You’ve set up your social media accounts for your business, you’re making great content, and you want to increase conversions through your social media platforms.
If this sounds like you then you’ll soon encounter two options when deciding on how to move forward: run Facebook ads or boost your posts.
They might seem quite similar but, in reality, they are very much two unique tools and each one should be carefully utilised by savvy marketers to increase performance metrics while keeping costs low.
What are Facebook ads (or should we say Meta)?
Facebook ads (Meta ads) are pieces of content that you create through the Meta Ads Manager and then pay for them to be displayed to your target audience. They can be located in many places on Meta’s network, including on the Facebook News Feed, Messenger, and even Instagram Stories.
There’s a wide variety of ways that Meta ads can be optimised. You will have a set of objectives to choose from that include:
- App installs
- Catalogue sales
- Lead generation
- Conversions
- Store traffic
And many more! These objectives provide you with a different form of advertising and helps Meta decide on who gets to see your ads and how they interact with them based on their algorithm.
The success of your ads will be tracked and you’ll be able to view your successful conversions along with how big your reach was and how many clicks your ad got.
What are boosted posts
Boosted posts, on the other hand, are posts that you’ve made on your page and decided to turn into ads after the fact. They can be shown on the Facebook News Feed and on Instagram.
Because these are not created using Meta Ads Manager, their customisation and targeting features are limited.
You’ll still be able to decide on who you want to see your boosted post by picking from a set of targeting information and demographics, but this won’t be as in depth as standard Meta ads would be.
Don’t dismiss boosted posts as some form of sub-optimal Meta ad though because there’s a reason that they exist. If you have a post that’s popping off and smashing the engagement then you can boost that post to other people in your target audience that aren’t currently following you with the intent to spread awareness of your brand.
What should I use?
Well, this entirely depends on you and your goals! If you want to increase either your brand awareness, your reach, or your engagement then boosting a post is a great way to do this. Any more complex than this and you will be better off using Meta Ads to take advantage of their customisation and tracking abilities.
Also, if you’re just getting started in social media marketing then boosting posts can be a good way to get your feet wet without jumping straight in to the deep end with Meta Ads.
Take the time to work on your ability to create good content and then get used to turning them into advertisements by boosting them. Eventually you’ll have a better idea of what will work and what won’t when it comes to using Meta Ads Manager and creating more in-depth Meta ads.
Meta Ads Manager is the much more scalable option as your business gets bigger, providing you with more tools in your arsenal to make money consistently.
Want to run social ads? Get in touch!
At Blaze Media, one of our services is creating and tracking paid social advertisements for our clients. Not only can we create content that gets people clicking, but we also keep up to date with the latest tracking data and frequently optimise to ensure your adverts are performing as best as they can.
If this sounds like something you need then don’t hesitate to get in touch and we can schedule a chat and start working together!