4+ Reasons Why You Are Losing Money With Your Facebook Ads

Last Updated on: 8th November 2024, 09:13 am

Facebook ads have been the hottest online marketing tool since they first became available, and very little has changed. Facebook offers amazing targeting options with the incredible amount of data they have on its users.

But click costs are starting to rise, and whilst they are nowhere near as high as the clicks from AdWords, it is becoming harder to turn a profit as time goes on.

Let’s take a look at some of the biggest mistakes that advertisers are making on Facebook so that you can avoid them!

Mistake 1: You are targeting the wrong people

Finding the right type of audience to promote your business to is probably the most important part of becoming successful with Facebook ads.

You want to get as specific as possible when targeting, and use data from your business to help you…

…If 90% of your customers are men, advertise to men.

…If the majority of your customers are age 30-40, focus on targeting them to begin with.

Be very strategic about who you are targeting because it will make all of the difference.

Mistake 2: You aren’t tracking your Facebook Ads properly

If you aren’t tracking, you are aiming in the dark. And when you consider that tracking with Facebook is actually pretty easy, you have no excuse to not do it properly.

If you didn’t, you might see the ad with the real high click through rate and think that it was doing well.

What you didn’t see was that the very same ad was bringing in 0 sign ups for your webinar.

Without proper conversion tracking, you would have never known.

Mistake 3: You are using the boost post button

This one is really simple to avoid. Don’t use the boost post button. Just don’t.

People get addicted to boosting their posts because of all the extra likes they get on their posts.

But here’s the thing: what is that actually achieving?

Are you actually getting more people to your website?

Whilst Facebook likes boost our deflated egos, they do nothing for us when we want to make real money.

Mistake 4: You are promoting the wrong thing

As hard as you try, you are probably going to struggle to sell your £1,000 product to cold traffic straight off the back of your Facebook ads.

Instead, promote a webinar to gain trust or focus on gathering leads with a lead bait.

If you try and promote the wrong thing with your Facebook ads, you are not going to get very far, so be prepared to cut your product out quickly if it doesn’t sell, and focus on offering value first.

Similarly, be aware of where in their purchasing journey your lead is right now. Google Search is simpler – the keywords tell us what’s in their heads at the time of searching. But on Facebook, you’re interrupting someone’s day with your offer.

Yes, Facebook does offer amazing interest-based targeting, but are you using it properly?

With Facebook ads, either focus on educating your audience to get them in your funnel (see my note on lead bait above) or use it to retarget prospects who have already visited your website. Those two are key categories that generate revenue.

Then, make sure your ads stop the scroll with visuals and a compelling offer!

SurveyMonkey’s example does it right. Firstly, their visuals are minimalist and interesting (they feature human faces). Secondly, the copy references social proof – 350K+ organisations use them. This is a Facebook retargeting ad done right!

Mistake 5: You’re not sure what you’re trying to accomplish

When launching Facebook ads without well-defined objectives, you’re essentially navigating without a map. Instead, define what you want to achieve with your Facebook ads. Is it brand awareness, website visits, lead generation, or product sales?

Then, understand the key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your objectives. Whether it’s click-through rates, conversions, or return on ad spend, knowing what to measure helps you gauge success.

Each objective requires a different strategy. For example, if your goal is brand awareness, focus on reach and impressions. If it’s lead generation, create engaging lead magnets.

Finally, segment your audience. As I said, you can’t cast a wide net and expect only to catch herrings.