To Pay or Not to Pay, That is the Question~
There are a surprising number of ways that a business can utilize Facebook ads. You can designate your ad for the Desktop News Feed, the Mobile News Feed, or the Right Column. Facebook has an unbelievable database of demographic information and can allow business to advertise to a broad market, or laser focus an ad to an incredibly narrow audience. A business can target the audience by location, demographics, likes and interests and even through far more personal information such as birthday and relationship status. Facebook Ads can meet many business needs by carefully evaluating the objective of the advertisement. For example, ads can be designed to simply direct people to your website, or to promote a specific action once they get there. They can also be customized to promote page engagement or grow your audience and page likes.
When using ads for social media it is important to remember the principles of good design that we learned about earlier in the semester. Principles such as balance, proportion, repetition, and ease of use are all important to keep the ad relevant and engaging.
Banner ads, while I find them quite annoying, can be effective because they are large, graphic based ads that demand attention. Their main purpose is to drive traffic to the advertised business. In contrast, Twitter advertising is relatively short lived as it shows in an individuals Twitter stream. Twitter ads appear to be most effective when it involves an immediate call to action combined with high value for the customer.
After reading about all the different types of social media advertising, I have come to the conclusion that paid advertising is not appropriate for this business at this time. The business is too young, and too small to justify the expense. I think the best plan for promoting this business is to continue to build followers, and post interesting, and relevant information for other ceramic enthusiasts as well as announce any events they might be showing at. Additionally, we will develop posts with specific calls to action to visit our page, come to the shows and tell their friends. We will attempt to build trust with our customers and encourage sharing the beauty and value of our products through word of mouth.
I agree on how wonderful it can be with Facebook ads since they can target a certain audience. But also find the cost to just get your name out there is to high. Generating more followers with interesting posts for others about ceramics and having events that not only draw them to your page but your company, would be far more cost effective then paying for ads for a new company.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Jill! Yes Facebook be a great way to get your business promoted since its targeting a your intented audience but I also feel like it's a waste of money if Facebook is used correctly it can generate traffic with your talent. Money should be spent on something else, maybe a few contests, giveaway, equipment or even in more traditional advertising.
ReplyDeleteHi Jill, I agree with your post regarding Facebook. My concern with a PPC is that everything I'm reading and watching on YouTube suggests to narrow your potential client base from the broader data Facebook has generated. Which is great, but to get there it may require hundreds if not thousands of dollars invested to find out exactly what resonates and what doesn't.
ReplyDeleteHi Jill.
ReplyDeleteI really love all that is available through Facebook in reference to targeting a demographic, scheduling, promoting posts, and so much more. How do you feel Twitter compares in terms of options for narrowing your target audience and demographic?
Michelle Ramskill
Hi Jill,
ReplyDeleteYou did your research and came to a conclusion that you felt was best for your business. I agree that creating interesting posts to draw your customer to like/comment/share your post is just as effective as paying for advertising. Working the social media to your advantage in creative ways can bring you more followers.
Aloha,
Dorothy
I'm sure you know your own business well enough to know if facebook advertising is or isn't for you, but I just wanted to let you know that I have dabbled in it a bit with very good results. Even my business (which is not cut out for facebook at all) has gotten clicks from facebook. I would recommend starting very small with a test run- don't spend over $20... to advertise a one of a kind piece or a special ceramics class- if that is something you offer. Just a suggestion :)
ReplyDeleteYes, the banner ads can be annoying. Very often times I find them overly done and it just makes me wanna leave the page. On the other hand those are the biggest once and of done tastefully I am sure they may work. Although still skeptical since most people I know do not like them. I think a word of mouth form of advertising would work great for you at this time. It is an organic way to grow your business and you KNOW that those people want to do business with you because they have heard about your great work thus you do not have to "fight" for these customers. Thanks for sharing. Lukas
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely with choosing not to go with advertising on social media. I think people have been so bombarded with ads on the internet that they look for and appreciate a personal connection now. I think people are also starting to mistrust banner ads and taking them as a scam.
ReplyDeleteHi Jill!
ReplyDeleteI understand that when you are starting a business and money is short, using Facebook ad can be hard. However it might be worthy to give it a try and start with a small amount of dollars. You never know if it will work out until you try it.