Running Facebook ads has really taught me to never assume anything. It’s actually a great lesson that can be applied to so many things. But one thing is for sure…don’t assume your ad will rock right out of the gate. You must test your ads!
You might be thinking, okay, great but first… HOW do I split test? The easiest way to do this is to pick one thing you want to test and set up your ads with that in mind.
For example, if you are setting up a new campaign inside the power editor and you wanted to test between images then you’ll create one ad, duplicate it, and change one of the images. You can let both run and let Facebook do it’s thing. You’ll soon see in your reports which one is a winner.
So now you might be wondering what types of things should you test. Here are 5 things I test:
Your offer – This is HUGE. Not all offers perform the same. You have to test a few different offers to see what really resonates with your market. Recently, I tested two different freebie offers in the same market, dealing with the same topic. One converted for $4+ per lead and the other converted less than $2 per lead. I was surprised because the offers were not that much different! So make it a point to test your offer – even the angle or the way you say something. A small tweak can make a big difference.
Your audiences – Some audiences convert better than others and you’ll never know unless you test. Again don’t assume because you are targeting an audience you are familiar with that you will get the results you’re looking for. Create an ad, duplicate it at the ad set level and only change the audience to see which audience performs better.
Your landing page – Not all landing pages are created equal. If everything is performing well with your ads, but you aren’t getting sign ups/sales (depending) then start testing your landing page. You can test by creating two different landing pages (change the headline, sub-headline, the image, the button/call to action, etc.). Create one ad, duplicate it at the ad level and only change the destination URL.
Your images – Some images get a great response and others don’t. If your ad isn’t getting results then test a few images. Your images should grab the attention of your ideal client/customer as they scroll through the news feed. Here are some tips:
- Use bright colors that stand against the normal colors of Facebook (blue, black)
- Use images that provoke emotion and appeal to your ideal clients (totally depends on your market but – smiling happy women, beaches, luxury, yummy food, etc.)
- Be creative, funny, outrageous even (within TOS of FB obviously) – the point is to grab attention
- Test between 2-3 images when setting up a new campaign (test between types of images too – a photo? a cartoon? a graphic design?)
Your copy – Is your copy compelling enough? The purpose of your ad copy is to pull the reader in and get them to take an action. Test different one liners and calls to action! Test between long and short copy. Clear copy is best.
Alright, that’s enough info to get you started. Let me know how your testing goes!
Happy Testing!
Lisa