How Facebook Ads are Presented
In the image you can see a cut from my Facebook page. As "real estate" is mentioned in my profile information, I am presented with ads about real estate. They show up on the right side of the screen, and always at least get a glance. The use of an image is effective, and the right image will get my attention, at least maybe getting me to read the ad headline. A good headline would then cause me to read the ad body text. How did these particular ads show up for me, and not ads about insurance or cooking?
Targeting the Best Prospects with Facebook Ads
The greatest value so far in using Facebook ads for my real estate marketing is in the ability to really fine-tune the ad to reach the best prospects. And, it's not just one ad, as a campaign can contain several, each targeted to a different audience if you like. An example would be an ad to reach sellers and get listings, and another for buyers. The image and text for each would of course be focused on the mission of that ad. But, the advertiser can also really drill down to the very best prospects by area, age, keywords, or other demographic information.
An example in my ski area and vacation home market is setting the ad up to run only when a Facebook user has the word "ski" and my town's name somewhere in their profile information. I was able to narrow the presentation focus of my ad from 300 million Facebook users down to under 30,000. It's more efficient use of my budget. Every market is different, but there are ways to narrow the group that sees your ad to those most likely to become a customer in the future.
Plan Your Facebook Ads for Each Real Estate Marketing Goal
Before you go to the ad layout area, have your ad plan in place. Decide on the goal of each ad, who the target is, and what the ad should say in the space you'll have. Also, decide on an image to go with the ad. Though there's no experience information right now to verify it, I believe that an area image, one that's highly recognizable, will work far better than your picture. If someone's interested in the Denver area, perhaps a photo of the mountains to the west or the city skyline. It's meant to catch their eye. Like all advertising, a catchy headline is a must. Once you have your plan in place, you can set up an ad campaign in minutes.
Let's take the next step and go to Facebook and do a sample ad to see how it works.
