6 Facebook Ad Trends Marketers Need to Know for 2020
By: Jesse Boskoff, COO, BlueLand Partners
October 28, 2019
Social media giants are improving and optimizing their platforms so regularly that it’s hard for marketers to keep up. Facebook seems to excel in efficiency of feature updates, and as advertisers, we aim to do the same.
How do we do that?
We adapt.
Below, I’ll explain trends that Facebook is leaning into—trends that sharp marketers should be mindful of going into 2020.
- Campaign Budget Optimization
Automation is gaining steam across platforms, and with campaign budget optimization (CBO), advertisers can optimize budgets against different audiences without human intervention.
Advertising professionals are warning marketers to proceed with caution when releasing new ads under CBO. This feature is still a work in progress; your mileage may vary. Due to this mixed feedback from advertisers, Facebook has pushed back a mandatory shift to CBO from its originally planned September 2019 date to February 2020.
In the meantime, dedicate a portion of your budget to testing CBO until you’ve proven it can outperform your traditional campaigns.
- Rising CPMs
Ad sets require low CPMs for optimum success. With CPMs increasing steadily, advertisers are wondering what they can do to keep costs at bay. After all, assuming all else remains equal, a higher average CPM means higher customer acquisition costs.
While there’s only so much we can do to control CPMs, you can definitely help stack the deck in your favor. Launch new ads often and find messaging that resonates with your audience. Both of these are likely to result in higher engagement rates, which typically leads to more favorable CPMs. And if all else fails, try using manual bids. This may curb your spending, but typically results in a lower CPM.
- Rules
Facebook has developed features that allow advertisers to automatically make changes at the campaign, ad set, and ad level based on predetermined metrics. For example, you can set a rule to pause an ad if it’s coming in above a certain CPA at a minimum spend level. This ensures that you’re phasing out the ads that aren’t performing, typically leading to more efficient results.
Taking advantage of this feature can free up plenty of time. Be careful to ensure that your inputs are carefully thought out, though. Rules that aren’t specific enough (or too specific) can lead to events that trigger inappropriately.
- Ad Creation Automation
Ad creation automation is saving marketers a ton of time and money when it comes to developing new videos, statics, and slideshows.
Take advantage of the many tools out there. Some of my favorites are Canva for static ad design and Lumen5 for great video slideshows. Always remember to include captions/descriptive text overlays to highlight the key points you’re trying to communicate to your audience.
- WhatsApp Placements
WhatsApp ads were set to be released this year, but haven’t yet launched. Facebook currently offers Click-to-WhatsApp ads, which allow marketers to start one-one-one customer conversations.
To adapt, advertisers should start using Messenger placements to familiarize themselves with a trend that’s sure to become more prevalent in the year ahead. 2019 has been the year that Instagram Story ads emerged, and there’s a good chance we’ll look back at 2020 as the year that WhatsApp and Messenger ads truly came of age.
- Manychat & Messenger Bots
Automated messenger bots are making a big name for themselves in the advertising market. Customer service will get better with systems like Manychat, Chatfuel, and MobileMonkey.
While bots can significantly boost the effectiveness of a campaign, they’re only as good as the work you put into them. Take the time to think through every sequence you devise. The extra effort can be the difference between chatbot failure and success.
