Are Facebook Ads a Poor Choice for Small Businesses ?

Facebook began as a simple way to engage friends and family with everyday musings and status updates. As the platform evolved, especially after becoming a publicly traded unit, advertising became one of its core uses. Naturally, big businesses have refined themselves on Facebook use, pouring thousands of dollars into advertising and constant posts. However, minor businesses need a way to advertise to their specific customer base with a sensible price.

Facebook ads, and the inevitable business page, are not the best choices for minor companies trying to make their mark. There are several key issues that can make the ads and pages possibly difficult to manage.

Ads Don’t Equal Instant Clicks

As a recent study from Reuters was published, it showed that 80 percent of Facebook users did not click on ads or purchase those products. Although ads show up based on a user’s history of likes and hates, people were not tempted to click on the ads. However, users did say that they saw the ads, breeding some familiarity for your logo or brand. If you are a small business, your brand may not be that general yet. You need those ads clicked to expand your business information carefully. With ads taking up much of the right-hand column, the images may blur together for some users, falling your advertising impact.

The Elusive Landing Page

If you do end up with a click on your Facebook ad, it typically takes you to your business page. With the old Facebook conformation, this page was essentially your business website. You could set the page up just like a site users would reach on the Internet. For small businesses, this meant instant communication and possible sales.

With the change to the timeline effect, the business page acts more like a user’s status page. It is difficult to add elements that businesses need, from “about us” content to a expressive product text. It is more effective to a have a dedicated website to explore your product properly.

Burdensome Cover Image

When you build a Facebook page for your ads to link to, the entire top sector of the page is dedicated to a cover image. For many minor businesses starting out, they do not have the team to dream up an image, implement it and post it. If you leave the space blank, however, it offers an unsightly arrival as visitors finally click into your page. Small businesses that want to bring their ads and page into working order speedily will find a hurdle with this cover image problem.

Trying To Sell Your Brand

If you are finally able to create an image for your business page, you are faced with another difficulty as users click on your ad. They come to your page, but only find an image cover their screen. No promotional language is allowed on the image, forcing users to scroll down to see any information about the company. If a customer was wary when they clicked the ad, they may not be inclined to continue on.

Users want information fast and in front of their eyes. Minor businesses trying to make a name for themselves need to bring their products or services to the customers’ attention immediately. If a small business designs a website, most of the core services and mission are displayed across the top of the screen, along with the company name. Facebook ads, leading into the business page, do not provide enough flexibility for minor businesses to make an impression on fast-clicking consumers.

Not Exactly Interactive

Facebook ads and business pages offer you ways to analyze traffic and customer response. Although this sounds theoretically appealing, your contact with these consumers is passive. You cannot, for example, message a user after they click an ad or read your business page. Instead, you are simply building an advertising base, without any way of interacting with the potential clients.

“Likes” Aren’t That Likeable

One of the main ideas of Facebook is to “like” products, services, people or events. When a user “likes” something, it ends up on their news feed, essentially extending the Facebook ad idea. For example, your small, right-hand corner ad is clicked. The user sees your Facebook business page, and subsequently hits the “like” button. From Facebook’s basic operational descriptions, that user will now have your posts sent to their news feed.

However, posts don’t always make it to each news feed.

Resellers Beware

If you are a business that resells to other businesses, or operates in other B2B selling strategies, Facebook ads are not for you. This advertising platform is for direct customers. Although there are some businesses that operate as both B2B and direct consumer sellers, they are very limited across Facebook. It is best to look for another social media website that has a more business-minded niche.

Flashy Ads

Advertising needs to be exciting, or else people will not want to pay attention to it or click on it. Facebook’s parameters make ads look incredibly boring. You cannot make the ad stylized for your brand or position it differently on the screen. It may even blend in to the background as more interesting images appear on the user’s news feed. Advertising has more options on other websites and social media outlets.

Costs Add Up

There are different ads available to match with your minor business niche, but they will cost you. In fact, you can spend hundreds, and even thousands, of dollars to keep a Facebook ad rotating through the system. You could hire a commercial and have better response with that kind of money. As ads get larger and more intricate, Facebook charges therefore. To be truly noticed, minor businesses may need to find a better advertising platform.

Limiting Space

To compound the issue of ad cost, now Facebook has premium ads that many corporations are grabbing up. The ads are larger on the page, effectively reducing screen real estate. Small businesses, picking up the small ads, are forced to compete with well-known names that divert attention away from new ideas and products. At that point, a minor business cannot compete through Facebook ads alone. You either pay for the larger ads or find your marketing strategy stressed to be heard.

Although Facebook ads do have some redeeming qualities, many of the platform rules and design make it difficult for the average minor business to make a dent in their struggling customer base. Businesses may want to look into other website platforms that provide to the start-up world.