Today, Facebook advertising is an essential channel for many companies, allowing them to reach their target customers in an efficient and affordable way (for most of them). In particular, this channel is often less expensive than Google’s, which is why many companies decide to use it first in their digital strategy. It allows to reach all kinds of objectives such as increasing reach, traffic, leads, sales, etc. However, to be able to reach these objectives and maximize your budget, there are many things to master. I could write many articles on the subject, but let’s start with 5 mistakes to avoid in Facebook advertising. This is a good starting point for anyone new to this type of advertising and a good reminder for others.

1. Neglecting the Facebook Pixel

Web marketing has taken on a scope that few people had imagined several years ago. The fact that this type of marketing allows to follow in a very precise way the actions of users has undoubtedly contributed to its growing practice. When advertising on Facebook, it’s very important to take the time to configure the Facebook Pixel before launching the campaigns to be able to track the results. For example, without it, it’s not possible to link the campaigns to the sales of an ecommerce and to optimize them. Once the pixel is properly installed, it’s then necessary to make sure that the checkbox named “Web Suite Events” is checked at all times when creating ads.

2. Test 1 creative only

One of the things I like to do most on Facebook Ads is to test different creatives. I strongly advise you to take the time to test several creatives in each of your campaigns in order to be able to continuously improve your results. Facebook Ads offers the possibility to use multiple ad formats, so why not take advantage of this opportunity by testing at least two versions of creatives at the same time. Over time, by tracking your performance, you’ll be able to know which creatives are the best for your business.

3. Targeting too broadly or too narrowly

Targeting is undoubtedly one of the factors that has the most impact on Facebook ad results. Indeed, if you are not addressing the right people, it will be very difficult to reach your goals. There are two common mistakes here. Either companies either target too broadly and see their budget extremely diluted through places that are not always strategic, or they target too narrowly by combining too many audiences or attacking a very small territory when their potential is much larger. To help you establish a good targeting, here are a few points to consider: advertising budget, logistics capacity, competition, search trends (Google Trend), site data (Google Analytics), people, etc. Once again, there is no magic formula to find the perfect targeting. It usually takes several tests to confirm its hypotheses.

4. Too much account segmentation

As you probably know, Facebook’s algorithm changes very frequently, so the ways of advertising on this channel must change as well. At the time of writing this article, Facebook has implemented the “Optimize Campaign Budget” option which I strongly suggest you use when you have accumulated enough data. It will greatly help you by distributing the campaign budget across the ad groups based on the history in order to get the best possible results. I often see accounts with a lot of campaigns and ad groups. Although this practice was recommended in the past, it is no longer optimal now that the algorithm has gained power. Finally, I invite you to try it and draw your own conclusions. ?

5. Getting discouraged too quickly

Facebook advertising isn’t always easy, so if you can afford it, it’s always a good idea to rely on web marketers to manage your campaigns. However, if you want to learn how to do it by yourself, you’ll have to be persistent and take a minimum of risk. Many people ask me how much they should invest in Facebook advertising. I would say that there is no clear answer, since it depends on the industry, the market, the value of the products sold, etc. In many cases, $15-50 a day is a good start, but keep in mind that the higher the investment, the faster the data will accumulate and the more the Facebook algorithm will be able to understand your account. I therefore advise you to give yourself a few weeks or months to do your tests and find the winning formulas for your business. Of course, you shouldn’t wait too long either if your investment doesn’t pay off after a long period of time.

Finally, if you decide to manage your Facebook advertising by yourself, I strongly advise you to stay informed about Facebook Ads best practices, since they evolve very quickly. Also, don’t forget all the other factors that have a huge impact on your ads, such as your brand image, your communication axes, your website, your products, your competitors, etc. A very important point to consider before anything else is: is Facebook Ads really the right channel for your business? On that note, if you ever correct at least one of these mistakes, I’m not sure you will see a positive impact on your results. If you want to benefit from my expertise in Facebook advertising, contact me and I will be happy to discuss your needs.