Facebook Ads Not Working? Here’s 10 Questions That Identify the Perfect Audience and Increase ROI

Small Business Trends recently released a survey of more than 2,600 small business owners, and 62% of them believe Facebook ads are ineffective.

But we know that's not true.

Facebook ads can be incredibly effective when done properly. Unfortunately, there is a small learning curve. And in my experience, too many businesses throw in the towel before they really give it a chance.

Maybe this is something you can relate to.

There are a few big mistakes I see people make time and time again that basically guarantees they won't be successful.

First, you need to be willing to test different combinations of ad copy and images until you find something the resonates with your audience. Trust me, I've been there: completely convinced this headline and image are going to be a winner, only to have it return underwhelming results.

You can only predict what will work. But you won't know until you test it and see if your audience response.

The second problem is, most people struggle with targeting. It doesn't matter what your ad copy and image combination are – if you're not targeting the right people, it won't work.

Some people leave their targeting WAY too broad, using only the most simple criteria, like gender and age. This will yield poor results because it's not nearly specific enough.

The answer is to add in some interest targeting so you can show your ads to people who are actually interested in your topic or product or service.

But on the other end of the spectrum, some people will get TOO targeted. Combining too many interests will make it difficult to really hone in on the perfect audience. Try to keep interest targeting to no more than two for each ad.

Not sure how to figure out which interests to choose to target? Answer these 10 questions about your audience, thanks to Inc:

 

1. Who is the perfect demographic for your offer? (Example: age, gender, location, income, marital status, education level.)
2. Who are the thought leaders, experts, or celebrities in your niche that your people might follow?
3. What are the most popular books (authors) or magazines in your niche?
4. Who are the most popular bloggers and podcasters in your niche?
5. Where do your people shop, what retailers or vendors do your people buy from (related to your niche)? Think tools, software, resources they might use that relate to your area of expertise.
6. What are the most popular associations or professional organizations in your niche that your people might belong to?
7. What Facebook pages are liked by your people?
8. What Facebook groups do your perfect people belong to?
9. What are the most popular online discussion forums in your niche?
10. What are the most popular LinkedIn groups in your niche?

The answers to all of the questions are potential interest targeting you can implement in your Facebook advertising.

You can read more at Inc.