This is a post that I wrote for a few of my fellow photographers on a photography forum that I visit quite often. I thought the readers here could benefit from this information as well though.
The original post asked mostly about how long it took to get an ad approval on Facebook, but the thread continued on about advertising on Facebook in general.
Without further ado.. my explanation of advertising on Facebook.
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A couple of things with Facebook.
1. Your CPC (cost per click) is almost directionally proportionate to your CTR (click thru rate). So.. the higher your CTR, the less you’ll pay per click. This is because if you’re eating up inventory (ad space) and not getting any clicks, FB needs to charge more because they would have been making money from another advertiser. So, you need to target SUPER well to get the most qualified customer. Also, start your campaigns in the most optimum time for your market if at all possible.
So, how do you get a good CTR?
2. FB is NOT search advertising like Adwords (Adwords is a bunch of people searching for something, and you pop in front of them at a convenient time). Facebook is DISPLAY advertising. You need to follow AIDA
Attention – get their attention with a spectacular photo and headline
Interest – Get them INTERESTED in your service.
Desire – Make them WANT your product (keep in mind that they’re NOT in a buying mood like they are with Adwords, you have to PUT them in a buying mood)
Action – Make them take action. Make the offer good enough that they HAVE to take action on it. Freebies work well. (Free engagement shoot with a wedding booking, then mark the wedding price up to cover engagement).
Ok, so you’re getting them to click… but not making money. Now what?
3. Your landing page (the place people land when they click on your ad) has to be something more than just a sign up form. GIVE them something in exchange for their name and email (or whatever you’re collecting). Give them VALUE.
4. Feed your funnel. If you’re looking to book people the first time they land on your page, you’re smoking crack. It might happen every now and again, but it’s FAR easier to put them into a sales funnel by capturing their name and email address (and possibly more) and then using an autoresponder/direct mail/phone call, etc. to trickle content to them until they’re ready to purchase. Your conversions will go WAY up if you do this.
- Don’t know what an autoresponder is? Check out aweber.com
- It takes the average person 7 contacts to feel comfortable with a sale. That means that you’ll have to come into contact with them 7 times. Landing on your page is 1…..
Facebook can be extremely lucrative if you know how to market with DISPLAY advertising (forget everything you know about AdWords when playing in Facebook).
As far as ads go, here are a few tips:
1. Use a question as your headline. “Open a loop” in someone’s mind that makes them NEED to click to find out the answer in order to close that loop.
2. Use a COMPELLING image to catch their eye. This doesn’t mean use your best wedding photo… maybe you use a HORRIBLE wedding photo from a stock photo site. That would catch a brides eye.
3. Use simple terminoligy to create an insatiable desire to see what you have to offer. Make your offer so good that someone can’t stand not clicking your ad.
4. Use a STRONG call to action. Blatantly tell them that in order to get this offer, they need to click your ad… and click it NOW.
What would my first try look like? Maybe something like this (Yeah, I made it just for you guys… )
Also, you should be keeping a “swipe file” of all the different ads you see in magazines and online that catch your attention.
Use those as inspiration (don’t rip them off) to help make your ads much much better.
Thank you for attending Internet Marketing for Photographers Advertising on Facebook 101.
If you guys have questions, feel free to ask. I have quite a bit of experience with FB and Adwords when it comes to marketing.
