With more than 1 billion active users each month, Facebook has proven itself to be an incredibly powerful advertising platform. In order to get the most out of your ad campaign, you need to make it as targeted as possible. Here are some helpful tips on how to make your Facebook ads more effective:

Set a specific goal for each ad campaign

Before diving into a new ad campaign, set up a specific goal (or objective) that you want it to achieve. For example, you may want to increase brand awareness, or sell a particular product. Rather than aiming to achieve multiple goals with your ads, you’ll get a better return on the investment by being specific and focused. Identify the purpose of each ad campaign in order to achieve real, measurable results. You can plan on running several ad campaigns at the same time, or just one specific one for a set amount of time. This is an effective way to run a promotional deal for a product or service, or to offer a seasonal promotion.

Hone in on your audience

One of the best features of Facebook advertising is that it makes it easy for you to target a very specific set of demographics. Facebook provides you with a great deal of data about your audience, which allows you to track and measure the effectiveness of a particular advertising campaign. You can target a geographic location, age group, education level, employment status, and so much more. Hone in on your desired market by designing an advertising campaign that is specifically catered to them. Your copy, messaging, and images should appeal to that precise market.

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Don’t be afraid to run tests

When it comes to ads, be prepared to run tests. Create several variations of an ad to run for short periods of time, and see which one gets the best response. Something as simple as a slightly altered headline can have a significant impact. One image may prove to be less effective in getting the attention of your audience than another. You can run short tests, see which version of an advertisement works the best, and then run a larger campaign with the winner. Remember that what works for one group that you’re targeting may not work for another, so always focus on tailoring the message for a specific group. Don’t be afraid to ditch an ad design that isn’t giving you a good return on investment.

Choose the right visual

A visually appealing ad is going to attract more eyeballs and get more shares. According to Buzzsumo, Facebook posts that include images get 2.3 times more engagement than posts without images. Since Facebook offers various ad sizes, take the time to find the right image or graphic to accompany your message. Again, you can run tests of different images, as well as tests of the same image in different sizes and with different text. An appealing visual will receive more shares, which means more eyes on your ad.

Facebook ads have tremendous potential for businesses. Put effort into creating a campaign that provides you with real results.