Everyone should advertise on Facebook. Everyone. There are over 1 billion active (and growing) Facebook users. That’s 1/7th of the world’s population. And a significant chunk of your (anyone’s) target audience, all using a website that allows for wonderfully specific targeting.
But running Facebook ad campaigns can be confusing – Facebook change their policies, there’s a myriad of options for how to structure a campaign, how best to target an audience, how to exclude people you don’t want to target … on and on. What we need is a simple run down of how to do Facebook ads right. Here’s how I would spend my first £100 on Facebook ads:
Firstly though, it’s worth noting a few things up front:
Online advertising requires patience. Usually, there are no ‘quick wins’. It can take months to hone your offer, your content and your target market. Give it time, continually adjust based on the results, and be prepared to move on if it’s not working for you.
If Facebook ads work for you, be prepared to pile into it. Facebook gives you great control over who you target and how much you spend doing it. You’ll want to be measuring your return on the ads – and if they’re working, be prepared to quickly divert funds from other less profitable sources.
But look out for decay. Online ad performance will decline over time. A campaign that works well for you will slowly stop working. Pay attention to the point at which it’s performance drops below your level of expectation for that campaign, and refresh it.
It’s all about the money. High click through rates are nice. It’s great to have an ad that sends a lot of people to your goal. But if you’re not converting those people (financially, or into email subs, or whatever conversion metric you use) then you’re wasting your money. And it’s all about the money.
You can read the full post here: How to do Facebook Ads right (or, the best £100 you’ll spend this month)
Friday, July 18, 2014
Thursday, July 17, 2014
An Easier Way to Watch Video
By Kelly Mayes
Today we’re starting to test an easier way to watch videos on Facebook. Now when you see a video in News Feed, it comes to life and starts playing. Videos initially play silently, and if you want you can tap to play with sound in full screen. Scroll past if you don’t want to watch.
People will see this in the coming weeks on mobile.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Which videos start playing in News Feed?
A. At this time, videos start playing from:
- Individuals (personal Facebook accounts or verified Pages)
- Pages of musicians and bands
Q. When do videos play with sound?
A. Videos only play with sound after you click on them.
Q. Will videos from advertisers start playing when I see them in News Feed?
A. At first, this feature will be limited to videos posted by individuals, musicians, and bands. We’re doing this to make sure we create the best possible experience. Over time, we’ll continue to explore how to bring this to marketers in the future.
Q. When is this coming to all Pages?
A. This is starting with a limited test and will continue to roll out over time.
Testing a New Way for Marketers to Tell Stories in News Feed
Since September, we have been testing an easier way to watch videos shared by friends. Without having to click or tap play, videos come to life in News Feed and start playing without sound. Through the course of this test, we’ve seen a more than 10% increase in people watching, liking, sharing and commenting on videos. It’s a better experience for people and it’s leading to increased engagement.
This week, we’re starting to test this richer storytelling format for advertisers. Compelling sight, sound and motion are often integral components of great marketing campaigns, particularly when brands want to increase awareness and attention over a short period of time. From launching new products to shifting brand sentiment, this video format is ideal for marketers who are looking to make a large-scale impact, and for people who will discover more great content in their News Feeds.
For this test, we’re working with Summit Entertainment and Mindshare to promote a series of videos for the upcoming film, Divergent. Some people will see these video ads come to life as they scroll through News Feed on mobile and desktop. Here’s how it will work:
- Rather than having to click or tap on the content, videos will begin to play as they appear on screen — without sound — similar to how they behave when shared by friends now. If you don’t want to watch the video, you can simply scroll past it.
- If the video is clicked or tapped and played in full screen, the sound for that video will play as well
- At the end of the video, a carousel featuring two additional videos will appear, making it easy to discover more content from the same marketer
- On mobile devices, all videos that begin playing as they appear on the screen will have been downloaded in advance when the device was connected to WiFi — meaning this content will not consume data plans, even if you’re not connected to WiFi at the time of playback
This format isn’t intended for every video ad or Page post video on Facebook; it meets specific needs for certain marketers with certain objectives. We’ll continue to refine this new way for brands to tell stories on Facebook to ensure the best experience for people and marketers.
Have a look below to see this new feature in action.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which videos start playing in News Feed?
At this time, videos start playing from:
- Individuals (personal Facebook accounts or verified Pages)
- Some Pages, like those of entertainers and sports organizations
- Summit Entertainment’s content for Divergent
Is there a way to prevent these video ads from playing as they appear on screen?
The video ads will begin to play as you scroll through News Feed, but if you don’t want to watch, you can simply keep scrolling and the video will stop playing. Video ads that start playing when they appear on screen are pre-downloaded when you are on WiFi so they do not consume additional data.
When do videos play with sound?
Videos will not play with sound unless you turn the sound on. To do this, click or tap on the video.
When will all people start seeing videos from brands play as they appear on screen? When will all marketers be able to have videos play as they appear on screen?
This is an initial, limited test. We will let you know if/when the product becomes more widely available.
Will the pricing structure for these types of video ads be similar to the current Page post video offering?
We do not disclose pricing. The goal for this test feature is to be a premium advertising format on Facebook, intended to reach a large audience at specific times.
Eventually, will all promoted videos begin playing as they appear on screen?
This is an initial, limited test. We’ll determine future uses based on what we learn from this test.
How is this feature different from Page post video ads?
This premium feature is specifically designed for awareness campaigns that are meant to reach a large number of people to increase interest in a brand, product or content, in a short amount of time. Page post video ads can then come into play to sustain the message of this initial campaign over longer time periods, in more targeted ways.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)