You’re Getting Clicks, But Not Leads With Facebook Ads? Here’s What to Do

Published on July 7, 2017

There’s a reason that paid social media advertising is a top priority for brands in 2017 and 2018; as our own results have shown repeatedly, launching a paid campaign with one or more social ads platforms can lead to instant results in terms of increasing traffic, generating conversions, and even improving a brand’s following on social media.

In particular, Facebook Ads has led to remarkable results for our clients; there’s a reason that Facebook’s advertising platform has been recognized as one of the digital marketing tools with the highest rates of ROI, often besting even paid search engine marketing (SEM) in terms of impact for the cost.

But no platform is beyond critique, and certainly there are some worthwhile questions that need to be asked about Facebook Ads – particularly if your brand isn’t seeing results. One common criticism that we’ve seen levied against Facebook Ads by brands is that their campaigns are boosting traffic, but not necessarily contributing to an increase in lead generation or conversions. In other words, some brands are claiming that they’re seeing an increase in clicks without any concrete results to show for it.

If your Facebook Ads campaign is generating traffic without getting you leads, the problem likely isn’t the substance of your ads; instead, the issue likely lies with who you’re reaching and what they see when they click through to your landing page.

Rethink Your Targeting

If you’re getting traffic but not conversions, the core of the issue may be that you’re not actually reaching your ideal audience, or the users most likely to want to engage and work with your brand. This probably means that you’re not really taking advantage of Facebook’s extremely sophisticated targeting tools.

One of the very best things about Facebook’s advertising tools is that they allow you to reach the largest possible audience of people who are also most likely to engage with you. A smaller, more targeted audience will always yield more results than a larger, broader one, which is certain to be filled up with people who have no need or interest in your product.

Instead of going big, narrow in, using Facebook’s flex targeting features. The next time you boost a post or launch an ad, spend as much time focusing on your targeting as you do considering things like ad spend. Really consider your ideal audience (you may also want to turn to Facebook’s Audience Insight tool for help), and then program your ads to reach them, by specifying the demographics, interests, and behaviors that should be included and excluded.

If you are already using advanced targeting, consider experimenting with a new audience – perhaps by focusing on those exclusionary factors, which can make all the difference.

You’ll also want to take advantage of Facebook Ads’ other features allowing you to hone in on customers and gently encourage conversions. One such method is to create a “Lookalike” audience based on your existing customers, or the people who already like your page; once you give the go-ahead, Facebook will begin to target individuals who resemble your existing users based around shared traits.

Think Retargeting

If you’re not already, you’ll also want to put Facebook’s retargeting (or “remarketing”) tools to work; with retargeting, you’ll be able to serve ads to users who’ve spent some time on your website, ensuring that you stay top of mind with customers who may become conversions down the line. All it takes to get started is a little bit of coding.

Some business offerings can be sold in one pass, and others are require a bit of courting. For some Geek clients, we've found that while a targeted ad introduces their service offering to the prospective future customer, it takes two or three impressions to convert them. Facebook ad retargeting is the tool that turn first-time visitors into repeat readers, and in time, happy customers.

Revamp Your Conversion Funnel

If you experiment with narrowing in your targeting but still don’t see the results you wanted, the issue may not be with Facebook, but with your website. There are any number of factors that could turn off a potential customer before they get a chance to convert.

One big aspect to guiding new users down your conversion funnel is to ensure that the look and feel of your messaging is consistent; a simple fix is to make sure that the imagery on your landing page is the same as the imagery used in your Facebook ad, if it’s not already. You’d be amazed how unifying your branding can make a difference in terms of comforting users who may be hesitant to follow through with a purchase or sign-up.

In addition, you’ll also want to make sure that the content of your landing page is optimized to encourage conversions. If you shared a piece of blog content on Facebook, is it the sort of content that will encourage users to seek out more of your content, or to sign up for a free ebook or newsletter after they’re done reading it? If you shared a link to a sign-up sheet or product page, does your written content do a sufficient job of persuading users to give you their information – do you explain why they need you, how they can put you to work, what sets you apart? Are your sign-up forms intuitive and appealing, without being overbearing?

And remember, users will never even see your content if your site takes too long to load or feels clunky on mobile devices. If your code isn’t up to snuff, users will abandon you within seconds, and never even get the chance to follow your conversion path.

Have any questions about getting more conversions with focused social media advertising or superior web design? That's where the Geek team comes in! Drop us a line today to get the conversation started.