Thank you to Ashley Braswell of Ash Dash Sue for today’s guest post about Facebook Ads!
Facebook Ads! The good, the bad, and the sometimes ugly!
First, let’s talk about the elephant in the room… iOS 14. The short explanation is that Facebook lost access to a lot of data they previously were using to give you all that gorgeous, juicy targeting that Facebook is known for!
So, are Facebook Ads still worth pursuing? YES! Let me tell you why!
Facebook is still the number one social platform in the world with roughly 2.89 billion monthly active users. In marketing, it’s so important to be where your ideal client is and statistics show, they’re still on Facebook. It doesn’t hurt that Facebook also owns Instagram, so when you’re running those ‘Facebook’ ads, you can also be running them on Instagram (including stories and reels!).
The only thing I caution against is using Facebook Ads as your only method of marketing. While it’s never a good idea to have all your eggs in one basket, it’s especially important here to also have a killer marketing plan that you have more control over (my recommendation is email and/or sms marketing!)
Okay, so now that you know why Facebook is still awesome, and that it’s best used as a compliment to other existing marketing efforts… let’s talk specifics!
When it comes to the holiday season, there are 3 campaigns I always recommend!
1. Retargeting Campaign (for specific actions) – This type of ad is the final push to those buyers who have been stalking you on social/your website/etc and just need a little va va voom to make it across the finish line. My favorite audience to target here are those that have visited the sales page URL or specific products within the last 14 days on your website!
The key here is to make sure your messaging resonates with the customer at this phase of the buying journey. They aren’t newbies here, they know who you are and what you sell, this isn’t the place for ‘hi my name is xyz’. What this is the place for is overcoming objections, answering FAQ’s and even giving an extra oomph (10% off anyone?).
Have you ever visited your favorite brand and then been followed around the internet by them with a discount code for that exact product you were looking at? That’s a retargeting campaign.
2. Top of Mind Campaign (for Warm Audiences) – This is for your existing audience, similar to a retargeting ad but often this type of campaign is used for sharing a new limited time offer to your existing audience and staying top of mind. With Facebook Ads you can retarget based on Facebook/Instagram engagement (which means, they just interacted with your content, even if they don’t actually like/follow your page) and this is a great way to help push them towards action without feeling like you’re constantly selling on your socials.
3. Lead Gen (for Cold Audiences) – This is where we find the new people who would just loooove your product/offer! There are a lot of different ways to do this, but one of my favorites (and most effective!) is targeting based on lifestyle.
So, for example, one of my clients sells scrunchies and her best performing cold audience is what we lovingly call ‘festival girls’, we’ve targeted those within her demographic that have an interest in ‘lollapalooza’, ‘coachella’, etc.
Other lifestyle interests that we’ve seen good results from; Yoga, Young Moms, New Parents, Newly Engaged Individuals, and Outdoor Enthusiasts.
I hope this gives you some ideas on getting started and if you have any questions please feel free to reach out anytime! You can find me on Instagram at instagram.com/ashdashsue or on my website at ash-sue.com.
Cheering you on!
Xo Ashley
Photographer: Kassandra Thomsen
About Ash Dash Sue:
“Ashley Sue is the CEO and lead strategist of Ash Dash Sue, a Facebook/Google Ads + Email/SMS Marketing Agency. They specialize in e-commerce shopify businesses and love serving that niche specifically because the direct correlation between ads/email and sales is so satisfying to watch roll in! When Ashley isn’t plotting world domination with her girl gang team, she loves coffee in all it’s delicious forms and spending time with her pilot hubs and 3 crazy kids. She’s a proud Disney Adult and is always up for an adventure (except when she’s in bed by 8). Oh, and if you hop in her DM’s she will most definitely be ready to cheer you on, too!“
