How to run a remarkable social media campaign
Social media is still one of the best ways to reach people today. With Facebook pulling in $29.9 billion in ad revenue in 2019 alone, it still leads the pack in terms of social media advertising.
So, much of the advice that follows is tailored to Facebook, but will also work well on other platforms.
Here it is:
Begin with the end in mind. The best ads have a specific desired action and spells it out for the reader.
Model your most engaged audience. It will help expand your base, creating a community of true fans.
Validate content ideas before spending money on them. You can use Quora to source great content ideas. It’s completely free.
Don’t make ads that look like ads. People hate being sold to, but native content that is interesting and relevant to the people you want to reach is always welcome.
Story over sales. (See #4) When in doubt, tell a story.
Clarify the transformation. You don’t want to go on and on about your brand. Understand that your ad needs to provide a clear benefit that will transform your readers mind or situation.
Be aggressively clear and specific. Don’t assume that people will know what to do when they see your ad. Everyone is skimming. Tell your audience precisely what you want them to do.
Test your call-to-action. Say "discover how" instead of "learn more. The latter sounds like homework, while the former denotes excitement.
Experiment with format. Create curiosity with "open loop" copy (i.e. copy running off the line). Use sparingly.
Cushion the landing. Easy there, captain. Don’t ask for the sale immediately--we just met.. Drive traffic to a blog post or free report or video instead. This helps keep costs down, and you’re likely to see better engagement.
Remember the golden rule of A/B testing. Don't test more than one element at a time. If you do, you won’t know what connected and what didn’t.
Pay attention to visual elements. High-contrast images perform best on Facebook.
A picture is worth a thousand ads. Test your images first, then test the copy later.
Strive for a healthy sample size. Wait till you have generated at least 500 clicks before testing your ads.
Align your message with the customer’s mind state. Keep your customer journey (awareness, research, consideration, etc.) in mind.
Take it easy. Use micro-commitments and behavioral congruence to get to "yes.”
Have fun.