Boosted Posts vs. Facebook Sponsored Content

One of the most frequently asked questions I hear when working with clients on the Facebook platform is, “Should I boost it?” More specifically, should they boost a Facebook post they just created. My reaction varies every time I hear it because I know the client’s intentions are good, but sometimes it’s hard to explain my reasoning for not boosting. So let’s put it down in writing.

In the marketing world today, Facebook ads are just about the best way to spend a dollar. As long as that dollar is spent wisely!

There are 2 main ways to create a Facebook Ad. Boosted Posts and Sponsored Content through Ads Manager..

BOOSTED POSTS are what people are most familiar with because every post you create on your business page will have the option to, “Boost Post”.

Boosted posts are easier and much less intimidating for people not incredibly familiar with Facebook ads, such as the small business owner or employee. You can select a post that’s already on your page, choose a target audience, enter a total budget, and how long you would like it to run and voila. Let the reactions and engagement begin!

Boosting a post is great for brand awareness and can provide valuable social proof. Also, if your post contains a link, you can encourage people to visit your website. But again, that post MUST contain a link.

An example of what type of posts I’d boost are announcement posts. Whether it be a big company announcement like winning an award, an expansion, a new hire or announcing a big upcoming event, these types of posts are great for the fans you already have and people close to them, which is what boosting is good for.

FACEBOOK SPONSORED CONTENT created through Ads Manager is what I use 99% of the time.

You have much more creative control over what the sponsored content looks like in every way possible. The 20% text rule still exists (only 20% of your image can contain text) but you can include a headline (the larger copy right below the image), a news feed link description (the smaller copy right below the headline) and an optional display link which shows up in the lower left hand corner. There is also a large selection of Call To Action buttons including “Watch More” for videos, “Shop Now” for e-commerce and “Donate Now” for non-profits.

Another benefit of using Ads Manager to create your Facebook sponsored content is the sheer amount of available objectives. You can optimize your campaign for exactly what you’re looking for. Awareness, consideration, and conversion are the 3 main sections, and each section has multiple campaign objectives to select from. Obviously each piece of sponsored content can only have one objective, but there are many options, including Brand Awareness, Reach, Traffic, App Installs, Video Views, Lead Generation, Post Engagement, Page Likes, Event Responses, Messages, Conversions, Catalog Sales and Store Visits.

Another major advantage worth mentioning is the ability to target exactly who you’re looking for. There is some available audience targeting when Boosting a post but not nearly to the extent that you can when using Ads Manager. Not only can you target a custom audience that you’ve created but you can also overlap that audience with another detail. For example, let’s say I created an audience of visitors to my website over the past 60 days and then I wanted to narrow that audience down to those visitors to the site who live in Wisconsin, can do! And that’s just where it begins!

Some additional highlights inside Ads Manager are you can choose what you want to pay for (clicks, impressions, etc) and where you want your sponsored content to be seen (mobile, iOS devices only, desktop, right column, Facebook Marketplace, Instagram Feed or Stories, Messenger, etc.)

Plus, you can also Split Test your sponsored content making it much easier to figure out where your money is best spent. (I’ll expand on this in my next blog)

Whichever direction you decide to go, Boosting Posts or using Ads Manager, it’s a win-win. Facebook gives you the platform for the best audience targeting at a relatively inexpensive price…at least for now. So promote away!