Are you toying with the idea of using social media ads? If so, these are the main ingredients in a good ad!

(Note that this isn’t applicable for a boosted post – all you have to do for that is click boost on a post that already exists!)

1. Set Your Goal and Objectives

When creating an ad, you will need to choose a goal that you want your ad to accomplish. Available goals for Facebook Ads include:

• Get more calls
• Get more website visitors*
• Get more messages
• Get more page likes
• Get more leads

*For the majority of business owners, the main goal of their ad campaign is to get more website visitors. In theory, you want people who see the ad to feel compelled to click through to an informational or sales page on your website and get them to either purchase a product or share their contact information so that you can convert them through a series of emails.

For Instagram Ads, you will be asked to choose an objective. Your ad should increase…

• Awareness
• Traffic
• Engagement
• Leads
• App promotion
• Sales

2. Attention-Grabbing Visuals

If you’re using an image ad, make sure it is attention-grabbing and relates to your audience. It might be an engaging image of your product, an image that stirs emotions, or a scene that your customers can see themselves in. There is room for experimentation here, so don’t be afraid to switch out the visuals if your ad isn’t performing well.

Also something important to note with images: the less text, the better.

Another quick tip for images: Create two versions of your ad imagery – one with a human face(s) shown and one without. See which one performs better for your audience and discontinue the other version.

If you’re using a video ad, you want the content to be engaging from the first second. Capture viewers’ attention and provide value or tell a story. Emotions and stories are what tend to captivate people and make them actually watch the entirety of the ad.

The other rule of thumb for video ads is to make sure that you have closed captions either added or enabled. Like I’ve mentioned before, the majority of people watch videos on silent or mute.

3. Strong Ad Copy

Your ad copy will consist of 3 parts: your headline, your primary text, and your description. Character limits are noted in each copy area on the ad creation page, and they will vary based on the ad placements you’ve chosen.

Your headline is the main title of your ad, and it should capture attention and encourage engagement.

Your primary text is a short pitch of your product or service. Why should someone click through?

Your description is really just a short description of your product or service – I recommend using the name of your product or service, because your headline and primary text is what will be doing the selling.

All of your ad copy will appear in text around your image or video, either as a caption or a header, depending on what platform you are using and what type of copy it is.

4. Call to Action (CTA)

Your call to action button will be a very visible, clickable button on your ad that is meant to create a specific response. The point is to tell the viewer what to do next, such as “Download,” “Book Now,” “Learn More,” or “See Offers.” There are a list of set CTA buttons in the Ad Manager, so choose one that is relevant to your “ask.”

​Click here for a full list of Call to Action buttons that Meta provides and when you’re able to use them.

As you’re creating your ad, you will also be able to set your audience and your budget. Remember: start small with your budget and be specific with your audience. You can always grow and scale as you figure out what works.

I hope this helps as you’re continuing your journey towards using social media ads to grow your small business!