Tips for Writing Facebook Ads

On the surface, it seems like writing Facebook ads should be a breeze. After all, ads only consist of a couple of lines of text. How hard could that possibly be?

In reality, the shorter the content is, the harder it is to make an impactful statement while conveying what you intend to convey. Writing Facebook ads is much more difficult than writing a blog post or a piece of long-form content: You have to make sure your ad pops off the page and compels people to take action, and you don’t have much virtual real estate to accomplish that.

You can make the process much easier by following some tips.

Keep Your Eye on the Target (Market)

Facebook allows you to hyper-focus your ads. You can go after specific groups of people, and it’s important that you create ads that speak directly to those groups. This goes beyond demographics, though: You also need to think about the group’s location in the purchase funnel.

When you create your ad groups, consider if the target is at the top of the funnel (awareness stage), middle of the funnel (evaluation stage), or bottom of the funnel (purchase stage). Then, create an ad that speaks to people in a way that makes sense for that stage.

For example, if your ad group is in the top of the funnel, your ad’s text needs to focus on list building. If you want to reach people in the middle of the funnel, consider offering a free trial or a demo. Ads for people at the bottom of the funnel should have a call-to-action that gets people to make a purchase.

Create a Short, Actionable Headline

As far as the ad’s copy goes, the headline is the most important aspect. Most people think it’s the call-to-action (CTA), but the headline sets up the CTA when done correctly; that way, people are ready to act before they make it to the CTA.

The headline should include actionable language, such as “get,” “buy,” and “look.” It also needs to be short and punchy; if it’s longer than five words, it’s too long.

Come up with a Compelling Offer

You want to write the most powerful ad in the world, but in reality, your offer trumps your ad. If you have the best offer on Facebook, your copy can be on the weak side and still convert.

Let’s say that Brand A has t-shirts on sale for 50 percent off. This brand has the best copywriter in the business and creates an ad that is extremely compelling.

Brand B is working on a shoestring budget and hires a copywriter who has never written a Facebook ad before. The ad itself is extremely weak, but the offer is compelling: If people buy a shirt from this company, the proceeds will feed seven shelter dogs.

Even with the weak copy, the second offer is more compelling to more people and, thus, more likely to convert. Think about the best offer you can come up with, and then create an ad around it. That doesn’t mean you don’t need strong copy, but your copy won’t be quite as important when you have an amazing offer.

It’s Time to Create an Ad Campaign

You have the tools you need to create a successful Facebook ad campaign. Now, it’s time to get started. Keep these tips in mind and your campaign will be full of powerful, high-converting ads.