How to Run Facebook Ads is a common question you hear all the time. Every business owner wants to get their products or services in front of more people to boost sales and revenue. If you run a business, that’s probably your top priority too.

Thankfully, platforms like Facebook make it possible to reach the right audience with targeted ads. But then Facebook ads can seem technical or too complicated, especially if you’re just starting and if you’re not careful, you could end up spending a ton of money and yet see little to no results.

However, it doesn’t have to be that way. When done right, Facebook ads can be one of the most powerful tools to grow your business. And no, you don’t need to be a marketing expert to make them work; you just need the right approach.

In this article, I’m going to walk you through a tested and trusted process we at Hydra-Scola have used time and again to teach businesses how to run Facebook ads that deliver results.

Why You Should Run Facebook Ads for Your Businesses

Imagine this: in a country where over 51.2 million people are active on Facebook, do you really think you can create a buzz with just a little over 100 followers in your account? Probably not! 

So, what’s the secret to cutting through the noise and reaching your potential customers? Ads; Facebook ads, to be exact, which are designed to expand your reach far beyond your current audience. 

But these ads only work when you know what you’re doing. That means understanding:

• Your ad goal 
• Your target audience
• Your ad budget
• The type of ad to run (single image ads, video ads, carousel ads, etc.)

And let’s be clear: throwing ₦5,000 at a poorly targeted campaign isn’t “testing it.” It’s more like lighting your hard-earned money on fire. Take it from me; , I learnt this the hard way.

For instance, I once ran an ad to promote my client’s hair revamp services. Feeling overly confident, I targeted everyone in Lagos. The result? Enquiries from people in Ikorodu who had zero interest in revamps and just wanted to chat. That’s when it hit me: Your audience is everything. 

So if there’s anything you take home from this article, it should be this: Nail your targeting, and you’re halfway to success. 

Let these words guide your next Facebook ad campaign.

The 5-Step Process to Running Facebook Ads Successfully 

To help you run successful Facebook ad campaigns, I’ve developed a 5-step process designed to improve your strategy and boost your chances of achieving your goals. 

They are:

1. Define Your Objective

Before you even touch the “Create Ad” button, ask yourself: What’s the goal? 

Facebook gives you options like awareness, engagement, traffic, and conversions. Your objective will determine your campaign strategy, ad formats, and the metrics you track.

For example, if you’re a startup student entrepreneur selling skincare products, running a “brand awareness” ad would be best for you so that people can know you exist. But if your goal is to make sales, then you’ll need a “conversion” campaign instead.

Pro Tip: Always align your ad goal with your business goal. It sounds obvious, but you’d be shocked at how many people don’t.

2. Know Your Audience (Like, Really Know Them)

This is where many Nigerian businesses fail. The temptation to target “everybody” is strong, but the truth? If you’re talking to everyone, you’re talking to no one.

Use Facebook’s audience insights to define specifics like:

• Demographics: Age, gender, location
• Interests: What do they care about? Fashion? Football? K-Dramas?
• Behaviours: Are they likely to shop online or just browse?

A clear understanding of your products or services will help you to understand who needs them and this will aid your Facebook ad targeting. 

For example, after thorough research, I figured out that the right audiences for my wig revamp client were younger, trend-conscious women, and so I put this to good use by targeting women aged 18-30 who listed “fashion” and “beauty” as interests. 

This resulted in more clicks and actual customers. So in essence, the right targeting is the trick. 

3. Create Scroll-Stopping Ads

The Facebook feed is a busy place, so your ad needs to grab attention. Here’s how to do this:

• Visuals: Use clear, high-quality images or videos. If your product is food, let the jollof rice shine and call viewers’ attention.
• Copy: Your text should be short, engaging, and actionable. No need for Shakespeare here.

For example, when promoting my client’s hair services, I used a short video showing a catchy wig transformation with the caption, “Your wig deserves a glow-up. DM us today!” (Totally simple and sweet.)

4. Set a Realistic Budget

Facebook ads allow you to spend as little as ₦1,500 daily, but how far your budget goes depends on factors like your audience size and competition.

Here’s a practical budget breakdown for you:

• Start with at least ₦2,000/day for at least 3 days to test performance.
• Use the results to decide whether to scale up or tweak your campaign.

Pro Tip: Avoid boosting posts impulsively. Use the Ads Manager tool instead for better control and insights. 

5. Track and Optimise

Your Facebook ad campaign does not end after your ad goes live; instead, the main work just begins.

Closely monitor metrics like cost Per 1,000 Impressions (CPM), click-through rate (CTR), cost per click (CPC), and conversions to see what’s working. (No idea how to go about this? We’ve got you covered at Hydra-Scola with easy-to-learn strategies that work).

Feel free to make tweaks and adjustments to determine what’s working and not working along the way.

When Facebook Ads Go Wrong (And How to Recover) 

Sometimes your best efforts at Facebook ads might end up flunking but you don’t need to beat yourself up for it. It happens to the best of us.

What you need to do instead is go back to the drawing board and re-strategise. When your Facebook ads go wrong, here are some things to keep in mind to help you recover:

• Avoid Vague Targeting: Instead of targeting all Nigerian women, focus on specifics like location (Lagos Island), age (25-35), and interests (hair care). 

However, there are some instances where a broad targeting will do the trick. In this case, Facebook’s AI will do the heavy lifting for you and find you the right customers for your business. 

• Test Small Budgets First: You can start campaigns with ₦2,000-₦5,000/day depending on the size of your budget to test audiences before committing big money.
• Exclude Bots: If applicable, use filters like “Exclude people who like X” to avoid fake engagement.

Other tips that can help you run successful Facebook ad campaigns include:

• Leverage Local Trends: Nigerians love trends, so tie your ads to what’s hot. For example, during Detty December, ads with “End the year in style with our services” work wonders.

• Use Payment-Friendly Platforms: With Facebook’s partnership with PayU, you can pay for ads using local payment methods so not having a dollar card is no problem.

• Retarget, Retarget, Retarget: Have you ever clicked an ad, left, and saw it again? That’s retargeting. Use it to follow up with potential customers. It has a higher conversion rate than cold traffic ads. 

• Learn and Evolve: Enroll for courses and programs on platforms like Hydra-Scola to keep learning. You can also jLearn from Meta Blueprint and other digital marketing groups on Facebook to stay updated on what works.

Wrapping Up

Armed with this information, you can now run successful Facebook ad campaigns that bring in results.

Remember to:

• Set clear objectives
• Understand your audience
• Create captivating ads
• Set a realistic budget and 
• Track and optimise your Facebook ad campaigns.

That way, you can turn Facebook into your best sales channel.

And hey, if you ever feel stuck, you’re not alone. Instead, don’t be afraid to restart and re-strategise until you find what works for you as far as running successful ad campaigns are concerned.