefits of your product or service. For most adverts, 150 - 250 words will generate the most engagement and action.

2) Headlines

Depending on your platform and ad placement, it’s likely that only the first 125 characters of your headline will be visible without your audience having to click “see more.” That gives you 125 characters to grab their attention, communicate what you have to offer, and why they need it - Make them count.

3) Copy

Even if you’ve got a raw talent for writing, there are several structural elements to a successful social media ad that you’ll need to include if you want to maximise your advert’s performance.

• Connect with your audience and create need by exploring their pain points and the emotions behind them. Pain Points are the specific problems that your audience face and your product or service solves.

• Position your product or service as the only or best solution by emphasising your unique selling propositions (USPs). Your USPs could be superior service or materials, your expertise, the innovative nature of your product etc. Be careful about putting other products or brands down to elevate your own. Besides being legally and ethically ambiguous, it’s not a good luck. That is, unless it fits your branding.

• Focus on the benefits. That means telling your audience about the features of your product or service and then linking them to the real life benefits they’ll experience by choosing your business. Bullet points work great here for maintaining the short social media attention span. If you’re unsure about your benefits, look back at your pain points. What would be the opposite of the problem and is that something your product or service achieves?

• Don’t forget your call to action. You want people to contact you, click your link, or fill out your survey? Tell them.

4) Call in the experts

Copywriting is more than throwing a few catchy phrases together. Good copy blends sales-psychology, with technical communication, branding, and creative writing to capture, nurture, and convert an audience. If your copy isn’t sparking action but you don’t have the budget for professional copywriting services, consider a full copy review of your existing copy and optimise it for electrifying results.

Graphic design

Whilst copywriting is where I shine, I also love graphic design, and whilst I don’t claim to be an expert, I have run a lot of social media ads. So, I know from experience the importance of professional graphics in building trust and gaining attention.

Here are my top tips for ensuring the visual elements of your ads stand out and add value to your post:

• Get the sizing right for every placement. The format and ideal size ratio of graphics can change depending on your type of ad and placement. Whilst Meta will adjust sizing where possible, it’s much better to resize images yourself and assign individual graphics for each placement. This prevents stretch and over-cropping.

• Brand it! Many people will look at your image before they decide to read any of your text. Make sure you add your branding or handle to any graphics so they are easily recognized and traced back to your business when they get shared.

• Have a clear motive. As well as considering the images you want to include in your graphics, you also need to consider your words. Adding text to your graphics lets you clearly communicate with your audience at a glance and generate interest.

• Utilise templates. You can always customise the free templates available in Canva. This is a great starting point for learning to create professional graphics. However, everyone does it, and that can mean your ad ends up blending in with the crowd. For a more unique template with marketing in mind, check out these templates, which include the ones I use for my own social media and advertising.

• Hire a graphic designer. The graphic design industry has exploded, and that means that graphic design services are more affordable than ever. Just check out Bizdorks, where you can get professional content posts for as little as $25.

Social media is a powerful advertising tool when used correctly. By taking the time to learn the right skills and pathways before you start spending your business’s valuable time and budget on social media adverts, you are already one step ahead of many and maximise your chances of success.