As an experienced digital marketer who’s been through the ups and downs of Facebook advertising over the years, one thing I can tell you about Facebook ads is that they’re not easy.

You may be tempted to hit the boost button or whack up an image and some copy and see what happens… but before you start wasting your money, there are some important things to be aware of before you run Facebook ads.

Facebook Advertising can be brilliant at generating leads and has the potential for a great Return On Investment (ROI). But not all businesses are ready to go all in on ads. 

I’m sharing ten questions for you to answer before you decide if you’re *actually* ready to run paid social ad campaigns. 

Do you have clearly defined goals?

You may have heard the saying, “If you want to make money, you need to spend money”. 

But before you open your wallet, you need to know why you want to run an ad in the first place. What exactly do you hope to achieve with your campaign? Are you looking for brand awareness, lead generation, sales, or something else?

Want engagement on a post? Pick that objective, and the platforms will show your ads to the people in your audience it knows are most likely to comment, etc.

For example, if your aim is to increase sales, but you also know you will need to warm up audiences before they buy, you know you’re going to need campaigns designed for both in your funnel. 

By aligning your ad objectives with clearly set-out business goals, every penny you spend on ads is an investment towards achieving those business goals.

Have you calculated a realistic ad spend budget?

How much are you willing and able to spend to achieve your goals? (That’s not the same question as how much you want to spend!)

Having a good understanding of your business figures, such as your cost per acquisition and your average order values, is going to help you work out the region your ad spend budget will need to be in to achieve your goals.

If you’re scraping together the funds to run ads and you really need them to bring in a positive return, now is not the right time for you to invest in them. Running ads on paid social gets the best results when they are an ongoing investment and part of a wider marketing plan. Ads can be really effective, but it can take time before you start seeing a return on your investment.

If you aren’t ready to risk your budget, consider investing that money into something else for now. You might relate to some of the points below (e.g., organic content or an optimised website) and decide to put your money into these areas for now.

Is your website (or landing page) well-optimised?

Ads are a great way to kickstart visibility and generate leads, but if you’re sending those hard-earned leads to a page that doesn’t work well, you’re wasting your ad spend.

And by work well, I mean technically (e.g. it’s slow to load, has non-functioning buttons or checkout doesn’t show properly on mobile) or gives a poor user experience (e.g., an outdated design, confusing to navigate, poor copy or visuals that don’t engage your audience).

If you don’t have the time or feel comfortable fixing these yourself, consider hiring a professional to improve your website or landing page. This isn’t one to skip – your website is the online face of your business and needs to reflect the quality and professionalism of your brand.

Are you neglecting your organic content? 

Credible social media accounts help your ads to perform better. Running ads without this can make your brand seem inauthentic or potentially fake. Also, people may click from your ads and check out your Facebook page to see if you’re the real deal. If they see nothing at all or out-of-date content, they’re not likely to convert.

Helpful organic content shows your audience that you’re not just about selling but also about providing value. It helps build a loyal community around your brand and boosts your credibility.

Are you posting regularly?

Following on from an overall lack of organic content – you also need to be sharing this content regularly. By doing so, you will build up a better understanding of what your audience responds best to on social media. 

You can use the data from your organic posts to help steer you in the right direction when creating your ad creatives. That way, you’re more likely to create something that resonates with your audience, meaning an overall more effective Facebook ad!

Do you know your analytics?

One of the biggest issues I see with paid social ads is not being able to track and measure the ad performance. Without proper tracking tools and analytics in place, you won’t know whether your ads are effective or not. And you won’t know where to improve or what’s working well.

By looking at and understanding the cold, hard numbers, you can make real data-driven decisions instead of trusting what you might see on the platforms, as accuracy can vary due to a number of factors.

Do you know what imagery works best for your brand? 

Facebook is a crowded marketplace. You’ll be competing against multi-million-pound companies for your audience’s attention. This may seem daunting, but so long as your visuals resonate with your audience, you’re part of the way there. ‘Stopping the scroll’ and being able to stand out in the feed means knowing what your audience likes to see and knowing what your brand stands for.

If you’re not capturing the audience’s attention, you’ll fall at the first hurdle and lose people before you can drive them to the next action.

Don’t skimp on testing creative for your ads – it can make or break your ad campaign.

Do you have social proof?

Do you have positive reviews, testimonials, or case studies that you can use to showcase the quality of your products or services? 

Without these, it can be difficult to build trust with your audience. Social proof significantly boosts your credibility and convinces potential customers to buy from you. Without social proof, your ads may struggle to convert.

So, before you dive into creating ads, make sure you have a bank of social proof you can use in your ads and feature on your landing or sales pages. 

Remember, people are more likely to buy from a brand they trust. 

Do you know your competitors? 

Have you done any competitor research lately? If you’re not aware of what your competitors are doing with their ads, then you’re missing a trick. 

Understanding what kind of ads your competitors are running and what is working for them provides a valuable foundation for your ads strategy. You can use it as inspiration for your own ads or to help identify gaps in the market and take the opportunity to do something different. 

Either way, not researching and understanding your competitor’s position leads to missed opportunities and a less competitive presence.

Don’t dive into Facebook ads blind. Do your homework and understand the competitive landscape.

Do you have limited products and/or service availability?

Are you able to meet the demands of your generated leads? There’s no point setting up ads that lead to multiple potential customers if you’re not set up to handle it. 

Before setting up your ad campaign, be realistic about what scale in demand you can meet. 

Not doing so can lead to customer dissatisfaction and loss of potential revenue, which is the last thing you want!

Make sure you have a solid lead management system in place. You need to be able to capture, qualify, and nurture your leads effectively. If you’re not ready to handle the increase in leads, you could end up wasting your ad spend and missing out on potential sales.

Feeling ready for Facebook ads?

Once you’ve got all these in place, you are one step closer to setting up your first ad campaign! 

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or need help getting started, working with a paid ads manager like me can help you tackle all these issues (and more!). 

I can help you improve all of the moving parts of your paid social ads, from your set-up through to your performance tracking across Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and TikTok.

Click here to fill out a contact form to let me know what you need help with on your paid social ads.