5 Tips to Get Started with Facebook Ads That Explode Your List

I get asked all the time about how to use paid ads on Facebook, and I’m astounded by the number of people who haven’t gotten involved in this yet.

At one time, I actually gave up on Facebook. I didn’t enjoy being on the platform personally, and the return on investment wasn’t worthwhile. Then I heard from Amy Porterfield, and I decided to give it another try. It worked.

Everybody knows Amy is the Queen of Social Media and I’d have to agree. I spoke with Amy on the Youpreneur podcast about how to set up Facebook ads in a way to actually grow your online business.

As an entrepreneur, time is your most valuable commodity. You can’t have it sucked away by one platform. With Facebook ads, there are a few things you need to navigate to get your ads automated and working properly. We’ve got some amazing tips on how to get started with paid adverts on Facebook in a way that will multiply your email marketing list.

As an #entrepreneur, time is your most valuable commodity - it can't be sucked away by one platform. Learn how to automate and optimize your #Facebook ads and watch your email marketing list grow! #Youpreneur Click To Tweet

1. Spend Time on Targeting

The number one most important thing to have in place for your Facebook ads is targeting. Fortunately, it’s simple to get started. You will do your best targeting if you start by targeting people who are already coming to your website. You absolutely must add a custom audience pixel to your site. I promise it’s not too techie. Get the custom audience pixel on your website, and you’ll be able to create a Facebook ad targeting a group of all the people who visit your website. That’s valuable because you know they’re already interested in what you’re putting out there. This is where you get to pay less and get better leads. That, my friends, is exactly where you want to be.

2. Remember Your Fans

You also want to target your own Facebook fans. You’ll also pay less for your leads here because they’re already warm. If you already have an email list, you can upload that list to Facebook and show your ads to people who are already on your list. Then, you can tell Facebook to take your current audience and create a lookalike audience of people who have similar behaviors and interests. These are some of the strongest ways to target your audience.

Once your retargeting strategy is in place, you can go into the ads dashboard and look at ‘Interests.’ Type in the names of different Facebook pages and target their fans. Find Facebook pages that have a lot of fans and solid engagement to be able to target that audience. This is powerful when you do the research to find groups that work.

3. Be Strategic with Images

Images are a big thing when it comes to your Facebook ads. Your main goal should be creating ads that stand out in the news feed. If you’re starting out and you’re not as well known, instead of putting your face in the ad, go for a simple, colorful graphic that gets straight to what you’re promoting. Make it visually appealing and use text that will grab your audience. If you have a personal brand built up in a specific niche, using your image might work best for you. Test out what your audience most responds to.

4. Keep Your Text Simple

You want to start with an obvious yes question in the text above your image. It should be something that relates to your niche and what you’re selling. The shorter this question, the better. What works best for students just starting out is the obvious yes question and call to action for a freebie. With the text below the image, you want to use the headline to tell people what to do. In the description below, give a little bit of social proof. Give a shout out to yourself about who you are to show your credibility.

5. Drive Traffic to Free Content

Pay close attention to your ads. When you’re getting started, focus on cost per lead. What you want to know is how much you’re paying to get people on your email list. On average, you’ll pay around $1-$5 per lead. To keep this ad cost low when you’re starting out, drive traffic to free content that people don’t have to opt into. First, write an epic blog post. Seriously knock their socks off. Then, create an ad that drives traffic to that blog post. Make it more casual, like something you’d post on your own page to get people to check it out. Use a blog-like ad image to keep it as organic as possible. Use targeting to drive traffic to your blog. And let me tell you, Facebook eats this up. They love ads that go straight to free content. Make sure you have a custom Facebook pixel for that specific post and re-target with a freebie so that audience can opt-in to get something even better. This is a great way to get leads in a more organic way. Plus, you start training your audience to know that you have amazing free content.