Facebook Video Ads
The ins and outs of successfully marketing with videos
Video ads are the latest trend in advertising on social media, especially when it comes to advertising on Facebook! They play automatically as the viewer scrolls past them and let’s face it, in today’s fast paced world, people would much rather watch a short video than have to read a big long article to get the same info. As business owners, you must take advantage of this captive audience and give them what they want…videos!
It only makes sense to spend money on ads that are going to be well received and with running video ads, you already have a leg up. The engagement and conversion rate for videos on Facebook is awesome! Did you know that about 500 million people watch videos every single day on Facebook? Facebook recently announced that people watch an average of 100 million hours of video every day! Picture the potential that lies within video advertisements on this platform alone!
In addition to the great viewership, people tend to recall what they saw much easier than something they read. That’s great news for businesses! You definitely want the viewer to be able to recall the business behind the message. I’m sure by now it’s clear that if you want to catch the attention of your target audience, you need to run some video ads in addition to standard image ads, so let’s discuss some strategies that you should follow when using videos as advertisements on Facebook.
Are you ready to start running ads that will actually get noticed? Good! We thought so! Let’s get going…
Be mindful of your audience.
The biggest thing you need to do is to be mindful of your audience. You wouldn’t want to run an ad promoting your upgraded service to an audience who doesn’t even know who you are and on the other hand, you wouldn’t want to run an ad announcing what services you offer and introducing what your business is all about to someone who has been a loyal customer for years. It’s basically wasted advertising dollars at that point because you are totally missing the mark on what your audience needs to see.
To get exposure with new customers and introduce them to your business, make a short :30 video and run it under the objectives of “brand awareness.” Afterwards, you can compose a more detailed video that has a strong call-to-action. This video can be shown to a custom audience which will be made up of people who watched the previous video. Custom audiences are your friend and can be used in a variety of scenarios. To create this audience follow these steps: create a custom audience of Facebook engagement > Video views > Views of the video ad.
Be imaginative, innovative, and captivating.
This might sound like a no-brainer. After all, any good marketer would know that they want their ads to be captivating and attention-grabbing. The more imaginative and out-of-the-box ads are, the more attention they get. Remember, ads are a good way to gain the trust of new customers and the loyalty your existing customers. Make them feel the emotions of what you are saying. Make it engaging and moving. The music you play, the voice over you use, the colors portrayed, all work together to make your ad lovable, enjoyable, and shareable.
Remember, some people have their settings set to “mute” so it’s important to keep that in mind when creating your video ad. Have strong visual clues so that the viewer is engaged. Running text over the video is also a fantastic way to get the viewers’ attention and allow them to finish watching the video with the sound off.
Don’t forget a strong call-to-action.
As we discussed, typically the main goal of an ad is to create action. You want people to be moved so much by your ad that they complete your call-to-action, whether it’s to join your email list, visit your website, or take advantage of a special you are promoting. Be straight up with them and call out exactly what that action is right in your video. Use the text feature that we mentioned above. Not everyone will hear an audible CTA so make sure to include it as a closed caption or as an end-screen to your video. A good point to remember is that if a viewer watched your entire video, it’s safe to say that they are interested in your goods or services so don’t blow that opportunity. Give them a CTA – and make it a good one!
Make sure to run lead ads on Facebook.
Facebook lead ads are an awesome way to get info from people who clicked on your CTA. Lead ads were designed for mobile users, which now make up 87% of Facebook’s video ad revenue. When a user clicks on your CTA, they will be prompted to fill out a lead form. They will be enticed to complete this form if you give them a good incentive. You’ll want to give them a good return for filling out that form because it has valuable information that you can use at a future date to nudge those prospects into customers.
Running lead ads requires you to test out your target audiences, tweaking them along the way until they are just right. You can create different audiences to test but you will most likely be successful with an audience that is composed of people who have visited your site or who have watched your videos.
As we part…
Video ads can take some getting used to as far as creation goes, but the return on investment really pays off. Take the time to understand what formula works to generate lots of leads and increases your conversions. By doing this, you’ll be blowing your competitors out of the water!
Have you used video ads to draw in customers? What has worked for you? Are you struggling with growing your business on Facebook or other social media platforms? We are here to help! Cl