Red Bricks Media: Facebook Advertising -- Love It or Leave It? - Heather Razukas - MediaBizBloggers

Ask any digital marketer to name a few opportunity areas that are top of mind, and chances are a little game changer known as Facebook will be one of them. And rightly so. According to a study of top web brands released by Nielsen earlier this year, Facebook has fallen in line just behind the big three – Google, Microsoft and Yahoo – in terms of unique monthly visitors in the US, at just over 160 million. Meanwhile, Facebook is winning handedly amongst this group in terms of the average user's time spent on site – over 7 hours per month, representing 2 to 3 times that of the other properties.

While much of the intrigue lies in Facebook's ability to help marketers reach customers in a revolutionary new way, a rather sophisticated advertising platform, advanced audience targeting capabilities, and competitive pricing has many wondering if this is also the next best paid advertising opportunity since SEM. And it just may be – for the right offer. Following are some critical factors that every advertiser should consider when weighing a Facebook advertising program.

Entertain me. We all know that Facebook visitors are in the mood to casually consume and engage with content. So how well will your offer fit with that motive? A social gaming site such as Zynga is an easy example of a brand that may appeal to this mindset. Other advertisers, meanwhile, opt to create a community or environment to meet this objective. An excellent example can be found in SanDisk – a producer of world class memory cards – who employs advertising to send qualified visitors to a branded Facebook fan page dedicated to conversation and contests for the photo enthusiast.

Rise above the noise.Unfortunately for most, many advertisers have grown wise to Facebook's paid media opportunity, which of course means more competition and more noise. So how will your creative catch someone's attention? There's no doubt that a clean, eye catching image and pointed headline are two of the biggest considerations. But at the end of the day, what's in it for the user? Advertisers with something tangible to offer – the more the better, be it a sweepstakes, giveaway or a lucrative discount – are going to stand a better chance of winning the click.

What do you want from me?It's also important to consider the level of commitment and time investment you're requesting – is it realistic? The most attainable responses will be ones where users can complete the desired action right in the ad itself – for example, submitting an RSVP to an event or becoming a "fan" of a brand. Advertisers who ask users to navigate elsewhere on Facebook up the ante, and those who are more aggressive still ask users to leave the site entirely. The ultimate question is how easy can you make it for a user to complete your desired action?

Are you talking to me?I find that some clients are still surprised by the targeting capabilities that Facebook offers advertisers, which include geography, age, gender and stated interests to name some of the most critical. What brands should consider is how well these parameters will allow them to reach their audience. Offers that do not readily align with these parameters – thereby reducing the assurance that ads are shown only to a reasonably qualified audience – may not fare as well.

Keep momentum.Brands must understand that their defined audience will likely be exposed to repeated ad impressions, particularly in the case of a healthy advertising budget and multiple targeting parameters. Oftentimes, this means that a campaign enjoys an initial surge in performance as the offer is fresh and the most qualified audience is ripe for the picking. From that point on, brands may need to work a little harder to keep the momentum going. How can this be accomplished? First, new conversions are going to be generated by new clicks which are going to be generated by consistently fresh ads – if one creative didn't reel someone in, another one may. New conversions can also be generated by new eyes on the ad – something that could be achieved by testing response to gradually relaxed targeting parameters. While targeting is critically important to success, it's key to strike an appropriate balance between the right exposure and enough exposure.

At the end of the day, there is no question that Facebook offers a lucrative paid media opportunity to advertisers. However, the brands that will fare best will be those who can successfully make the above factors work in their favor.

Heather Razukas has been with Red Bricks Media since 2007 managing Fortune 1000 client engagements such as Adobe and Deluxe Corp and building high-performing digital marketing programs. Her email address is hrazukas@redbricksmedia.com.

Read all Heather's MediaBizBloggers commentaries at The Brickwire - MediaBizBloggers.

Check us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggers.com
Follow our Twitter updates @MediaBizBlogger