Facebook ads Archives - Corcoran Communications

Tag: Facebook ads

Facebook Ads Campaign Budget Optimization

Sunday, March 24th, 2019

In Facebook’s algorithm we trust, or at least we’ll have to come September! In case you haven’t heard, Facebook Ads budgeting will soon need to be set at the campaign level. We’ll no longer be able to set specific budgets for each individual ad set. Campaign budget optimization is something Facebook previously rolled out, but because of ineffectiveness, never really stuck. Facebook decided to go back to the drawing board to provide marketers with a better product, and for the most part, they did.

What is Facebook Ads Campaign Budget Optimization?

Campaign budget optimization is a great concept. Instead of setting budgets at an ad set level, budgets are set at the campaign level where Facebook’s algorithm optimizes and distributes budget automatically to help marketers achieve goals. For example, if our campaign is set up for conversions and we have 6 ad sets, Facebook’s algorithm allocates budget between ad sets to produce the greatest number of conversions at the lowest cost.

Challenges with Campaign Budget Optimization?

Campaign budget optimization gets messy when marketers attempt to incorporate cold and warm audiences into a single campaign. For example, let’s again say that our overall campaign goal is to maximize conversions. Now imagine we have four ad sets. One ad set is aimed at running ads at cold audiences and the other three are geared toward warm audiences. Naturally, our ad sets associated with warm audiences are going to outperform our ad set aimed at cold audiences. Moving forward, Facebook’s algorithm will distribute the majority of our budget to the ad sets containing warmer audiences. In certain cases, this is ideal. However, there will be instances where we want an equal budget allocated for cold audiences. To accomplish this, build separate campaigns for cold and warm audiences.

Another challenge that marketers encounter when implementing campaign budget optimization is that Facebook’s algorithm is quick to choose a winner in terms of budget allocation. Often times it’s too quick. To ensure all ad sets have equal performance opportunity, we have the ability to set minimum and maximum spends at the ad set level. For example, if our campaign includes three ad sets and a $75 per day budget, we can set $25 minimum daily spends for each of the three ad groups. This ensures a more equal budget distribution at the start of our campaign. It’s important to keep in mind that this should only be done to start a campaign. Once sufficient data is collected, minimums are removed and Facebook’s algorithm does the rest.

Test, Test & Test More!

As with anything new in the social media or digital marketing world, testing is important. Marketers will have the ability to allocate budget at the ad set level until September. Take this opportunity to test campaign budget allocation so when it becomes mandatory, you’re ahead of the competition.

I hope you found this blog useful. If you have any questions about campaign budget optimization for your Facebooks ads, please email me directly at greg@corcoranpr.com. You can also subscribe to be notified each time we update our blog below. Thanks for reading!

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Facebook Ad Benchmarks

Monday, August 20th, 2018

Facebook ad benchmarks matter, especially when your goal is business growth. Companies large and small in almost every industry are scrambling for attention on Facebook. How do you know if your ads are working? We’d all love to have what we’d consider high click-through rates (CTRs) and low cost per action (CPA), but how do we know how we’re stacking up? How are our metrics comparing to those of our competition and our industry in general? Wouldn’t it be great to have access to industry averages to measure your results against? Luckily, our friends at WordStream have made that information available to everyone in their Facebook Advertising Benchmark report which includes click-through rate, cost per click (CPC), conversion rate (CVR) & cost per action data across 17 industries. Let’s take a look!

Facebook Ad Benchmarks by Industry in 2018

Click Through Rate (CTR) By Industry

The first Facebook ad benchmark we’ll look at is CTR. Average click-through rate of all industries is 0.90%. You’ll see that the legal industry has the highest average CTR at 1.61% followed closely by retail at 1.59%. The highest ranked may come as a surprise to some. After all, legal has nothing in common with some of the other industries with high CTRs like retail, apparel, beauty or fitness. Consumers in these industries are more apt to be swayed by eye-catching, creative ads. Many of them make impulse purchases. Legal counsel isn’t exactly going to be an impulse buy.

Bringing up the rear of the industry field is employment and job training with the financial industry just slightly ahead. Social media marketers in industries like financial services have it harder than most. People aren’t often in the market for a mortgage home equity loan. This is why it’s so important for these marketers to build sales funnels and lead customers and prospects through the sales process. We’ll cover this important topic in a future blog. 

Cost Per Click (CPC) By Industry 

So, we know how often our ads should be getting clicked, but how much should it cost? According to Facebook ad benchmarks, the average CPC of all industries together is $1.72. Financials, consumer services & the home improvement industry top the charts in terms of highest cost per click. This makes perfect sense. Marketers in these industry groups are willing to pay more because a conversion can result in a much more significant return on investment. $3.77 per click when we’re talking about attempting to convert on a $200,000 mortgage loan is much easier to swallow than if we paid the same to try to sell a t-shirt for $19.99 (apparel has the lowest CPC).

Conversion Rate (CVR) By Industry 

Now let’s talk conversions as they pertain to Facebook ad benchmarks. Remember, at the end of the day, clicks don’t pay the bills, conversions do! The average CVR is 9.21%. Companies in the fitness and education industries enjoy the highest CVRs at 14.29% & 13.58% respectively. Tech and travel & hospitality are our CVR bottom feeders with CVRs under 3%. Often times social media marketers can achieve average to high CTR & CPC metrics but experience a drop off when it comes to conversions. This may be the result of poor ad targeting, bad creative or an over-complicated landing page. It may also be as simple as putting a re-marketing plan in place. Re-marketing is another topic our social media marketing team will cover in the near future.

Cost Per Action (CPA) By Industry

Conversions are great, but we need to know how much they cost. If we’re paying more for a conversion than it’s worth, it’s time to go back to the drawing board. Or invest that money in other platforms where we’re achieving a higher ROI. The average CPA across all industries is $18.68. It’s most expensive for tech companies to sell products and services or obtain leads via Facebook. They pay over $55 per action! Organizations in the educational industry are only paying an average of $7.85. This is why it’s important for our tracking to be on point. It allows us to make decisions based on the return our Facebook ads are providing, not our cost.

Facebook ad benchmarks – the takeaway

To wrap this all up, is it helpful to know what the average Facebooks ad benchmarks are in your industry? Yes, of course. This important information can offer insight as to how well you stack up from a metrics perspective and provide an idea of where you need to improve. Just remember that what’s most important is the return on social media investment. Businesses and organizations are unique, even those competing within the same industry. Set up your tracking and know your numbers. It doesn’t make sense to throw money at any form of advertising if there’s no return. If you’re looking for help improving the performance of your Facebook ads, contact us. We’re always happy to help new clients get on the right track!

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Battling Facebook’s Algorithm

Thursday, March 29th, 2018

Facebook’s algorithm change earlier this year sent shockwaves through the businesses and organizations that count on that medium as a way to reach their target audiences. Facebook’s prioritizing of posts from family and friends over public content left business owners and marketers wondering what to do to combat this setback.

According to Facebook, the algorithm will prioritize posts that prompt meaningful conversations between friends, as well as highly shareable posts. Simply put, Facebook’s algorithm is rearranging the way you see posts according to ones you would be more likely to interact with. Posts that spark conversation and get the most authentic reactions, comments and shares will rank much better. It’s not enough just get those post likes, you need to get post shares and comments to broaden your post reach. If you’re seeing a big decline in your Facebook post engagement, it might be time to enlist the help of a social media marketing agency.

Five tips for getting a higher organic Facebook reach

  1. Post meaningful content, questions and items that encourage opinions.

    Spark conversation among your followers with relevant content. Post questions that will evoke emotion and encourage authentic conversation between audience members. When content induces a strong emotion, it is much more likely to get shares and interaction. To do this successfully, you must first understand your audience and what motivates them. It’s all about creating the right mix to appeal to your fans. What exactly is meaningful content? It’s content that educates or informs your audience or is very timely or relevant. This may mean a social media strategy shift to more posts targeted at individual audience groups rather than a “one size fits all” approach to posting.

  2. Think video.

    Video naturally gets better engagement and Facebook Live videos perform even better than regular videos. Facebook Live enables you to interact with your viewers in real time. Facebook Live videos are likely to appear higher in news feed when the videos are actually live. It’s always best to let your audience know in advance when you will be going live to be sure people tune in. Facebook also alerts your audience when you are going live. FB Live videos can be up to 30 minutes long. Once the live broadcast has ended, the video will be saved on your timeline for anyone to watch in the future. Facebook views these live videos as the ultimate authentic experience. Tap to learn how to go live.

  3. Engage customers with Facebook Groups & Facebook Stories.

    See a common theme here? It’s all about Facebook and its products. Facebook Groups are a great way to build a more engaged community around common interests or causes. This can be anything from groups of people who are passionate about animals to people who love travel, parenting groups, clubs, people who support a particular non-profit organization or people who love to cook and try new recipes. Is there a group that can be formed to tie into your brand, products and services? It’s worth exploring to make closer connections with your audience. Facebook Stories is another visual way to share your story and reach your audience. You can create a story through the Facebook app on your mobile phone. Simply go to your business page and scroll down and tap Create Story to begin. You can take or upload photos or video from your camera, add text and filters.

  4. Be sure your photos stand out.

    The more interesting and engaging the photo, the more reaction it will get. If you’re taking a photo, try working with different camera or phone angles to get a more dramatic effect. Action shots are always great. Keep it simple, not overly complicated. Photographing product? Arrange it into a unique type of design and color selection. There are also many high quality and enticing stock photos available online to purchase for social media sharing. That may be the better option for some. Think cute, mischievous puppies and stunning scenery. Whatever photo you use, it should be relatable and authentic. You’ll also need a great caption that ties into the photo and immediately grabs attention. Time spent on finding an appropriate photo and developing an interesting caption is time well spent.

  5. Don’t be shy about reaching out to your fans for help.

    This can be instrumental in combatting Facebook’s algorithm. Ask your followers to go to your Facebook business page, click on following and then click on see first to insure they see your posts. If your content is consistently compelling and useful, your fans will already realize the value and won’t want to miss it. As a result, they will want to do this!

Don’t get caught in the engagement bait trap

Encouraging users to like, comment or share just to boost your engagement could be considered engagement baiting and it could work against you. Businesses that regularly engage in baiting tactics to get a greater reach on their news will quickly see a decrease on their post reach. There are five forms of engagement baiting: Tag baiting, comment baiting, vote baiting, react baiting and share baiting. Posts such as like and share if you like ice cream, share to win movie tickets or comment if you love that the Eagles won the Super Bowl are all forms of engagement baiting.

To overcome the changes of Facebook’s algorithm, your goal should always be to have an authentic connection with your audience. To accomplish that, you need to concentrate on consistently creating content of interest. This content should on its own encourage people to share, because they found value.

Leverage the power of your employees in the battle against Facebook’s algorithm

The involvement of your staff can help you instantly strengthen your Facebook reach. Perhaps feature your team members in certain posts. If they buy in with active participation in the form of likes, shares and comments, more people will see your posts. Encourage your staff to get involved and share. In addition, make it as easy as possible for them to share. Email them links to the post and ideas for captions when sharing. The easier it is for the employee, the more chance they will actually do it. The greater the social media outreach for a business, the better it is for the entire team.

Always be unique and relevant on social media

Remember, Facebook is one big community and the more buzz you can create within that community, the better. Your post goal in overcoming Facebook’s algorithm is to get people talking. You want comments, likes and shares. Therefore, be sure to be unique and not post the same content over and over. If you’re posting product photos, change up the captions or pose questions regarding use of the product. Facebook’s algorithm  prioritizes content based on the value it brings to the individual user.

Facebook ads may be for you

In conclusion, while you always want to focus on improving your organic reach, Facebook ads are a cost-effective way to build engagement and get a positive ROI. Boosting posts and running Facebook ads can definitely work in conjunction with your organic efforts. You can set your target audience for your ads based on many factors, including age, geographic location and interests. The social media team at Corcoran Communications helps clients to strategically develop a mix of enticing social media posts and Facebook ads to enhance their social media efforts and get results.

Need help with your social media initiatives, contact us for a free consultation. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for helpful marketing tips, social media strategy updates and our informative blogs.

 

 

 

 

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Using Facebook Pixel to Increase Sales

Wednesday, January 31st, 2018

Facebook Pixel is an important analytics tool that helps users better understand how to engage with customers and drive meaningful action. Simply put, the Pixel is a piece of code applied to your website. When the Pixel is installed, you can better measure the effectiveness of your Facebook ads and allocate marketing spend accordingly.

Facebook Pixel is a great tool for re-marketing

Have a lot of web visitors that don’t convert to sales? Facebook Pixel will enable you to track this, learn more about your visitors, and then target those visitors with new ads and offers. This is referred to as re-marketing or re-targeting. You can improve your social media marketing by creating your own custom audience from website traffic and enhancing ad delivery to your best targets. Pixel provides the data you need to optimize your ads and focus on qualified leads. By monitoring how people interact with your website once they view your ad, you can get insight as to which type of ads get your desired results. You will soon be developing more effective ads. Set up Facebook Pixel today for a more focused Facebook advertising effort.

Steps to setting up Facebook Pixel

Create a Facebook Pixel.

Go to your Ads Manager and click on the menu button at the top of the page. Click “Pixels.”

Then click “Create a Pixel.”

Enter a Pixel name and click “Create.”

Add a Facebook Pixel to your website.

Once the Pixel is created, you will have to select an option for installation instructions. You can install the code yourself, have the instructions emailed to your web developer, or select that you use an integration or tag manager. Choose an installation option and follow the directions.

Track important actions

Once Pixel is active, you can track certain actions on your site. This can include people visiting certain pages, such as a particular service or a blog. People who place items in a shopping cart, but never complete the purchase. Even people who are frequent site visitors, but never take any action. You can easily set up events on your website while completing the installation process. Events can include purchases, leads, searches and content views among other things. You can access your Pixel analytics from the Pixel page in Ads Manager.

 

Need help? Get it with Facebook Pixel Helper!

The Facebook Pixel Helper is a Chrome plugin you can use to see if there’s a Pixel installed on your website, check for errors and understand the data you are collecting. Facebook Pixel Helper can also help troubleshoot any problems and make sure your pixel is working properly.

You need to have the Chrome web browser to get the Pixel Helper

  • Go to the Chrome web store, search for Facebook Pixel Helper and click “+ Add To Chrome.”
  • Click “Add Extension” and you’re ready to go.

Need help with your social media marketing and ad management? Contact Corcoran Communications today!

 

 

 

 

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