For small businesses, setting up a Meta ad account can be daunting; luckily for you, it’s actually really simple, and if you follow these steps, you won’t have to call your kid (hi mom, I’m talking about you) to do it for you – you got this!
Step 1: Make sure you have everything you need before getting started
- A personal Facebook account
- A Facebook Page for your business
- Full admin access to your business’s Page
- A credit card that you will attach to your ad account
Step 2: Access the “Ad Center”
When you are on your Page, there will be a toolbar that pops up on the left side that says “Manage Page” scroll down and click on the section titled “Ad Center.”
The screen it takes you to should look something like this:
Since this is your first rodeo, we recommend walking through the “Get started” feature. This will ask you questions about your goals, like what outcome you want to achieve from advertising through Facebook. Yes, we know it’s more business, but do you want to accomplish building brand awareness or increasing traffic to your website? The “Get started” feature will help you decide this.
Once you walk through the questionnaire, it will give you recommendations for budget and targeting based on your answers.
Step 3: Create your ad
Now it’s time for the fun part! Pick out the best photos or videos that represent your business and add a catchy headline and description. Remember to make sure your call to action (i.e., shop now, learn more, contact us) matches the rest of your ad.
As you build your ad, a preview will appear on the right-hand side so you can see how it all flows together.
After you create your ad (don’t forget to fill out every section!) Keep scrolling and choose an audience and a budget.
Step 4: Choose the right audience
As a small business, your customers usually live in a specific region. You’ll want to target that area to ensure you’re reaching the right audience.
Facebook will prompt you to choose interests, but don’t get too crazy here. The thing I love and struggle with on Facebook is you have to trust the algorithm. Hit the main topics of your business, and then just let it go. Don’t get too nitty gritty with the details. There is a reason that when you say something out loud, you get a Facebook ad that night (they’re that good or bad, depending on how you look at it).
Step 5: Set your budget and add your payment
Facebook wants to build trust. They understand that you’re likely a small business based on the information they’ve collected and the size of your audience and will probably recommend something small. Start with their suggestion, usually $1 a day. Having new people learn about your business is great, and you can begin learning what works and what doesn’t.
Add your payment, a business card or credit card, and you will be ready to go! For more information on how Facebook makes charges to your account you can read this article.
Step 6: Launch!
Woo hoo! You did it, and it wasn’t even that hard; no phone call necessary. Now just sit back and watch all the customers flock to your business.