We have a guest blogger today - our Social Media gal: Emily Rippe
I recently had the pleasure of managing a Facebook ad campaign for a local YMCA and 12 of its branches. The campaign was inspired by a national YMCA call out and Youtube video, which features really cute children begging their parents to "BACK AWAY FROM THE SOFA" and join the Y. But there was a sense of urgency to do this--not just because the kids were so gosh darn adorable--but the sooner you joined, the better your joiner fee price would be (i.e. you are going to save money by acting fast).
Thrive worked on a full-blown online marketing strategy based off this Sooner You Join, Better The Price concept during the month of October. On the first day, the joiner fee would be $1! On the second day, $2, third day, $3 and so on until October 31st. We used Facebook ads with A/B testing to maximize the amount of forms being filled out online.
Three different groups were targeted. A general campaign strived to reach individuals and families who are not currently Y members or affiliated with any YMCA Facebook pages. The second batch of ads sought to reach YMCA members who could refer-a-friend, family member or neighbor. And a third set targeted young moms.
Since the campaign ran for an entire month, I had to keep a close eye on how each type of ad was performing. Lucky for me (and social media gurus like myself), Facebook shows general statistics including social reach, campaign reach, clicks and the amount spent each day on any particular ad. I could tell when an ad was performing and when it could be doing better.
Throughout the month, we switched out the ads a handful of times. First, we went with what the customer requested. About a week and a half in, we switched out the ads images and switched up the wording. A week later, we put more money into the ads that were making an impression.
Without giving away the tricks of the trade, I am going to discuss what I came away with from the entire process. I soon realized that keeping it simple is always the best policy. Incorporating language that Facebook users will understand is vital. Even if your offer is somewhat complicated, it's okay to use words that clearly communicate your idea and what you're offering. You can always have the fine print listed on a landing page. I also discovered that if you already have a strong branding image, like a recognizable and respected logo, there's no need to switch it up and change to something less known. And finally, the more general a message is, the more appeal it's going to have on the Facebook crowd.
Facebook ads are crucial for any mid to large sized campaign a business or agency is pursuing. There are only so many people one can reach with already existing fans. With the introduction of Facebook ads for the October Offer, we were able to help our client gain more than 100 new sales leads, increase their Facebook traffic and grow all of their pages.
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