Top 11 Mistakes In Facebook Ads That Ecommerce Brands Make

Last updated on February 24th, 2024 at 07:57 am

In the digital era, Facebook Ads have emerged as a pivotal driver of traffic and sales for numerous eCommerce brands. This powerful platform offers unparalleled reach and targeting capabilities, making it a cornerstone in many brands’ marketing arsenals. However, the path to leveraging Facebook Ads effectively is fraught with potential missteps.

For eCommerce brands, the stakes are high. A well-executed Facebook Ad campaign can catapult a brand to new heights, boosting sales and expanding its customer base. On the flip side, common mistakes in managing these campaigns can prove costly. Missteps in targeting strategies, ad content, or budget allocation can drain resources, diminish ROI, and in worst-case scenarios, jeopardize the brand’s reputation and viability.

Some of the prevalent pitfalls include poorly defined campaign objectives, overlooking mobile optimization, and failing to analyze ad performance effectively. These errors can lead to campaigns that fail to resonate with the intended audience, resulting in missed opportunities and squandered budgets. More concerning is the potential long-term impact: a brand that repeatedly misfires on its Facebook Ad strategy risks not only immediate financial loss but also long-term damage to its brand equity.

11 Expensive Mistakes in Facebook Ads + BONUS (End)

1. Overloading Different Margin Products in Same Ad Set

Ecommerce brands generally sell more than 5 products, and stuff all into same campaign, that’s bad and loss-generating

If a oil $9, shampoo $4 and soap $6 is added all into a single campaign, you can hardly control anything. You might be acquiring oil customer $2 giving healthy margin but acquiring shampoo customer at $5 which is a loss and eat up margins from oil customer

The problem is all have different margins and have different CPA targets, which confuses everything.

This is why always segment your campaigns/ad sets by product categories or products with same AOV and margins, this way CAC target is known and there is lower chances of loss

A marketer should not only look into sales but also work through the margins and understand the unit economics

2. Over-reliance of UGC (User generated content)

UGC was all the rage in 2021-22 and it worked well but now it’s a big Facebook ads mistake if there is over-reliance on this strategy

Customers have cut through the noise and are aware, UGC is inauthentic as the actors are paid to appear in ads and say things that might not be true about the product.

Having a mix of creative types is important for scaling and not result in ad blindness by audience. I usually try to keep a ratio of 40:40:20 for video, image and carousel respectively across accounts and in them at least 3 to 4 angles being tested in each type

Note – #1 Creative type to try for high-growth brands

3. Stop Ads Early

Marketing is a patience game, so even in ads let it spend before you make a decision. Just because the metrics on Facebook dashboard update almost real-time doesn’t mean optimization or changes should be done often.

Facebook ads undergo a “learning phase” where the algorithm optimizes ad delivery based on the initial performance data. This phase is critical for the algorithm to gather enough information to effectively distribute your ad. Stopping ads too early can disrupt this learning process, leading to suboptimal performance.

Before starting any ads calculate unit-economics of all products advertised, and then stop-KPI’s meaning the number you would stop the ad if it spends without any results

Generally spends should be more than 1.7 times the target KPI to decide whether other metrics are positive or there is a requirement to stop the ad

4. Ignoring Video Content

Video ads is not the future, it is present. With all rage over AR/VR and Meta glasses video is even more prominent. Just as products have unique margins requiring tailored campaign strategies, different Facebook platforms demand bespoke creative approaches.

Video content is the perfect format for educating an unaware audience and arouse curiosity to check out the bran and products.

Videos have a proven track record of increasing user engagement compared to static images. They offer a richer, more immersive experience that can effectively communicate your brand story, showcase your products, and evoke emotional responses.

Higher Conversion Rates: Incorporating video into your Facebook ads can significantly boost conversion rates. By providing a visual and auditory experience, videos help in better explaining the benefits of your products or services, leading to more informed and confident purchase decisions from potential customers.

Video ads are often turned off because they are meeting goals, but it is often that video ads are educating the top of the funnel audience that image ads are later converting but the attribution is just to image ads, so choose wisely

5. Being Complacent with Winners

A common oversight even among seasoned Facebook advertisers is the complacency that follows after crafting a successful Facebook ad. It’s tempting to let a high-performing ad run indefinitely, assuming it will continue to deliver the same level of success. However, this mindset can lead to missed opportunities for optimization and growth.

Winning ads are not immune to the dynamic nature of Facebook’s advertising landscape. Audience fatigue, changing algorithms, and evolving market trends can diminish the effectiveness of an ad over time. Relying solely on past successes without continual testing, iteration, and enhancement can result in stagnation and decreased ROI.

Just like as entrepreneur you have to be relentless same goes on success with Facebook ads, keep testing is the mantra. Even if you have an army of winners keep testing new Facebook ads against new/existing audiences

6. Improper Conversion Tracking in Facebook Ads

Do you know what is worse than no data?

Bad data.

Bad data leads to bad decisions leads to bad outcomes and then failure at large scale

This happens with every 4th account where tracking provides a false impression and is setup inaccurately which leads to all sorts of complications inside the Facebook dashboard due to bad data

Every month make it a point to get the tracking tested by an expert and see if all tags of Facebook ads main and conversion events are being tracked

WANT TO GET TRACKING CHECKED?

Let’s help you, you can book a call here and get started

With IOS-14 updates and all other changes beyond tracking accuracy has been poor and delayed. It is a mandatory to do this step. The backbone of any successful Facebook ad campaign lies in its ability to measure outcomes accurately. Without precise tracking, you’re navigating the complex world of digital marketing blindfolded.

7. Wrong Goal Optimization

If you are an ecommerce brand who is selling products on a website, then your primary goal is to get purchases for products. A common mistake people make is choosing traffic objectives in Facebook

Facebook gives you an audience of the type of that you ask for, you asked traffic it gives traffic but rarely does this traffic convert

If sales is the goal then choose conversion/sales as objective in Facebook ads, no other objective required unless you are spend high 7-figure ($$) on Facebook ads

8. Careless Copywriting

Capturing attention is the name of the game, careless copywriting can significantly undermine the effectiveness of your campaigns. The art of crafting compelling, clear, and concise ad copy is essential, yet often overlooked by eCommerce brands eager to push their products or services.

Here’s a deeper dive into how to improve Facebook ads copy

Understand Your Audience

• Conduct Audience Research: Use Facebook Insights and other tools to understand the interests, language, and pain points of your target audience.
• Speak Their Language: Tailor your ad copy to match the tone and terminology your audience uses.

Highlight Benefits Clearly

• Focus on Value: Instead of listing features, highlight how your product or service benefits the user.
• Use Bullet Points: For longer copy, bullet points can help emphasize key benefits clearly and concisely.

Employ a Clear Call-to-Action (CTA)

• Be Specific with Your CTA: Clearly state what you want the audience to do next – “Shop Now,” “Sign Up,” “Learn More.”
• Create Urgency: Phrases like “Limited Time Offer” or “While Supplies Last” encourage immediate action.

9. Stop Guessing, Start Testing

The mantra “Stop Guessing, Start Testing” serves as a pivotal guide for brands eager to maximize their ad performance.

Implementing Effective Testing

1. Start Small: Begin by testing one variable at a time, such as the ad copy or the image. This helps isolate the impact of each change on your ad’s performance.
2. Use a Clear Hypothesis: For each test, have a clear hypothesis. For example, “Using a question in the ad copy will increase click-through rates.”
3. Segment Your Audience: Ensure you’re testing the ad on a similar audience segment to get accurate results. Different segments may react differently to the same ad.
4. Allow Sufficient Time: Give your tests enough time to gather meaningful data. Rushing to conclusions can lead to inaccurate interpretations of the results.
5. Analyze and Apply: Analyze the outcomes of your tests thoroughly. Apply what you’ve learned to future campaigns, using the successful elements to continually refine and improve your strategy.

10. Ignoring Ad Frequency

A common oversight in Facebook advertising that can inadvertently diminish the effectiveness of campaigns is neglecting ad frequency. Ad frequency refers to the average number of times your ad is shown to the same person.

While reaching a wide audience is important, ensuring your message doesn’t become repetitive and intrusive to potential customers is equally crucial.

Strategies to Manage Ad Frequency

1. Monitor Frequency Metrics: Keep a close eye on your ad frequency metrics in Facebook Ads Manager. A frequency of around 1 to 3 is generally considered optimal, but this can vary based on campaign goals and audience size.
2. Refresh Your Creatives: Regularly update your ad creatives and messaging. Fresh content can re-engage users who might have ignored your previous ads and prevent ad fatigue among your target audience.
3. Target Audience Expansion: If frequency begins to climb, consider expanding your target audience. This can help distribute your ad more broadly, reducing the frequency per user.
4. Use Frequency Capping: Where possible, utilize frequency capping to limit the number of times your ad is shown to the same person within a set period. This ensures your ads maintain their effectiveness without becoming overbearing.

11. Poor Video Ads Hook

Capturing your audience’s attention within the first few seconds is crucial. A compelling hook in your video ads can mean the difference between a viewer watching your entire message or scrolling past without a second glance.

Unfortunately, a common pitfall for many eCommerce brands while running Facebook ads is underestimating the importance of a strong hook, leading to poor audience engagement and wasted ad spend.

A video ad that is utterly flopped can start performing just because the first 3 seconds (hook) of ad was changed, test at least 3 to 4 hooks per video before discarding it for a fresh creative

Strategies to Improve Your Video Ad Hooks

1. Start with a Question or Bold Statement: Open your video with a provocative question or a bold statement that relates to your audience’s pain points or desires. This can spark curiosity and encourage viewers to watch for the answer or explanation.
2. Show the End Result First: Sometimes, showing the success or the outcome at the very beginning can intrigue viewers enough to watch the rest of the video to see how that result was achieved.
3. Use Eye-Catching Visuals: The first few seconds of your video should be visually striking. Use bright colors, interesting patterns, or dynamic movements to draw the eye.
4. Incorporate a Teaser: Give viewers a teaser of what they can expect from the rest of the video. This could be a sneak peek of the climax of your story or a preview of the information they will gain by watching.

Here are 5 more mistakes by Ecommerce brands when running Facebook ads

Final Words on Facebook Ad Mistakes

As you grow the mistakes become expensive the strongest business are one-step away from the breaking of weakest link, you have to avoid that weakest link to be Facebook ads.

Wrapping up, it’s clear that diving into Facebook ads without a solid plan can lead you down a costly path. These common slip-ups we’ve talked about? They’re not just bumps in the road; they can seriously throw off your game. But here’s the good news: every single one of them is avoidable with Bharat Mavens

At Bharat Mavens, we understand the nuanced dynamics of Facebook ads. Our expertise is not just in crafting compelling ad campaigns but from ad campaigns to creative development, a robust strategy that navigates around these common pitfalls, ensuring your brand not only survives but thrives in Facebook ads. Our approach is built on a foundation of:

• Data-Driven Insights: We meticulously analyze performance data to refine and optimize campaigns, ensuring your advertising spend delivers the maximum return on investment.
• Customized Strategies: Recognizing that each brand is unique, we tailor our strategies to align with your specific business goals, audience demographics, and market conditions.
• Creative Excellence: Our team of creative experts specializes in designing platform-specific ad creatives that capture attention, engage audiences, and drive action.
• Continuous Optimization: The digital landscape is ever-evolving, and so are our strategies. We stay ahead of the curve, adapting to changes in Facebook’s algorithms and user behaviors to keep your campaigns performing at their peak.

Partnering with Bharat Mavens means more than just entrusting your Facebook advertising to us; it’s about embarking on a journey towards digital excellence. Our commitment to transparency, innovation, and results has made us the first choice for eCommerce brands looking to scale their online presence and drive profitable growth through Facebook ads.

Author Bio:

Read Dive

Read Dive is a leading technology blog focusing on different domains like Blockchain, AI, Chatbot, Fintech, Health Tech, Software Development and Testing. For guest blogging, please feel free to contact at readdive@gmail.com.