Myths and urban legends are a part of our lives and they extend to every little aspect which affects us – even the social media. The internet is an incredibly fast tool for spreading information, both true and false. And it is so fast to duplicate and then multiply false information to the extent that there are so many sources promoting it that people end up believing it.
After all, if X people say it, it must be true, right? What if all these people are wrong? I have thousands of examples ready for you, but for today I will stick to just one: Facebook™ advertising. There are so many myths and stories on various forums and websites, discussing how effective these ads are or not, and nearly all these stories are false.
So, what I am going to do today is expose these myths. Because people need to know the truth – especially business owners and marketers who miss out on a great opportunity to create a strong sales funnel just because they believe in those myths. Without further introductory words, these are those Facebook™ myths which you really need to stop believing:
1. Facebook™ Advertising Is Only for Branding
Right now, at this very moment, there are more people buying a product because they saw an ad on Facebook™ than from a catalogue or after watching a TV commercial. Social media ads are extremely effective at promoting sales, offers and discounts. Facebook™ ads are even more effective than other social media ads, because companies also use the Facebook™ pixel to track people’s activity on their website and can launch an ad at the right moment when the user is most likely to make a purchase.
Of course, you can also use Facebook™ ads for branding, or for gaining more followers for your page, but in most cases companies use them for obtaining sales.
2. I Need to Have Many Followers for Ads to Be Effective
The visibility of Facebook™ ads does not depend on your number of followers. When you go in the ad creation panel and you start selecting the characteristics of the audience which you want to reach, this audience will be selected from all Facebook™ users, not just your followers.
After all, why would you pay to reach out to people who are already following you and are aware of your business and products? It makes no sense and Facebook™ knows that – their top interest is to be a successful company and make money from advertising. For this reason, they need to offer actual exposure to potential new customers, not just existing ones.
3. This Type of Advertising Works Only for B2C Products
Business to business companies maintain an active presence on the social media, especially on Facebook™ and LinkedIn, and they use ads on both these platforms. Facebook™ is not just a place for people looking for fun, there are also top-level professionals and executives with Facebook™ accounts that are just as likely to respond to a B2B ad as other people to ads for consumer products.
4. Facebook™ Ads Are Expensive
As I have shown in previous articles on this blog, it is easy to optimise your costs for Facebook™ ads. By testing various ads, shown to various groups of people at various times, you can find a winning formula where you get a great conversion rate for the money you pay. In fact, this is one of the most effective forms of advertising in terms of return on investment. All you need to do is take some time to learn how it works, and you will be able to post Facebook™ ads for an affordable budget.
5. Traditional Advertising Is Still More Effective
Fewer and fewer people pay attention to traditional advertising. They change the channel when TV commercials start, have developed the mechanism of shutting out radio ads and large street billboards, and they throw most of the unwanted mail away without opening it.
What people do when they want to buy products, or even to learn more about a business, is go to Facebook™, ask their friends for advice and suggestions, look at company pages and click on ads which promote attractive offers.
Facebook™ ads are the future of advertising – just like any other kind of social media ads. They are relevant, targeted to potential customers and they are displayed in an environment where everyone is seeking information of one kind of another. Leave these five myths behind you and start promoting your business on Facebook™.