There is no doubt about it. Social media marketing is necessary these days when it comes to digital marketing.
But with so many different social media platforms available, it can be challenging to determine where you could focus your attention. Social media apps such as Instagram and Tiktok have risen in popularity, especially with the younger generations. And the number of vloggers on YouTube only continues to grow.
So, does that mean you should focus your attention on new social media platforms and start phasing out Facebook?
Well, no, not yet. Facebook ads are still one of the best ways to reach customers on social media. Even if you're starting to branch out to other platforms, now is not the time to give up on your business Facebook account.
Are Facebook Ads still useful in 2019? Are They Worth It ?
People are still using Facebook
Some social media platforms, such as Myspace, decrease in popularity after a new platform becomes available. Facebook only continues to increase in number. According to statistics, Facebook has 2.41 billion monthly active users as of June 2019. With numbers like that, almost any business will benefit from posting ads on Facebook. While Facebook might be more popular with certain generations over others, there is a good chance you'll still be able to find some sort of audience if you target your ads correctly.
You can target your ads
Facebook advertising has some amazing targeting capabilities. Facebook has data pools that collect information ranging from location, to age, to interests, to education, to financial status, and more. When you use an ad, you're able to completely customize who the ad reaches, which increases your chances of finding the right audience.
For example, if you're a small business, you might only be looking for customers that are within your town. You'll be able to set it so that your ad only goes out to individuals that have your town marked as their location. And if you're a small coffee shop, you can further target your ads to only go to people in your town that have expressed an interest in coffee.
With such specific targeting capabilities, you'll know exactly what audience you're reaching. Be careful of getting too specific, however. If you're not sure what demographics you should be targeting in your ads, consider using a service such as Digitrio to help figure out who your customers are.
Ads are better than business pages
The chances of your audience purposefully visiting your business page or seeing a post are slim. Facebook has reduced the visibility of business pages on news feeds, meaning that your posts aren't likely to actually make it your intended audience.
However, when you use a targeted ad, there is a higher chance potential customers will see it. Ads pop up on the side of their feed instead of directly in their feed, so you won't have to compete for attention against pictures of people's cats.
This isn't to say you should stop updating your business page, however. If a potential customer visits your page after seeing your ad, you want to ensure that they see that your business is still active.
Ads are cheap
In comparison to other paid marketing, Facebook ads are relatively cheap, especially if you factor in how many people your ads reach. For example, some local newspapers change up to $480.00 for a small black and white ad. But Facebook ads start as low as $0.25.
The nice feature with Facebook ads is that the price will adjust depending on how many people you're targeting and how many days the ad is running. So if you're a small business targeting a specific population, you can make the ads be within your budget.
Facebook ads are mobile-friendly
So many users are accessing Facebook on mobile, so you'll want your ads to be mobile-friendly so that you can actually reach your audience. Plus, you can actually enable a call button option, which can increase your leads. Some mobile-users get frustrated when they have to jump to multiple pages before they reach a sell page or contact info, which means you lose out on a lead.
With a call button, they can get directly in touch with your business and get the information they need.
Final thoughts
So, if you're wondering if it is worth your time and money to try Facebook ads, the answer is yes! You should at least explore the option and run several ads. Facebook analytics can help you further determine if the ads are a long-term marketing technique you want to invest in.
