9 Tips for Writing Killer Facebook Ads

Here are 9 Facebook ad copywriting tips to get started.

07:59 14 March 2022

1.62 billion people visit Facebook (aka Meta) everyday. That’s over one eighth of the entire world population! It’s no surprise then that Facebook is one of the number one places to advertise online. 

 

Brands can pay to display ads on Facebook in all sorts of formats: image, video, poll, carousel, slideshow, and more. 

 

On top of that, Facebook lets you target your ads by location, gender, age, interests, connections, online behavior—and the list goes on. 

 

But despite all the different ways you can customize Facebook ad campaigns, what really makes a Facebook ad effective is great ad copy. 

 

If you want more conversions from your ads, they need to be written well. There’s no way around it. 

 

You can hire an expert to manage your social media marketing or you can learn a thing or two about great ad copywriting.

 

So here are 9 Facebook ad copywriting tips to get started: 

 

1. Define your target audience

If you’re familiar with marketing at all, you’ve probably heard about your target audience a million times.

 

But that’s because they’re crucial to your marketing success. Before you can write anything, you need to narrow down exactly who it is you’re talking to. Then you can write your ad as if you’re talking to that person one on one and it will be much more effective.

 

2. Segment your audience

Once you’ve determined your target audience, you can also segment it into different groups.

 

Facebook targeting can help you do this. They’ll let you segment users by location, gender, language, interests, relationship status, and much more. Then you can create separate ads for each segment.

 

For example, if you have a younger generation audience segment, make your ad more informal. Find some emojis. They’ve been shown to increase ad click-through rate (CTR) by 30% to 40%! Just don’t overdo it.

 

3. Look for inspiration

If you find yourself at a loss for what to write, a great place to go for some inspiration is other ads. 

 

Check out the Facebook Ad Library, for example, and search for current ads running on Facebook by category. This will provide some perspective on what’s out there to help you write your own ads.

 

4. Write a captivating headline

Facebook ad headlines follow the 80/20 rule: 80% of people will read the headline only, while 20% also go on to read the rest of the ad. So you need to spend a disproportionate amount of time perfecting the headline to a T.

 

You only get 25 characters for the headline, so make every word count. If users aren’t captivated, they’ll move on in a heartbeat.

 

5. Keep the body short and to the point

When it comes to writing the ad body, less is more. You get 125 characters to work with here, but you should really strive for brevity. 

 

Don’t use flowery language. Just get to the point and do it quickly. Try putting your ad copy through the Hemingway App to make sure it reads at a young reader’s level. This will help you keep it short and sweet.

 

6. Complement the ad with visuals

Including visuals doesn’t technically fall under “writing” the ad, but it does go hand in hand with it. Get high-quality photos or images to put in your ad so it’s more engaging and click-worthy. You can use a free online graphic design tool like Canva to get started. 

 

7. Make it urgent

Consider promoting a limited-time offer in your ad. People love to feel like they are getting a deal and they hate to miss out on one—otherwise known as FOMO (fear of missing out). If you leverage FOMO to your advantage, you can drive more ad clicks and conversions. 

 

8. Write a clear CTA

Make the call to action (CTA) at the end of the ad crystal clear. Tell users exactly what you want them to do—whether that’s ordering a product or signing up for a newsletter. This way, you don’t leave them hanging and they’re not confused about what to do after reading your ad.

 

9. A/B test your ads

Lastly, run A/B tests on your ads. You can test the headlines, copy, images, and more by creating slightly different versions of each ad and then seeing which versions perform best. Over time, this allows you to polish your ad until it’s optimized for best click-through and conversion rates.

 

Final Thoughts

Running Facebook ads is part science and part art. You’ll see your ad campaigns deliver better results over time. But no matter what, you’ll need to hone your ad copy writing skills. Poorly written ads won’t get you anywhere. So practice, practice, practice!