Google Ads catches people who are already searching. Facebook and Instagram ads work differently. They reach people while they’re scrolling, often before they’ve realised they need what you sell.
That makes paid social very good at some things, such as launching a new product, promoting an event, filling quiet periods and keeping your name familiar locally. It’s less good at catching someone at the exact moment their boiler breaks.
If you’ve boosted a few posts and wondered where the money went, this guide covers the basics of running Facebook and Instagram ads properly through Meta’s Ads Manager.
Boosting posts versus running proper Facebook and Instagram ads
The “Boost post” button is convenient, but it gives you limited control over objectives, placements and tracking. It’s fine for a quick bit of visibility on a popular post. For anything where you want enquiries or sales, set up campaigns in Ads Manager instead.
Ads Manager lets you choose what you’re paying for, such as leads, website visits, messages or sales, and then shows you what that result actually cost.
Set up tracking before you spend
Install the Meta pixel on your website, and ideally the Conversions API as well, so Meta can see when someone who saw your ad goes on to enquire or buy. Many website platforms and plugins make this straightforward. Without it, Meta can only optimise for clicks, and clicks aren’t customers.
Make sure your website’s cookie banner and privacy notice cover this tracking. If you’re unsure what’s required, get advice, as the rules on cookies and consent apply here.
Choose the right audience
You have three broad options, and most local businesses benefit from using more than one.
Location and interest targeting
Target people in your area, then optionally narrow by age or interests. For many local businesses, a sensible radius around your premises and a fairly broad audience works well, because Meta’s delivery system is good at finding responsive people once it knows what result you want.
Custom audiences
These are people who already know you: website visitors, people who’ve engaged with your page or videos, or a customer list you upload. Uploading customer data needs the right permissions and a proper privacy notice, so check before you do it.
Lookalike audiences
Meta finds people similar to an existing audience, such as your customers. These can work well once you have a decent-sized source audience.
Paid social doesn’t wait for demand, it creates it. Give people a clear, specific reason to act now, and make the next step easy.
Creative does most of the work
On social, your ad competes with friends’ photos, news and endless video. Targeting matters, but the creative decides whether anyone stops scrolling. A few principles:
- Show real things. Your team, your work, your premises and your products usually outperform generic stock images.
- Lead with the point. The first line of text and the first seconds of video need to say who it’s for and why it matters.
- Design for mobile and sound off. Most people will see it on a phone, many without sound. Add captions to video.
- Make one clear offer. A free quote, a limited-time price, a booking link, an event date. Not five things at once.
- Test variations. Run two or three versions and let the results decide.
Creative wears out. When the same people have seen an ad many times, results tend to drop. Check frequency in your reporting and refresh ads regularly.
Budgets, testing and what to measure
Start your Facebook and Instagram ads with a modest daily budget you’re comfortable with and run it for at least a couple of weeks before judging. Meta’s system needs some time and data to learn who responds.
Measure what matters to your business:
- Cost per lead or cost per sale, not cost per click
- Lead quality, by checking how many turn into real conversations
- Cost per customer, once you have enough data
Lead forms inside Facebook and Instagram can produce cheap leads because they’re pre-filled and quick. They can also produce people who barely remember filling them in. Adding a qualifying question or two, and calling promptly, helps a lot.
Also keep an eye on comments on your Facebook and Instagram ads. They’re public, and an unanswered question or complaint sitting under an ad does you no favours.
Getting started
If you want paid social that’s measured on enquiries rather than likes, our PPC and paid advertising team can plan, build and manage campaigns across Meta and Google. And because good ads need good creative, our social content team can produce the photos and short videos that give your campaigns something worth stopping for.
