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Using Ads on Facebook

Lesson 36 from: Building Your Photography Business for under $3,000

Kathy Holcombe

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Lesson Info

36. Using Ads on Facebook

Lesson Info

Using Ads on Facebook

Let´s talk about ads on Facebook. There are several different ways that you can place an ad on Facebook. You guys have all seen them before and maybe you´re aware of how they work and maybe you´re not. So the ads that appear on the right-hand side of your Facebook feed, those are called Market Place ads, they´re on the right sidebar. Those are things that companies pay for to put them there. It depends what your purpose is for placing those, but they´re separate and they feel like an ad, okay? Do you guys spend much time looking at those? My eyes don´t even shift to the right-hand side of the screen, alright. I´m looking at Facebook just like this, I want to see what my friends are saying and that´s about it, right? I think we all kinda feel that way. So there are Page Posts that are embedded in your newsfeed and you can place those. Have you guys seen the ¨sponsored by¨? That´s your Page Posts. Okay. Those are the things that you pay for to be seen by followers. Okay. Then, there are ...

Sponsored Stories. And the way these appear are if one of your friends engages with a Sponsored Story. They leave a comment, they like it, they share it, then that can appear in your newsfeed. So that´s how that story works. And then Promoted Posts are boosted to your followers. Alright. So these are lots of different options depending on how you want to interact with that social network. So the right side bar is clearly an ad. If you just wanna generate brand recognition or name recognition, that may or may not work, but I think a lot of people look at these just like this. Page Posts, these are embedded, they´re paid for, they´re ads that show up in your newsfeed. It also feels a little bit like an ad, but it´s embedded what your eyes are already scrolling through. So if you have a bold and vibrant image with a really catchy title or question or something that´s shocking or it stops you, a Page Post could be a really good way to go. You don´t have to be connected to followers, it´s not tied to who your friends with or who is following your business page, but it´s gotta be something that stops people in their tracks. You guys have seen those bold headlines where you´re like, ¨(gasp) What´s going to happen? What happened to that celebrity from so long ago, I haven´t seen them in so long.¨ You´ve seen those, right? Okay. The Sponsored Stories, if you want to connect with people that are friends with your friends or your followers, this is the way to go. So if you know you have a very specific target audience and you want to connect with their friends because they also will be your target audience, this is a way to go. Sponsored Stories. If you just want to boost a post that you have so that more people see it, if you´ve done a post that is really strong and you´ve gotten a good response from that, you can boost it and expand the number of people that see it, and so that´s a good way for Promoted Posts. Okay. Different kinds of ads, different outcomes. So, here´s what you have to do and what you have to think about when you´re building an ad for Facebook. You need to use compelling copy. So a question or a bold statement. Think of the things that have stopped you in your tracks and you´ve clicked on it. I´ll admit, I wanted to see what some of my teenage actors from when I was in high school look like now, right? (laughs) Things like that. So what kinda question is gonna get your target buyer to click? Or to even stop as they´re scrolling through their feed? What´s going to be interesting? Use a visually appealing image. So what does that mean, visually appealing? It needs to be vibrant. If you have a dark image, it´s not going to be as catching as a bright, vibrant image. Okay. So something bright and vibrant. If there´s a person in it, you need to be able to see that person´s expression. So often times the images that we create are big, bold landscapes with teeny, tiny little people in them. That´s what we´re known for. Those don´t work well on social media. Because people rarely ever see the subject that´s in there, the person that´s in there. So for social media, Peter may really zoom in on that person so that you can see the joy in their face out on this amazing place, and that´s going to be way more eye-catching. Or, if the scene itself is a visually striking, it probably doesn´t need a person in it. So if it´s something super colorful or if it´s a dark image with a big, bright glowing tent in the middle of there. Something like that, that´s going to be eye catching. So if there´s a person make sure you see the person well, make sure the colors are vibrant and bold, people will attach to those more frequently. And then, you need to decide on the duration of the ad. How long are you going to let it run? What´s it going to look like? Is it a generic ad? Check out Holcombe Photography or check out Famagogo. Or is it something very specific? ¨Limited sessions. Book now. Only ten left.¨ What is your purpose with placing this ad? Is it brand recognition? Is it booking a session? What is it that you´re trying to accomplish through boosting these things? Okay. Alright, so we´re going back to this. Are you generating leads? Is that your purpose? Are you trying to say ¨book now¨? And what kinda buyer does that connect with? So if we go back to the psychology of buying, the research phase, the cognitive phase, the constructivist, applying it to their own? Is it a cold buyer, is it a hot buyer, where does that, where do they fall when you´re talking to them? If you have a personal Facebook page that´s all your personal friends, think about what that would actually mean to convert those to a client? Is that the right platform for you to use as a business? Is that your goal for this social media account? Or would it better, be better to have a separate personal page to connect to your real friends and family and a separate business page to connect to potential clients, and do you want potential clients to actually do something or do you just want them to know about you? What´s your intention as your setting up these accounts? That´s a big question. And if you are using a personal page, do you want to see what all your clients are doing all the time? Do you wanna have that filtering through your feed? So these are big questions to think about. For our brand, Famagogo, it´s a personal thing. It´s our personal story of adventure. That´s why it´s working for us. If our goal was to get people to book portrait sessions and photograph somebody else, we definitely would need to have a separate business profile. And we did, and we used it, but we don´t use it very much anymore now everything is personal because it´s about us. Does that make sense? See how we´ve used those tools to help continue to build that story of our brand? We want to be personally connected to everybody. Again, there will be a time when we have too many followers that it won´t work but for now, it works. Okay. So, are you generating leads? You want them just to call so that you can talk to them. Are you selling a product? Are you selling a fine art piece? Do you want them to click through to your website? Do you have a cool story? Is there something new and exciting and newsworthy that´s going on that you wanna share? Why are you posting? You gotta know the why so that you can choose the right outlet, so that you can choose the right words, so that you can choose the right call to action to get them to do what you want them to do. Okay. There´s another choice that you´re going to have to make and that is how you to want to pay for these ads. There are two different ways that you can do it. You can Pay By Impression so how many people see it. And why would that be a good thing to do? Think about the outcome for that? If you were really wanting to build your name, the more people that see it, this could be a good option. If you´re wanting your client to actually do something like ¨buy now¨ or ¨learn more¨ or ¨contact me¨, it´s all about the click. You wanna link them to your website, you wanna link them to your shopping cart, you wanna link them to your contact us page. Okay. So two different intentions, two different ways of going about doing things. So I would probably recommend that you want a call to action. You want the most bang for your buck because we´re on a $3000 budget, right? Remember that $40 I put in there for social media on your budget? That´s for placing ads. That´s for boosting things. That´s for getting the word out there. So as you think about the word that you´re trying to get out there, you need to think about what you want your clients to do as a result of seeing that. Make sure it aligns with your brand, make sure the images align with what you want to create, and make sure you give them a reason to do something. What can you do to motivate them to do something? So probably if you´re motivating a Pay Per Click is a better option.

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Ratings and Reviews

Amanda Beck
 

Kathy was a wonderful instructor. She was engaging and someone who was precise and incredibly helpful. We have a full time photography business and are always looking for new ways of running our business. Her information was insightful and forced us to have conversations about our business that we have haven't had in several years. She is fantastic and someone who has the information needed to help you start or expand your business. Thank you for a wonderful class!!

Chrissie
 

Thank you Kathy for yet again another very thought provoking class. You are such an inspiration, teaching us the right questions to ask ourselves so we too can be brilliant photographers / entrepreneurs. I was a fulltime RVer for seven years, traversing 44 states and seeing some of the most beautiful places on our planet. It gave me a great opportunity to meet some extraordinary people and to hone my photography skills. Now I have put down roots in Stapleton - Denver, CO and am soon to launch my own Family Lifestyle Photography business. Your course has definitely given me the courage to just charge ahead and go for it!

Jeph DeLorme
 

Another top notch production from the amazing team at Creative Live! Kathy Holcombe, aka FAMAGOGO did a great job of covering all the basics along with the associated costs involved in starting up a photography business. However, you don't need to be a beginner to get great info from this class, it's packed with ideas and tips that even an experienced pro can put to work and take to the bank literally the next day. I highly recommend this class.

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