Once upon a time… well, 2014, to be more precise, if you knew how to go through your Facebook Marketing stats from Social Advertising and had a firm grasp on important metrics such as CPM, CPC, CTR, and CPA you were half-way there.
Knowing your numbers cold and what to do when they were on a decline would keep your head above water.
Don’t get me wrong, this is still the case – it’s all a number’s game at the end of the day.
However, when 50% of success stemmed directly from crushing data like Rain Man counting matchsticks, businesses could, to a certain degree, afford to use half-arsed, unengaging content strategies and still succeed.
But fast forward to 2020 and it’s a whole different scenario.
You see, Facebook made a huge shift in how it serves content to its users, and, from last year, started to focus on “meaningful social interactions” as opposed to interactions that didn’t serve any purpose other than lining their own deep pockets.
Get the gist?
If the adverts you are putting out there just scream “BUY ME” instead of trying to connect with your audience, Facebook’s algorithm is gonna push ‘em down to rock bottom, and you’re literally gonna have to pay your way out of that cold hole.
This new algorithm is an unforgiving tyrant on a mission to crush ads that pose a threat to “meaningful social interactions”.
In other words, Facebook sees advertisers as less important than its users base.
For you to succeed as an advertiser on this day and age you must help Facebook towards its ultimate goal of having engaged users.
Otherwise, you’ll be throwing money in a leaking bucket.
So, don’t make short work of your creatives. Half-arsed content is going to doom your business and not even a data-crunching bot on steroids will be able to pluck you from this ordeal.
We’ve come to an age where content is king, and the new equation goes something like this:
20% scripts, automation, and data analysis + 80% creative communication
It may sound crazy, but it’s true. Let me tell you why.
Facebook is estimated to roll out 300 algorithm updates per year…
As soon as you think you’ve mastered data analysis and the algorithm, the bloody thing gets a massive update and you’re left floundering like a turned beetle (cheers, Zuckerberg).
But guess what doesn’t change every other day?
The human psyche.
Our hopes and dreams, pains and fears, have remained steady over the years, and these things are attached to our DNA like super glue. And if you can tap into these primitive yearnings in the content you are putting out there, you’ll be laughing.
Pick apart your dream buyers’ brains and get the inside scoop of what’s going on in their minds.
Yeah, I know… big time cliché, and not the easy and revolutionary fix we were all hoping for.
Sorry to burst your bubble, but there’s no other way.
You gotta make this all about THEM, and not about YOU. Meaning that you must know your dream buyers from the inside out.
Get super specific in creating customer avatars.
Saying that your dream buyer is a 30-year old married woman who wants to improve her looks simply isn’t gonna cut it.
Instead, you want to delve into the minutia and pin down not only her Demographics (which are obviously ultra-relevant), but also her favorite Brands, what her Hopes and Fears are, where she spends her Holidays, highlight her Hobbies and Interests, and finally her Ideals and Desires.
Heck, you can even give her a name if you’d like.
The level of insight you’ll get from this simple, but fatally underestimated exercise, is unfathomable and will directly affect your business’ health.
So, unless you wanna have your business plugged into life support machinery, I suggest you start digging into your dream buyer’s psyche and build an Empathy Map like the one below:
With that done, you’ll have a firm grasp on what tickles your dream buyers’ fancy, and will be able to connect the dots all the way from their deepest desires and fears to your hook in a way that’s gonna leave them itchy to find out more about how your product or service will change their lives for the better.
Reel Them in With a Mouth-Watering Hook
An effective hook is best conveyed in a short sentence, which, albeit simple in structure, isn’t a simple thing to craft. It will take a few attempts until you get to the perfect formula.
When crafting it, include at least 2 of the elements below:
- Hype
- Intrigue
- Shock
- Inevitability
- Solution
Here’s a solid example:
The 2 Things 90% of People Can’t Get Right When Choosing a Partner
Talk about intrigue, shock, and inevitability!
With just one line you’ve dropped a bomb on the lap of every person who’s single, and although not explicit about the solution, it implies that by knowing these 2 things you’ll have much higher chances of finding your soulmate.
It’s gonna be hard to resist reading this ad…
Which takes us to the next phase.
Bold Ad Copy Makes for Bold Results
After you built up the hype and intrigue with a powerful hook, you can’t take your foot off the pedal. If you get boring now, it all goes to waste.
Your ad copy’s gotta be just as strong and compelling as your hook, if not more.
Turn up the intrigue a notch or two to transfix people and literally grab them by the scruff of their neck and take them straight to your website.
Remember, this is what your ad is meant to do: sell the click and not your product or service.
Try and sell something straight out of the gate, and you’re doomed.
Remember the “meaningful social interactions”?
On top of that, people have become masters in dodging ads like Neo dodges bullets… as soon as they realise they are being sold to directly they scroll straight past your ad.
It’s almost like you have to slip the thing under their radar.
And you do so by writing like you were talking. This not only gets your creative juices flowing and helps you put word to paper, but makes your ideas come across naturally, in a conversational tone.
Once you got the pulp of your content on the page, go hunting for powerful words that are gonna sex-up your copy and make it that much seductive.
Below is an unattractive example:
“Best tips to help you get your crush out on a date”
Now its sexy counterpart:
“We’ve pulled the curtains on the foolproof seduction method that will have your crush drop on her/his knees and beg to go on a date with you”
Which is the one you think people will read to the very last sentence and click on?
You betcha.
Here’s a list of the most powerful words you can use to make people salivate with desire when reading your ads.
Master these things and you’ll see a drastic effect on how people respond to your content.
Do that well and you won’t have to fret too much about the algorithm.
Take care of your end, the things you can control, outlining who your dream buyers are and how you are going to communicate with them.
Tap into their pains and desires with sharp words that cut through all the noise and you’ll truly tap into the potential of those “meaningful social interactions” and find out what these can do for your business.
