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What are lead ads?
Whether you’re a roofer, plumber, marketing agency, dentist, or something else, all service businesses need a steady stream of leads to close new business. There are a variety of ways to collect leads – you could pay for a list, ask clients for referrals, cold call and email, etc. The problem with most of these tactics is the prospect isn’t familiar with your business and might not need your service, which means annoyance on their part and wasted time on yours.
Enter Facebook Lead Ads.
Facebook lead ads are essentially promoted forms that prospects can fill out when they engage with your ad on Facebook or Instagram. Since these people saw your ad and decided to take an action, you can be sure you’re only receiving warm leads interested in your service. Now imagine you could pay less than $20 per lead and your service costs hundreds or thousands of dollars. That sounds like a money making proposition to me.
How Effective are Facebook Lead Ads?
The cost per lead can vary based on ad quality, industry, and marketing strategy. Most companies can expect to pay anywhere between $10-$50 per lead. Estimating the conversion rate for those leads is where it gets trickier. Every company’s sales process is different, so the conversion rate for those leads varies. However, let’s do some quick math.
Say you own a home remodeling business. You spend $1,000 per month on Facebook lead ads and nail down a $20 CPL (cost-per-lead). Great, you’re pulling in 50 leads a month! If we assume just 10% of those leads convert to paying customers at an average price of $10,000 per remodel project, you’re making $50,000 in revenue from a $1,000 investment! 50:1 ROI ain’t too bad.
How to Create a Facebook Lead Ad
In Facebook Business Manager, create a new ad campaign and select the Lead generation objective. Then follow the prompts as usual, but make sure to custom design your form.
Tips to Create a Great Facebook Lead Ad
So how do we create a killer ad?
Offer an Incentive
Free quotes and estimates, a free tool, e-books, and other incentives for filling out the form are often very effective. Estimates are great because they give your sales team permission to contact the lead directly, and info products are useful because they familiarize the lead with your company and brand. Wealth Factory does a great job of this:
Be Noteworthy
Craft an ad that grabs people’s attention. Lame stock photos and bland headlines won’t cut it. Figure out exactly what your ideal customer wants to hear and what problem they need help with and then communicate your value in a clear and exciting way. Taking the time to create custom videos and gifs is an easy way to stand out from the herd.
KISS – Keep it Simple Stupid
Facebook already has the information your form is requesting, so these fields will pre-populate. That means that your clients can fill it the form with one click, unless you start putting in a bunch of complex form fields. Avoid that and make it easy for prospects.
Follow Up Within 24 Hours
You have the best chance to convert a lead into a customer in the 24 hour window after they fill out a form. You’re still at the top of their minds and they’re definitely still experiencing the problem your service solves. The longer you wait, the lower your chances of success.
Conclusion
Facebook lead ads aren’t a magic bullet, but they are a great and relatively simple way to start bringing in warm leads immediately, close sales, and grow your business. Comment below with your experience generating leads for your business!