You are convinced of the added value of advertise on Facebook and you know what the are the costs of advertising on Facebook. Then it is now time to actually start creating an advertisement! Here is a step-by-step explanation for starting with Facebook Ads. At the end you must add a payment method from Facebook (iDEAL, Credit card, PayPal or Facebook voucher): you cannot save your advertisement for later.

Pay attention! Lots of screenshots so lots of scrolling! I provide explanations per step but not a full elaboration. Do you want an elaboration of something? Send me a message and it's on the list! The next on the schedule is 'The Ideal Facebook Advertisement'. Well, now get started with your first Faebook ad:

Go to Advertising on Facebook

This is possible via the menu at the top:

Create an advertiser account

You arrive at an overview page with all kinds of information about the steps:

1. Create your Facebook page
2. Connect with people
3. Attract attention with high quality content

On the right a menu with 'How it works' and 'Frequently asked questions'. Both pages provide an explanation and the green button to create an advertisement. Click on the green button 'create an advertisement".

Facebook then creates an advertiser account, and checks the Facebook pages that are linked to your Facebook profile:

Step 1: Create your campaign

What do you use Facebook Ads for? Facebook offers many options, which amount to traffic to your website, traffic to your Facebook page, traffic to your app, interaction on Facebook. See the explanation for each point:

• Send people to your website: traffic to your website. Handy if you want more quality traffic from a specific target group with a specific background or interest.
• Stimulate conversions on your website: traffic on your website must do something. Conversions, in the form of a contact form, purchase, download or request for quotation. With a pixel on your site, Facebook can control your traffic that converts earlier. Usually better than just traffic.
• Promote your messages: 100% from your fans used to see the message from your Facebook page. Now that is 2% on average, up to 20% for qualitative pages. With this objective you buy it back. I only recommend if you really have a goal with your Facebook messages.
• Promote your page: for 'I like'. Shown as 'your friends Bert and Ernie liked this page'. Is therefore for growing your Facebook range, but beware, the 2% is less.
• Generate installations from your app: if you choose this, you also have enough budget to let someone else do your Facebook ads. More important than advertising for your app is ensuring that users are satisfied with your app. More difficult than you think (which apps do you use, in addition to social media, mail, news and weather?)
• Increase involvement with your app: ensures repeat traffic to your app.
• Generate more visitors for your event: very interesting option for pub owners, organizers, bands that organize their own gigs and anyone who wants to get people on the go.
• Generate claims from offers: with Facebook you can make an offer that your fans can claim. Interesting for stores to generate traffic to the store and for major brands.
• Increase the number of video views: for more viewers of your video. What purpose does your video support?

Read the Facebook help about advertising objectives.

Send people to your website

Naturally starts with the question: dude, which site then? Specify a site (without http: //) and Facebook jumps to the next page.

Enter your account information

Do my titles confuse you compared to what Facebook shows as a page? Facebook still calls this 'Step 1: create your campaign' and 'Choose a goal for your campaign', but if you pay attention, you will see that we have already gone through those steps. You can still you Campaign name To adjust; Facebook has made this 'site + objective', in itself a practical campaign name I would say. The next step is to enter your account information:

Account details are not that exciting. You read this article in Dutch, and we have here the Euro with time zone Amsterdam. Advanced options is only the name of your ad account; here is your profile name by default, I made this of it:

Step 3: create your ad set

No, you're still on the same page, but scrolled through to the most interesting part of Facebook Ads: your target audience. Facebook throws that under your ad set. So what about that? This is the structure of your campaign. I give you an example of MOO, an ice cream manufacturer. MOO has 2 ice creams: strawberry and chocolate. That is why MOO makes a Strawberry campaign and a Chocolate campaign. Now teenagers and people in their twenties both enjoy the taste. That is why MOO makes an advertisement set for teenagers and twenties for both campaigns. Then you get 4 advertising campaigns, because 4 target groups in total, 2 per ice cream. Sound too simple? Translate it to your own products and target groups.

Well. Your target group! Take your time, because this is fun. You can, so to speak, create a target group such as: Groningen men between 50 and 65 whose interests are: rabbits (pets) and baking (cooking), are precursors in technology and have already purchased something via Facebook in the past 90 days (behavior , digital activities), and follow the Rabbit Doctor page. Now there won't be that many. On the right you see the possible range.

But to give you some ideas for: myself with this article, a restaurant in Rotterdam and a driving school in Breda:

Indeed! Facebook plays Target group provision as Target group provision. Hilarious. 

And through connections you can also combine fun:

Like the page of your competitor, but not yours, for example.

How much do you want to spend?

The question that Facebook wants to ask you all this time. Actually it is very simple:

1. a budget per day, in a specific period or continuously. Or:
2. A specific budget for a specific period.

You cannot (yet) state: specific budget for a month or week, you have to click the data yourself.

Minimum budget: 1 euro per day.

My advice: that is good for your wallet, but it will hardly pay you anything. Not only few clicks, likes or conversions, but also very little data. And that means that you can optimize your ads little (so: try different pictures and texts, and start using the advertisement that costs the least and yields the most).

Check Facebook's help about budgets and prices. (just read this)

The options further including the advanced options (not afraid of just looking):

• Optimize for: Sapper cover! There it is again! You can now adjust your objective here again.
• Prices: generate the most website clicks for the best price or Set the amount that a click to your website is worth to you. The first option is really not that bad (not like Google Adwords), and makes it easier. You can then focus on the quality of your ads. The second option is, just like with Google Adwords, an auction: you specify the maximum value that - in this case a click - is worth you. You don't always pay it. A handy trick is to be on the high side here (but not over your own limit of course!) So that Facebook takes your bid more often (because there is a chance of more sales) but you do not always get paid (because depending on all kinds of factors). To difficult? Choose the first option.
• Ad scheduling: Times and days of the week. Yes, that is useful for: religious beliefs (not on Sundays!), Wednesday Meatloaf (only for sale on Wednesday), Installing apps (at home and at work, but not while traveling)
• Display type: ok this is really advanced. 2 options: Standard view and Fast view. You accelerate when you really want to make your budget as quickly as possible. You do that at events and when you want to reach your goal quickly. You do need a manual bid for that.
• Creative set name: I still had this on Breda 18-24 (driving school owner Breda). A different target group per ad set, so this title is handy.

Step 4: create your advertisement

And then after your goal, target group and budget you can finally make your message: your Facebook advertisement! With another mountain of options:

What material do you want to use in your ad?

• An image or a video in your ad: upload yourself, from your Facebook page or Facebook's stock photos. Facebook already retrieves one image for your website by default.
• Multiple photos in one ad: Facebook automatically chooses the best for you. Provides (according to Facebook) for 30-50% lower costs per conversion and 20-30% lower costs per click. The carousel effect can be used to show more products, more details and to tell a whole story.

Which text and links do you want to use?

Images uploaded? Then the further content:

• Linking a Facebook page (or making a quick quick welja): it seems as if the advertisement comes from your Facebook page, but the advertisement does link to your site. Social trick.
• Header (25 characters): attract attention, speak to your target group, ask a question, give value, link to the image, keep it short.
• Text (90 characters) : shorter than a tweet! Give a reason to click, offer value, give a call-to-action, make it interesting.
• Action button (optional): You can put an action button on a Facebook page. Useful. You can have that button appear in your advertisement. Useful. Such as: Shopping, More information or Register.

But then. Another advanced options button! In front of:

• Link description news overview: the text that convinces people in the news overview to click on your link to your website. Above all, tell them what they can expect. That is in the advertisement under the link.

So what will that look like? Example!

At which:

1. Image
2. Header
3. Text
4. Action button
5. Link description news overview

Now you see the example per location on the right. Yes your ad is shown in different ways, these are all 4:

Now with explanation:

• News overview on desktop: You make purchases faster behind your PC, because for example you have your bank's ID device at home. Installing apps on your mobile is easy, but not everyone understands that.
• News overview on mobile devices: 40-60% of Facebook traffic goes mobile, including tablets. Is your image clear on this format?
• Right column on computer: Think about this for a moment: most people say they never click on Facebook Ads ... because they never click in this column.
• Target group network: becomes your ad outside of Facebook Read more about the possible objectives and formats target group network.

Pay attention! Without Facebook page, only the 'right column on computer' option is possible.

Check order

See my own quick test here:

See also the lower case letters below. You go back with Edit and continue with Order.

Placing order

Add payment method

It speaks for itself:

Click on Cancel (like I did), then you will return to the advertisement page. If you click away, Facebook will inform you how bad they are in saving your ad:

And unfortunately you have to start again, but I already warned you that before the intro. Do you have any questions? Place them at the bottom of the comments!