![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Lu-Xiaojun-Snatch-82247.gif\" "\\"Lu-Xiaojun-Snatch-82247\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nA professional snatch made to look oh so easy…<\/p>\n
I could watch all the YouTube tutorials I wanted, but without actually attempting a snatch myself, it\u2019s hard to know my baseline\u2014what parts of the snatch I was already decent at, and what parts needed focus.Of course, the trick is to make sure you don’t hurt yourself when you’re finding out your baseline…Facebook advertising is a complex paid-traffic strategy. Through a series of smaller strategies, you publish your first ad and use it to establish a baseline to see where you need to focus so you can ultimately improve your online business.And like the snatch, when establishing your baseline with Facebook advertising, your goal is to do it…without hurting yourself your wallet.If you\u2019ve been wanting to try Facebook ads for your business (or already tried), you might have needed help answering these questions\u2026<\/p>\n
- \n
- How much is it going cost?<\/span><\/li>\n
- What is the \u2018pixel\u2019?<\/span><\/li>\n
- How does the damn ads manager interface work?<\/span><\/li>\n
- What is an ad set and how is it different from an ad campaign? <\/span><\/li>\n
- What should I optimize my campaign for?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
This post will answer all of these questions. It will give you a game plan to establish your baseline so you know exactly where you stand. I will also show you how to identify where you can improve your ads and ad funnel so you can be successful with Facebook ads for your online business. By the end of the post, your first ad will be published, your baseline numbers established, and you\u2019ll understand enough of the little idiosyncrasies of the Facebook<\/strong> ads manager<\/strong> to confidently publish more ads to improve upon your baseline.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/visibleconfusion.gif\" "\\"visibleconfusion\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nGo from visible confusion…<\/em><\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/confidence.gif\" "\\"confidence\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\n…to confident swagger.<\/em><\/p>\n
The Biggest Mistake You Don\u2019t Want to Make<\/h2>\n
Before spending money on Facebook ads for your business, you need to make sure when someone clicks on your ad, they get taken through a:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Dedicated<\/span><\/li>\n
- Functioning<\/span><\/li>\n
- Funnel<\/span><\/li>\n
- Where you offer them one <\/strong>thing<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Crucial Tip:<\/em><\/span><\/strong> Do not ever send Facebook ad traffic to your homepage. If someone clicks your Facebook ad and gets taken to your homepage, then I only have one gif for you\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/shame.gif\" "\\"shame\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nPlease follow this crucial tip.<\/em><\/p>\n
Let\u2019s break each of these pieces down, so there\u2019s zero confusion.Dedicated<\/strong> – the only traffic seeing the funnel is traffic from Facebook. If you already have a funnel getting traffic from other places, make a copy to use exclusively with your Facebook ad traffic. Functioning<\/strong> – your funnel needs to work, technically. It doesn\u2019t matter how beautiful or smart the page is if it doesn\u2019t do what it says it\u2019s going to do. Wouldn’t it be a pity to send visitors to a lead generation page only to notice $100 later the lead form wasn’t connected to your email provider? Funnel<\/strong> – You need a simple funnel consisting of a landing page and a thank you page. A landing page has one purpose: convert a visitor for a specific goal.<\/p>\n
For the purposes of this post the specific goal should be lead generation. This means a visitor to your landing page should have three options and only three options: convert (become a lead), close the page or read your disclaimer\/privacy policy\/terms and conditions.<\/p>\n
There should be no links to your homepage, social media profiles or blog posts.<\/strong> If the visitor converts, they should be redirected to a thank you page. Offer ONE Thing<\/strong> – This is something you\u2019re giving away for free in exchange for contact info, like an email address. This can be a free report, checklist, guide, course, consulting call, but should NEVER be \u201cSign Up for My Free Newsletter.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you do not have a dedicated, functioning funnel offering one thing to the people who click your Facebook ad…do not pass go, do not collect $200. <\/p>\n
If you\u2019re not quite there yet, here\u2019s some resources to help you pass go and collect $200:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Want to learn more about landing pages? Read our Beginner\u2019s Guide to Landing Pages<\/u><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n
- Don\u2019t know what to offer? Take this free email course<\/u><\/span> <\/span>to create your first opt-in offer.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Need to learn the best way to build landing pages? Take our RAPID landing page building course<\/a> (it\u2019s free after you register for Thrive University<\/a>)<\/span><\/li>\n
- Need to learn how to create a simple funnel? Read this blog post<\/a>.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Have a Product to Sell?<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Yes, your \u201coffer\u201d can be your product and your landing page can be the sales page for the product. However, I don\u2019t recommend this strategy for your first ad attempt as it takes longer to get conversions and therefore, longer (and more money) to figure out your benchmark. <\/p>\n
Further, this post only discusses a \u2018cold traffic\u2019 ad (people who have never heard of you), which can be tricky to convert as you\u2019re asking for money.<\/p>\n
Make Your First Ad in an Afternoon<\/h2>\n
You will be building a photo ad to display in the Facebook Newsfeed for desktop devices. They are clean, simple and effective.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/NFAd2.png\" "\\"NFAd2\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nPhoto ad to display in the Facebook Newsfeed for desktop devices.<\/em><\/p>\n
Facebook has MANY other ad formats to choose from: canvas, carousel, video, sidebar, slideshow, mobile, collection, messenger\u2026Do not worry about them for now. They are something you can experiment with later on. <\/p>\n
The Four Parts You Need<\/h3>\n
There are four parts to a Photo Ad showing in the Facebook Newsfeed on desktop devices:<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/NFAd2-Labeled.png\" "\\"NFAd2-Labeled\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nThe four parts you need to create.<\/em><\/p>\n
- \n
- 1<\/span>The Ad Text<\/span><\/li>\n
- 2<\/span>The Image<\/span><\/li>\n
- 3<\/span>The Headline<\/span><\/li>\n
- 4<\/span>The Description<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Remember the landing page you already need to have built? You\u2019re going to use it come up with the four parts. You want the ad and landing page to be similar.<\/a> This will increase the congruence between the two, which is (generally) a good thing. This is what the landing page for the ad above looks like:<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TUniAdLP-crop.png\" "\\"TUniAdLP-crop\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nNotice all of the similarities? Same color, image, headline, testimonial…<\/em><\/p>\n
Guidelines for Your First Ad<\/strong><\/h4>\n
- \n
- Your Ad Text can be up to 2200 characters and can include links.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Your Image should be 1200 x 628 pixels and if you include text it shouldn\u2019t be more than 20% of the image. Ads with more than 20% text are penalized by decreasing the ad’s reach. If you use text on your image you can use this tool<\/a> to make sure you didn\u2019t go over 20%. There are some exceptions to this rule and you can read this<\/a> to see if your image applies.<\/span><\/li>\n
- You need to make sure you\u2019re allowed to use the images. Here are 15 resources for finding free images<\/a> you can use in your ads.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Your Headline can be up to 250 characters. Use our headline swipefile to write better headlines.<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n
- The length of your link description is determined by the length of your headline, so best to keep it short and curiosity driven.<\/span><\/li>\n
- The wording you use is important and sometimes Facebook will deny your ad based on the copy you use. They aren\u2019t crystal clear on this, but it\u2019s best to understand as much as you can before hitting publish. Here\u2019s their documentation on the subject.<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Now I can already hear the questions piling up:<\/p>\n
- \n
- <\/span>Should I put text on my image?<\/span><\/li>\n
- <\/span>What works better, short or really long ad text?<\/span><\/li>\n
- <\/span>I heard blue doesn\u2019t work well for Facebook ad images, is this true?<\/span><\/li>\n
- <\/span>Should I have a positive or negative headline?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The answers to these questions are not helpful, but I\u2019ll give them to you anyway: 1) It depends and 2) It doesn\u2019t matter right now.If you\u2019re struggling or feeling indecisive, I\u2019ll give you advice along the same line as my weightlifting coach:<\/p>\n
Spend no more than a few hours coming up with the 4 ad parts based on your landing page and then go for it, you\u2019re not going to hurt yourself. <\/strong>Congratulations! You have your first ad ready to be published. You’ll be able to see what it looks like before you publish later on in the process. So hold tight, before we get to publishing, let\u2019s set up the behind the scenes stuff to give you the edge you need to be successful.<\/p>\n
Get Your Tracking Ready Now So You\u2019re Not Guessing Later<\/h2>\n
To track the performance of your ad you need to have the Facebook pixel installed across your entire website and the thank you page of your offer needs to be defined as a successful conversion.<\/p>\n
This will allow you to gather all of the numbers you need to establish your baseline and find where you can improve.<\/p>\n
Before you can get a pixel, you need:<\/p>\n
- \n
- <\/span>A Facebook Page for your business (Don\u2019t have one yet? Follow steps 1-6 of this guide<\/a>).<\/span><\/li>\n
- <\/span>A Business Manager account managing the Facebook Page with an active ad account. (If this isn\u2019t set up yet, you can follow this guide<\/a>).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Step 1) Acquire Facebook Pixel<\/h3>\n
To set up your pixel, go to your Pixels tab<\/a> in Events Manager, click \u201cCreate a Pixel,\u201d and follow the wizard.<\/p>\n
What is the Facebook Pixel?<\/strong><\/h4>\n
It\u2019s a piece of code for tracking.<\/p>\n
When a Facebook user visits your website, the pixel tracks what they did on your website so you can make better ads. Facebook offers a bit of reporting, but it\u2019s not like Google Analytics, and the Pixel doesn\u2019t allow you any access to the personal Facebook profile information of anyone.<\/p>\n
Step 2) Install Pixel Across Your Entire Website<\/h3>\n
Copy your pixel code from step 1 and install it in the header of your website. If you\u2019re using a Thrive Themes\u2019 Theme: Go to your WordPress admin dashboard and click on the Thrive Dashboard. Look for the Thrive theme (the name of the theme you have chosen) and click on the green \u201cTheme Options\u201d button.Now, from the \u201cGeneral Settings\u201d section, you will have to select \u201cAnalytics \/ Scripts\u201d and paste the Facebook Pixel code into the \u201cHeader Script\u201d field.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/theme_options_header_scripts.png\" "\\"theme_options_header_scripts\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nWhere to paste your Facebook Pixel code if you’re using a Thrive Themes’ Theme.<\/em><\/p>\n
Attention Thrive Architect Users<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Our landing pages strip all code from your Theme.<\/p>\n
So, if you\u2019re using Thrive Architect for your landing pages, you need to follow this tutorial<\/u><\/a> (in addition to the step above) to make sure your pixel gets installed on all of your current and future landing pages.<\/p>\n
Step 3) Track Your Conversions<\/h3>\n
This is why you need a thank you page. You need to install a specific piece of Facebook code on this page to alert Facebook when your ad succeeds in converting someone who clicked your ad.<\/p>\n
Standard Events Tracking Vs. Custom Events Tracking<\/strong><\/h4>\n
There are two different ways to track conversions with the Facebook Pixel: event tracking\u2014what I recommend you use\u2014and custom conversions<\/a>, which is what you might have used if you’ve attempted Facebook ads already. The only advantage to custom conversions is they are slightly<\/em> easier to set up. <\/p>\n
The two major disadvantages to using them:<\/p>\n
- \n
- 1<\/span>You can only create 100 custom conversions for your pixel (event tracking is unlimited). While this will be enough for most, if you get hardcore about Facebook ads and if your business grows, 100 will not be enough. Changing your tracking at this point will make you sad. <\/span><\/li>\n
- 2<\/span>Custom conversions can be less accurate than event tracking as there’s more room for error. For example, you could build a custom conversion from a URL containing “thankyou”, thinking this will only match mywebsite.com\/order\/thankyou<\/em>. However, there could be a product page at mywebsite.com\/products\/thankyou-notes<\/em>, meaning you’ll get inaccurate numbers. By using event tracking, you’ll avoid these types of errors.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Follow step three of this guide<\/u><\/a> with the notes below to generate the code snippet you need.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Events-guide.png\" "\\"Events-guide\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\nStart here (after clicking the link above) to generate your code snippet.<\/em><\/p>\n
Notes About Generating & Installing The Code Snippet<\/strong><\/h4>\n
- \n
- <\/span>Because your offer is something free you want to use the \u2018Lead\u2019 event.<\/span><\/li>\n
- <\/span>Since you\u2019re using a thank you page to track conversions you want to choose ‘Track Event on Page Load\u2019 when given the option. <\/span><\/li>\n
- <\/span>Once you\u2019ve generated the code, you need to place it just below the closing header section of your thank you page. For most websites, this will be immediately after the opening <body> tag. If you\u2019re using Thrive Architect, follow this tutorial to add the code snippet to your thank you page.<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Step 4) Testing Your Pixel Installation<\/h3>\n
To test to make sure it\u2019s all set up correctly, install the Facebook Pixel Helper<\/u><\/a> Chrome Extension and then visit a few random pages of your website and check to make sure your pixel is working (you should see the pixel is found without errors in the Facebook Pixel Helper extension).<\/p>\n
Do this again on the landing page you\u2019ll be sending ad traffic to.<\/p>\n
Finally, load up your thank you page and check the Chrome Extension to make sure the \u2018Lead\u2019 event is being triggered.<\/p>\n
- <\/span>Since you\u2019re using a thank you page to track conversions you want to choose ‘Track Event on Page Load\u2019 when given the option. <\/span><\/li>\n
- 2<\/span>Custom conversions can be less accurate than event tracking as there’s more room for error. For example, you could build a custom conversion from a URL containing “thankyou”, thinking this will only match mywebsite.com\/order\/thankyou<\/em>. However, there could be a product page at mywebsite.com\/products\/thankyou-notes<\/em>, meaning you’ll get inaccurate numbers. By using event tracking, you’ll avoid these types of errors.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- <\/span>A Business Manager account managing the Facebook Page with an active ad account. (If this isn\u2019t set up yet, you can follow this guide<\/a>).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- <\/span>What works better, short or really long ad text?<\/span><\/li>\n
- Your Image should be 1200 x 628 pixels and if you include text it shouldn\u2019t be more than 20% of the image. Ads with more than 20% text are penalized by decreasing the ad’s reach. If you use text on your image you can use this tool<\/a> to make sure you didn\u2019t go over 20%. There are some exceptions to this rule and you can read this<\/a> to see if your image applies.<\/span><\/li>\n
- 2<\/span>The Image<\/span><\/li>\n
- Don\u2019t know what to offer? Take this free email course<\/u><\/span> <\/span>to create your first opt-in offer.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Functioning<\/span><\/li>\n
- What is the \u2018pixel\u2019?<\/span><\/li>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Custom-Audience.png\" "\\"Custom-Audience\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlpxhq8ztvyc.i.optimole.com\/cb:p0Z2.44bbf\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/thrivethemes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Custom-Audience-2.png\" "\\"Custom-Audience-2\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\n