The single greatest advantage of Facebook advertising is the data it collects and the abundance of targeting options available to companies. You can choose the people you want to reach based on demographics and interest, get in touch with your existing contacts, and find people on Facebook who are similar to your current customers. But how do you do that? This is where Facebook custom audiences come in.
What are Facebook Custom Audiences?
Facebook custom audiences allow you to reconnect with existing customers and people you already know. A custom audience is simply a list of people who have previously shown an interest in your website, business, product, app, or service. Leveraging this data is the most powerful way to ensure your content is delivered to people who are likely to engage, take action, and convert.
Customer Lists
It’s easier to sell to your current customers, leads, and prospects than acquiring new ones. Simply upload or import your customer list to the audiences tab in Facebook Ads Manager and it will use the data to match with people on Facebook. You can begin using this feature with as little as 20 contacts using up to 15 identifiers such as name, email, and phone number.
Website Retargeting
Pixel-based retargeting is a highly effective marketing tool that targets your Facebook ads to people who have already expressed interest in product or service. It provides the opportunity to re-engage with people who visited specific pages on your website but did not convert. This is an excellent opportunity to offer incentives like promo codes to convert middle of the funnel prospects.
Engagement Audiences
Engagement audiences are comprised of people who have engaged with your content across Facebook’s family of applications. Similar to website retargeting, these audiences allow you to reconnect with people who have already established a relationship with your brand.
Engagement audiences can be established based on any combination of actions from the following sources:
- Video
- Lead form
- Canvas / Collection
- Facebook Page
- Instagram business profile
- Event
Expanding Your Custom Audience
When you’re ready to grow your business, you can use any custom audience to create a Lookalike audience. Lookalike audiences help you to reach new people who are likely to be interested in your business because they’re similar to your existing customers or website visitors. This is an effective starting point when your initial source audiences are small.
Note you must have at least 100 people in your source audience to create a Lookalike.
Custom audiences are essential tools for successful Facebook advertising campaigns. Split testing is key to understanding your audience and driving positive results. Have you had success with a specific custom audience? Share it with us below in the comments.
Commit Agency is a full-service advertising agency located in the Phoenix, Ariz., metro area that believes thoughtfully designed consumer interactions informed by a well-defined brand create moments worth remembering and sharing.
