There's no denying the reach and influence of Facebook in today's world. No other platform comes close in connecting users and companies with such ease. Facebook's newsfeed is probably where most people spend all their time on their devices. However, with recent changes in Facebook's algorithm on their Newsfeed, organic reach for Pages have been on a steep decline with some even calling it downright dead.
The harsh reality of Facebook is that Page Posts are declining in organic reach due to Facebook's new shift in favouring content from family and friends in the newsfeed. Some experts estimate the organic reach of posts are reaching only 3 - 16% of total fans of Pages. Depressing news indeed for Page admins.
There is no escaping the fact that you need to spend money to get your post to be seen by your audience and this presents a challenge for small business as you don't have the same budget as the big advertisers to spend on your posts for maximum reach.
As a small advertiser, you'll need to put more thought into your Facebook posts and how to optimise your ad spending and improve on what works best for you.
The simplest and most convenient way to get your posts seen by a large audience is provided by Facebook itself in the Boost Post function you see. Before you click on the button, we need to tell you, "STOP! Don't waste money on Boost Post in Facebook!"
For good measure, we'll say it again - STOP WASTING MONEY ON BOOST POST IN FACEBOOK!
“But it’s so easy” - you say. Just set the general targeting (to your page’s users and location), then the total budget for the promotion. BAM, it’s running until the budget or time runs out. In fact, hundreds of thousands of page managers use the ‘Boost Post’ button to increase their post reach on a daily basis because that's the only way they know how to get it done.
So, how should you do it then?
The answer: use Ads Manager and run it as a Promoted Post.
Some of you are going, "What's Ad Manager?" Some are going "But Ads Manager is so complicated and difficult to use. I don't have the time to go through all the settings!"
If you still insist on wasting money on Boost Post, there's nothing we can do, can we? But if you are serious about optimising your ad spend for greater effectiveness, then read on and we'll show you that Ads Manager is not as complicated as you think and you'll be able to master it in no time at all.
Before we delve into that, let's find out how Facebook Post actually works.
What Is the Facebook Boost Post Option?
The “Boost Post” option is still part of the overall Facebook ad system, but it’s accessed through your Page's newsfeed instead of Ads Manager. It's much simpler to create an ad this way to promote your post instead of creating specific ad-only content with fewer options.
After clicking the Boost Post button, you’ll be presented with a few options.
Choose whether you want traffic or engagement on your post. You may also add CTA buttons and specific targeting. A recent update now allows brands to go beyond location targeting and to use interest/behavior targeting and custom audiences. You can also target people who have liked your Page, along with their friends.
After that, you can set your budget and the duration of the campaign. You should then enable the tracking pixel and choose your payment account. Click on "Boost". That's all there is to it, your promoted post is now being boosted.
Facebook Boost Post vs. Promoted Post: What’s the difference?
In short, Facebook Ads are not the same as Boosted Posts, though Boost Post is part of the ad system. The biggest difference between the Boost Post button and manually promoting a post through Ads Manager is the number of targeting and bidding options. The Boost Post button handles a lot of the decision-making process for you. Think of it like "instant coffee". Just add hot water and it's done.
Facebook Ads, on the other hand, is like brewing a cup of coffee by hand. There are many factors that you control to influence the final taste of your coffee.
Facebook Ads gives you options for different actions and effective optimisation as well as control of factors that affect ad performance.
By now you should be aware that your target audience is by far the most important aspect of any ad campaign, and with Facebook Ads, you can set your ad campaigns with much better targeting options
When you create precise targets for each ad, you can better determine which audience is performing (engaging/clicking/converting) best for your business.
Want to up your Facebook game for 2020? Download the Essential Guide!
If you are on a small budget, having effective campaigns are even more important as you cannot afford to 'test' which ads work best before going all in. You need to get the most bang for your buck from the start. With Boost Post, you will find that you are not spending effectively as the controls are fairly limited.
Here’s what you’re giving up with the Boost Post function:
- Choosing different ad objectives that focus on your campaign and helping Facebook optimise the actions and results for you.
- The ability to quickly split test efficiently to different audiences that helps your overall strategy.
- Choosing customised placement of your post that can affect the cost and result in the end.
- The option to exclude categories or publishers of videos that your ad could appear in, particularly for in-stream video ads. (If you want to avoid certain “risky” categories that don’t align with your brand, this is so important.)
- The freedom to optimise according to your needs. You can't prioritise the number of impressions, actual engagement actions or even daily unique reach and even other optimisation options.
- The ability to schedule your ads at certain times of the day and even week as well as standard and accelerated delivery.
- Standing out from the crowd. Boosted posts are all over people's newsfeeds, so what better way to grab attention with carousel ads, video ads, and even instant experiences for better engagement with your audience?
Boosted Posts are reach based, not lower-funnel objective-based.
There are other business objectives you need to consider other than just reach, such as:
- Use Facebook "Offers" to drive in-store traffic.
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Acquire new leads by using conversion pixel-tracked link posts or even native lead forms.
- Put Messenger to good use by running ads that drive users to converse with you.
- Promote your Events with an ad to create awareness and hype.
The next time you feel compelled to "Boost Post" do remember that while it's convenient and easy but you are giving up so much potential to make your ad work more effectively with less money. Just allocate 10-15 minutes in Ads Manager to set your targeting and maximise your total return on ad spend. That's spending your money wisely!
Want to up your Facebook game for 2020? Download the Essential Guide below: