Imagine opening a storefront at Times Square, but you keep the blinds shut. Sure, people might occasionally notice your store, but they’re unlikely to enter or check out your products. The same thing happens when a business creates social media accounts but doesn’t invest in marketing!
Every day, over 5.07 billion people use social media which gives businesses an excellent opportunity to reach out to a wider audience. With popular platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, you have access to a massive pool of potential globe-wide customers to showcase your products to.
But just appearing on news feeds isn’t enough. You need to turn those scrollers into leads –folks who show actual interest in what you have to offer. And how do you do that? Through Lead Generation Ads!
If you’re a business struggling with lead generation advertising, this article is for you. Join us as we crack open some lead gen ads secrets and show you exactly how to turn social media into a lead generation machine!
What is Lead Generation Ad Sales?
Ever wished you could skip the cold calling and find people already interested in your product or service? Lead generation ad sales can be your shortcut. It is the process of attracting your interested audience and extracting their contact information using lead gen ad campaigns.
Lead generation ads simplify the process for businesses to identify and target the right audience for their products. Unlike brand awareness or engagement ads, which cast a broad spotlight on a general audience, lead gen ads precisely laser-focus on individuals who match your ideal customer profile.
Think of it like this: instead of shouting your message into a crowded room, lead generation ad sales let you speak directly to people who raised their hands, indicating interest. This targeted approach translates to a smoother sales process with a higher chance of converting leads into paying customers.
Once you have a list of interested individuals, you can put your sales team to work. However, it’s not as simple as it sounds. With the prevalence of data theft, people are often hesitant to fill out forms or submit their information online. So, how do you convince them to do so? Let’s find out.
Turning Interest into Sales: The Process of Lead Generation Advertising
Lead generation is not rocket science. All it requires is a little strategy and playing around with the audience’s psyche. While you might already be catching some attention with your regular ads, here’s how to run a lead gen ad campaign to get more leads from social media marketing.
Step 1: Define Your Target Audience
Before you blast out ads everywhere, gotta figure out who you’re trying to reach. Filter out your ideal customer – what are they like? Age, location, interests, the whole shebang. The more specific you get, the better your ads will resonate with them. Think of it like showing a picture to a detective – the clearer the description, the faster they find your target.
Step 2: Pick the Ideal Ad Platform
There are tons of online platforms where you can lead gen run ads, each with its own crowd. When playing an ad on social media, you must be mindful of the platform you’ve selected. You won’t go around selling dresses and handbags in a fish market, would you? This is how it works on social media too.
Platforms like Tiktok or Instagram are ideal to target the younger audience, while Facebook and Linkedin are more suitable for targeting professionals and older individuals. Wanna learn more about this? Don’t worry, we’ve covered this in detail further down the article.
Step 3: Create Lead Gen Ad Creatives That Grab Attention
Now that you know who you’re targeting, it’s time to create eye-catching lead gen ads. But how do you do that?
Lead gen ad creatives are meant to attract your audience and convince them to submit their information. The best way to launch a successful ad is by observing and implementing what your competitors are doing.
If you’re new to social media marketing, you might not know what type of ad works for your audience. This is where the meta ad library comes into play. Most social media platforms have ad libraries which showcase ads related to specific keywords. Here’s a detailed example.
Assume that you’re a business that sells protein shakes. Your target audience for this product would primarily include fitness enthusiasts and health-conscious individuals aged 18-45. This makes facebook the ideal platform to run your ads.
- In order to know what your competitors are doing right, first go to Google Search and type “Meta Ad Library”.
- Now, click on the first link which will take you to the Meta ad library’s web page.
Once you’re on the Meta’s library page, your screen would show a search bar and various filters to help you laser focus on the ad you’re looking for.
- Enter your keyword in the search bar and let the library know which country’s audience you’re targeting.
- Check the All Ads button in the Ad Category drop down. This gives you a wide range of ads to gather intel from.
In this example, we’ve entered protein shakes as keywords, and selected the United States as our target location. (PS; you can select multiple countries too).
- Once you click on search, the above attached window pops open, showcasing a variety of ads related to your keyword.
- On the same page, you get an option to apply more filters to further specify your target audience for example, the Meta platform, media type and the dates during which that ad was live.
- When all your filters have been applied, Meta shows you all the ads that fall into your desired category.
Considering the example shown above, you can see that the brand Premier Protein has not one but four active ads that are currently running. Why?
This is because each of their ads must be earning them enough ROI that a little amount spent on advertisement is not a burden. This brand is utilizing all types of media including videos, images and carousels to attract their audience’s interest.
Another reason why the brand might be using all types is so they can have multiple content. This ensures audience boredom of seeing the same ad is controlled.
A landing page in lead gen advertising is a standalone web page designed specifically to capture leads through a form. This page is linked to your social media ads which makes it the first thing your audience sees when they click on your ad.
The primary goal of a lead gen landing page is to impress your audience and turn them into leads. This happens when they finally give you their contact information, like their name, email address, phone number, and other relevant details. Think of it as your virtual handshake, welcoming new potential customers into your business.
So, how do you design a landing page that’s not just informative, but irresistible? It’s all about understanding how people naturally interact with webpages.
At Advertyzed, we use a blend of psychology tips like visual gazing to grab attention, visual direction to guide visitors smoothly through the content, skimmable content to make it easy to digest information, and color psychology to evoke the right emotions.
By combining these elements, your landing page becomes a lead generation machine, turning clicks into conversions. Here are a few tips that can help you master the art of conversions too!
Visual Gazing:
- Focal Point: Place the most important elements such as the headline, CTA button, and form at the center and top of the page where users’ eyes naturally land.
- Whitespace: Use ample whitespace around key elements to draw attention and prevent visual clutter.
- Contrast: Make essential elements stand out by using contrasting colors, fonts, or sizes.
- Directional Cues: Use subtle arrows or lines that lead the eyes towards important content areas.
- Animation: Use subtle animations to attract attention to specific elements without overwhelming the user.
Visual Direction:
- Z-Pattern Layout: Follow the natural reading pattern (left to right, top to bottom) by placing key elements along this path.
- Hierarchy: Use visual hierarchy with different font sizes, colors, and styles to emphasize important information.
- Grouping: Group related content together using visual cues such as borders or background colors to signify their relationship.
- Progressive Disclosure: Present information in stages or steps to avoid overwhelming users with too much content at once.
- Responsive Design: Ensure the layout remains effective and visually guided across different screen sizes and devices.
Skimmable:
- Headings and Subheadings: Use clear and descriptive headings to organize content and guide readers through different sections.
- Bullet Points: Present key points or benefits in bullet point format for quick comprehension.
- Short Paragraphs: Keep paragraphs concise and focused, with one main idea per paragraph.
- Bold and Highlight: Use bold text or highlighting to emphasize important words or phrases.
- Whitespace: Use ample spacing between elements to improve readability and prevent information overload.
Color Psychology:
- Brand Consistency: Use colors that align with your brand identity and evoke the desired emotions or associations.
- CTA Contrast: Make your CTA button stand out by using a contrasting color that grabs attention.
- Emotional Impact: Choose colors that convey the right emotions related to your offer or message (e.g., blue for trust, green for health, red for urgency).
- Background vs. Content: Ensure that background colors complement content without causing readability issues.
Step 5: Capture Those Leads!
Now that you’ve finally impressed your audience with your landing page design and content, it’s time to get them to give you their info!
By using lead capture tricks, you can transform your landing page into a lead generation machine, building your email list and nurturing relationships with potential customers. Remember, it’s all about making the signup process smooth, offering value in return, and creating a sense of urgency or anticipation.
- Short and Sweet Forms:
Ditch the scary, lengthy questionnaires. Keep your forms short and secure, focusing only on the essentials (name and email are usually golden). People are more likely to hand over their info if it’s a quick process.
- Scarcity Tactics:
Ever seen those countdown timers on sales offers? That’s scarcity in action! It creates a sense of urgency, encouraging people to sign up before the deal disappears. Think of it like a flash sale – exciting and limited time only!
- The Power of Reciprocity:
People love a good freebie! Offer something valuable in exchange for their information, like a free ebook, insightful tips, or exclusive news. It’s a win-win – you get their info, they get something useful.
- Conditioning for Conversions:
Think of Pavlov’s dog, but with email signups! By consistently offering valuable content (like newsletters, free gifts, or ebooks) in exchange for their information, you train your audience to associate signing up with getting goodies. It’s a positive reinforcement loop that leads to more conversions!
Step 6: Stay in Touch & Nurture Those Leads
Don’t just collect information and let it gather dust! Develop a plan to stay connected with your leads. Send personalized emails with helpful content or follow-up messages to keep your brand at the top of their mind. Building trust is key, and nurturing leads helps move them closer to becoming your happy customers!
How to Select the Best Social Media Platform for Your Lead Generation Advertising?
So you’re ready to use social media for lead generation ads, but overwhelmed by all the platforms? Choosing the right one depends on who you’re trying to reach. Let’s dive into the top contenders with some key stats to help you decide:
1. Facebook: The Social Media Giant
- Monthly Active Users: A massive 3.05 billion – you’ll find almost everyone here!
- Demographics: Broad reach across age groups, but skews slightly older (31% 24-35 years old).
- Pros: Unmatched reach, powerful targeting options based on demographics and interests.
- Cons: Competitive ad landscape, may require a larger budget to stand out.
2. LinkedIn: The Professional Playground
- Monthly Active Users: Over 1 billion professionals and businesses.
- Demographics: Focus on working professionals, skewed towards college-educated individuals.
- Pros: Excellent B2B lead generation, targeted ads for specific job titles and industries.
- Cons: Smaller user base compared to Facebook, might not be ideal for B2C products.
3. Instagram: The Land of Visuals
- Monthly Active Users: Over 2 billion users, predominantly mobile.
- Demographics: Skews younger (75% of people aged 18-24) and leans towards females.
- Pros: Highly visual platform perfect for image-focused products, strong influencer marketing options.
- Cons: Limited text content for detailed explanations, may not be suitable for all industries.
4. YouTube: The Video Powerhouse
- Monthly Active Users: 2.5 billion users, making it the second most visited website globally.
- Demographics: Broad reach across all age groups, particularly popular for entertainment and how-to content.
- Pros: Excellent platform for video demos, tutorials, and brand storytelling, high engagement rates.
- Cons: Video ad creation can be more time-consuming and expensive compared to static ads.
5. TikTok: The Trendsetter
- Monthly Active Users: Over 1 billion users, with a strong focus on Gen Z (60% of users are under 25).
- Demographics: Predominantly younger audience, known for short-form, engaging video content.
- Pros: Great platform for reaching a trendy, tech-savvy audience, potential for viral reach.
- Cons: Limited ad formats compared to other platforms, content creation requires understanding short-form video trends.
Remember: These are just starting points! Analyze your target audience and experiment with different platforms to see what resonates best. By considering demographics and platform strengths, you can choose the social media channel that fuels your lead generation efforts!
Finding the Perfect Fit with Advertyzed -The Lead Gen Maestros!
Feeling overwhelmed by so much social media talk? Don’t worry, you’re not alone! With so many platforms vying for your attention, choosing the right one for your lead generation advertising goals and then running successful lead gen ad campaigns can be a challenge.
That’s where we come in. At Advertyzed, we’re a team of experts who can help you navigate the social media world and identify the platform that best suits your target audience. We’ll leverage data and insights to craft compelling lead gen ad campaigns that resonate with the right people, turning them into qualified leads for your business.
Ready to take your social media lead generation to the next level? Contact us today and let’s discuss how we can help you achieve your marketing goals!