How to Start Using Facebook Ads

With Facebook topping 600 Million users, and a possible IPO worth $100 Billion just on the horizon, now is the time to start using Facebook Ads.

Today, we’ll go through the most basic step of activating your ads manager. If you are a BusinessHut client, or would like to be, this is our guide on how to setup your account to allow us to manage your Facebook Ads for you.

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Step 1: Create a Facebook Account
If you don’t already have a Facebook account, go to www.Facebook.com to create one.

Step 2: Go to Your Facebook Ads Manager
Follow this link to see the Ad Manager dashboard: http://www.facebook.com/ads/manage/
You should see a screen titled “All Campaigns”, but mostly contains blank space and some $0’s.

Step 3: Configure Settings

From the Ad Manager dashboard, click the “Settings” link in the left navigation.

Enter as much information about your business as possible and save changes.

Then, scroll to the bottom and decide how what notifications you’d like Facebook to send you about your ads.

*Stay on the settings page for the next step.

Step 4: Allow Us to Access Your Facebook Ads Account
If you are a BusinessHut client, this will allow us to manage your Facebook Ads. We will have the ability to change budgets and bid amounts on your behalf. You hired us, so this is what you want, but we like to remind everyone of this, just in case. If you are not a client of ours, you may skip this step, or ideally, you could contact me using the form on the right. 🙂

On the settings page, find the “Permissions” section, and click “Add a User”.

You’ll then see the following box. Enter my email address: jgreen@businesshut.com and make sure to select “General User” from the dropdown. Selecting “Reports Only” will only allow me to view your stats. (“Reports Only” might be useful for initial audits and campaign monitoring after the initial setup.)
Once you click “Add” I’ll receive an email and will have nearly administrative access to your account.

Step 5: Create Your First Ad (step 1 of 3)
Clients: We will complete these steps and let you know when ready for review. (You can stop here for now.)
Non-Clients: Go back to the Facebook Ads dashboard. (In the navigation on the left, click “Campaigns & Ads”.) In the upper-right corner, click the green “Create an Ad” button.

Choose whether you want your ad to link to another website or to one of your Facebook pages. There are many articles on how to optimize your Facebook ads, so I won’t try to give a tutorial on ad writing here. For now, we’ll just fill out the form as instructed on the page, to the best of our ability.
Our sample ad is below. When you’re happy with the ad, click continue to move on to demographic targeting.

6. Demographic Targeting (step 2 of 3 for Ad Creation)
In the “Targeting” section, you can narrow your demographics to only target certain users. Again, we could have an entire website dedicated to market segmentation. You’ll need to choose as broad or narrow a market segment as you see fit, and just remember to keep testing. One cool feature is that Facebook will tell you how many users are included in your selected segment.

7. Campaigns, Pricing, and Scheduling (step 3 of 3 for Ad Creation)
Here, you can set the campaign settings, such as Time Zone, Campaign Name, and Budget. Your budget can be set to a maximum by day, or as “lifetime budget” which means your budget will be spread across a specific time period. Once ready, click “Review Ad”.

8. Place Order
Finally, give your ad a name and click “Place Order”.
You’ll then be asked to enter billing information. (Credit Card or PayPal)
Once past the billing section, you’ll return to your dashboard, which is now a bit more lively. You won’t see any real data for a while, but be patient, there will be plenty of data to pour through soon.

You’re Done! Let your ads run; test often; and repeat.
If you enjoyed this guide, make sure to share it on Facebook with the buttons below. Thanks! 🙂

Helpful Facebook Links:
Facebook Ads Dashboard: http://www.facebook.com/ads/manage/
Facebook Ads Page: http://www.facebook.com/FacebookAds
Facebook Ads Help Center: http://www.facebook.com/help/?topic=ads
Guide to Facebook Ads: http://www.facebook.com/adsmarketing/
Facebook New Advertiser’s Guide: http://www.box.net/shared/zj6d8gpdo1