Are you putting together a new Facebook ad campaign?
Admiring & adapting other business’s Facebook ads is an excellent way to keep up with creative trends, adopt clever new art & copy ideas, and give your audience something new to engage with.
Peering over the fence to check out how other brands build their Facebook ads is an excellent way to crack out of your creative rut. It's also a way to 'learn from the masters' and begin to build higher-converting ads that give you a greater return on your investment. Not only will you pick up on best practices and trends, but you'll also have more creative fodder to spin up lots of clever A/B tests.
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In this post, we’re going to dissect some of our favorite Facebook Ads. Together, we’ll deconstruct each ad into key takeaways so you can easily spot what’s working and how to apply it to your own business - sprinkled with your own unique fairy dust of course.
A Fantastic Facebook ads needs:
The right blueprint - of a powerful campaign that includes a high-value offer, precise audience targeting, adequate budget, timeline, high-converting landing page
The right building blocks - that all fit into Facebook’s word length & image specs
A little fairy dust - creative pizazz that makes the audience stop & click
You've come to the right place for Facebook ad inspiration.
Speaking of sprinkling fairy dust on your tired old Facebook ads, this advertisement by Slack packages its dreamy benefit statements into an unforgettable tale.
Slack's Facebook ad is a dream come true.
What it does well:
Problem + Solution: Without being too heavy-handed, this Facebook ad pokes at the universal hate for unnecessary meetings (something that never, ever happens at Leadpages) and then quickly saves the day with a promise to ‘Make Work Better.’ By highlighting their customers' problems and their company's solution, they've effectively introduced themselves to people unfamiliar with their brand (cold traffic).
Street Speak: You probably didn’t even notice the casual tone of this ad - which is what makes it awesome. Rather than talking about efficiencies and streamlining communication or centralizing messaging, the ad copy stays simple: ‘Slack brings all your communication together in one place.’
Always try to use your customers’ words, get deep into their pain (ew...meetings), and speak right to the heart of how you can help.
Mixed Media: Grab a little extra stopping power by creating hybrid images that combine vector illustrations (graphics) and photographs (like this unicorn rider).
Rather than settling for the run-of-the-mill discount offer, Bombas invites online shoppers to get to know their brand with a playful quiz that results in 20% off their first purchase.
Bombas Facebook ad boosts engagement, awareness, and new customers.
What it does well:
Novel offer: Anyone can offer a price discount. So, Bombas took an innovative approach to engage their audience: inviting them to prove their brand knowledge and rewarding them with a special offer.
Text on the image: A study by David Ogilvy (advertising legend) found that people tend to read images before processing headlines and body copy text, which is why your image text should carry the most important message you want your audience to understand. Before getting too generous with your image text, spend some time in the Facebook Text Overlay Tool. It’s also a great idea to use left-justified text to catch readers as they naturally scan from left to right.
Showcase the product: This Facebook ad is all about introducing the brand to new audiences and inviting first-time customers to come on in and claim their 20% off. But what are Bombas? If I didn't already know the brand, I'd rely on the imaging to supply a little context. In this case, their high contrast, the eye-catching design communicates clearly: they are all about socks that stand out.
This Facebook ad webinar invitation by Neil Patel is loaded with social proof that builds up trust and confidence. People who read this ad will have no doubt that this free lead magnet will deliver big results.
Neil’s Facebook Ad promises a big benefit backed up by social proof.
What it does well:
Name Drop: Name-dropping happy customers & big brand clients or influencers is an under-utilized form of social proof that lends heaps of credibility to your brand. Here, Neil calls out five past clients (likely chosen for their major name recognition). Not only does he establish that he plays the marketing game at a high level, he also lays out an undeniable track record of success.
FREE: Like shouting ‘FIRE!’ at the top of your lungs, the word ‘free’ tends to get people to perk up and pay attention. So it’s a great idea to include it in your ads occasionally. While we don’t recommend giving away your products/ services for free, you can tack on a free bonus to a for-sale offer, or give away information for free in the form of a lead magnet.
Image Text: Neil has chosen an engaging image, with a big toothy smile, balanced by just the right amount of text to deliver his benefit-rich headline to “become a master at customer acquisition.” Again, before getting too generous with your image text, spend some time in the Facebook Text Overlay Tool.
4. Vennage - Visual marketing infographic
In this Facebook ad example, an industry report acts as a (very appetizing) lead magnet in the form of an infographic.
Vennage’s Facebook ad invites visitors to see easily engage with visual marketing trends.
What it does well:
Timeliness: By calling out the year 2017, the image shows that the content is relevant right now.
Infographic: Choosing the right Facebook Ad lead magnet can be tricky, but Vennage nailed it. Infographics (when done right) are "liked" and shared on social media 3X more than other any other type of content (according to Mass Planner).
Invitation: Nobody likes the sense that they're ‘in it alone’ facing their challenges. By highlighting (twice) that the infographic was compiled by surveys from hundreds of marketers, Vennage subtly invites the audience to join his tribe and share in the learnings of a large community.
5. Groupon - Get the product
This simple Facebook Ad is unstoppable with a playful hero image that showcases a unique product line sold by Groupon.
Groupon’s Facebook ad goes all-in on a product image.
What it does well:
Visual Imagery: This ad lets the image do most of the heavy lifting.
Showcase your product: Buyers love spoilers. They want to know exactly what they’re getting in the end. So if you’re struggling to find a Facebook ad image, put away the stock photo Rolodex and simply showcase your product. Give your audience a chance to see what your selling and you’ll probably find they’re more likely to buy it.
In many ways, this Facebook ad stays on the straight & narrow - but what’s it’s lacking in creative punch it kills in nailing the fundamentals. By using a blog article (case study) as the hero content of the ad, their promotion highlights a success story and invites viewers to jump on the bandwagon.
E-Gmat’s Facebook ad piles on social proof.
What it does right:
Social proof: Testimonials, 5-star ratings, reviews, and influencer endorsements are all powerful forms of social proof that help prospects trust you and have confidence that you can solve their problem(s). Here, the target customer’s voice & testimonial is featured all over the place: in the message text, image text, headline, and description.
Human faces: People respond to human faces - in fact, it's a scientific phenomenon that is ingrained in our brains. So, showing people’s faces in your ads can strike the right psychological chords.
Aspirational future self: Marketing is never about the thing you’re selling, it’s about the future self you’re promising. In this case: students will see someone who has crossed the finish line and says “if I can, you can too! Come join me where the grass is greener!”
By showcasing a suite of lead magnets and free, high-value content the Copy Hackers team visually displays just how much they have to offer and invites the audience in through a number of different pieces of content.
Copy Hacker’s Facebook Ad includes many options for engagement.
What it does well:
Starting with a question: Open your Facebook ad with a relevant question that gets your audience to (silently) answer ‘YES!’ and you’ve got them engaged from the get-go. In fact, just seeing a question mark instantly starts stimulating your brain. Your question should prime the reader’s curiosity and the best opening questions are those that ask something your audience can empathize with or relate to or would like to see answered. Not to mention that article titles that end with a question mark tend to have higher click-through rates (according to Outbrain).
Carousel Ads: Carousel ads are a relatively new Facebook Ad format that can display up to 10 different content modules and can deliver up to 10X greater click-through rates than standard image ads (according to a report by Kinetic Social). Use them to showcase different products/ offers (like this one), or get super crafty and with your digital storytelling to reveal more information as readers swipe through.
Nike’s widely praised carousel ad highlights their product’s versatility in an engaging, eye-catching design.
Nike’s high contrast carousel ad is truly a ‘best of’ example.
What it does well:
Link in ad copy - While most readers are likely to click on the ‘Learn More’ CTA button that the Facebook ad builds in, it can be a good idea to include the link text (www.nike.com) in the message of the ad itself.
High contrast color - A study of consumer preferences by Science Direct found that consumers prefer high contrast colors (such as the white letters against the bold red and pink backgrounds).
When it comes to baiting the hook with a juicy lead magnet, this Facebook ad does a strong job of compelling a click through. Here, Drip comes right out of the gate with a clear benefit statement and offer: new website cheat sheet.
What it does well:
Clear value: The ad repeatedly states '9 eCommerce email marketing essentials' and shows an image of exactly what they're offering as a free giveaway. Viewers who come across this ad in their feed will know exactly what they'll get in exchange for their email address.
Visually stimulating: Not only is this image large, front & center. It's also visually stimulating. The warm colors, use of white space, and the squiggly lines draw in our eyes and get us to hone in on their offer.
Address a need: This ad clearly addresses a consumer in the consideration phase of their buyer's journey. Drip is addressing a common question (how do I choose the right ESP for me?) and positions themselves as a partner in the buyer's decision-making process. It's a great way to garner trust, capture a new lead, and position themselves as a friend and partner in the marketplace.
In this Facebook ad for a meal replacement product, Soylent delivers its three key messages that combine both benefits and features in an easy-to-digest list.
Soylent’s Facebook ad goes down smooth.
What it does well:
Minimal copy: Keeping your copy short and sweet can be a challenge, but it allows you to deliver a message to those drive-by scrollers who plow through their Facebook stream. Try to keep your message short & sweet, clear & compelling. According to Buffer, the most popular lengths are 4-word headlines and 15- word link descriptions (just ⅓ of word limit).
Emojis & icons: Adding special characters such as emojis and symbols (such as ✓➕ ➡ ) is a simple, clever way to get your ad to stand out from the crowd. Use them sparingly so your audience doesn’t feel tormented by them and try out this clever listing idea to draw some eyeballs up towards the message portion of your ad.
All about YOU: (or...them, rather) Write your ad copy in the second-person point of view (calling out you, you, you). “Mix up your meals,” and “keep your tongue happy.” By calling out the reader in a 1:1 statement, you deliver your benefit straight to their doorstep.
In an effort to attract new drivers to use its app, Lyft offers a minimum earnings guarantee that removes a huge barrier to participation and wipes out the risk with some well-written ad copy.
Lyft’s Facebook Ad gets their messages across with an un-missable guarantee.
What it does well:
Urgency and scarcity: Both are powerful forces to compel people to click & convert. It boils down to loss aversion, which basically means that people tend to have a stronger desire not to lose out than a desire to win something.
Guarantees: In this ad, the guarantee is repeated not once, but FIVE times at every level of ad copy - from the image text to the link description. If you’re planning to offer a guarantee, just be careful that you can truly honor your promise. It can be easy to shoot yourself in the foot if you overextend yourself and can’t deliver.
What will you do with these Facebook Ad Examples?
Hopefully, you find these Facebook ad examples energizing & inspiring. You’d be shocked (!!) at some of the low-quality ads we see out there in the wild and it really doesn’t take all that much to stand out from the crowd with creative, compelling ideas.
If you’re looking to get more out of your ad spend with amazing Facebook ads that connect to high-converting landing pages, it’s probably time you tried out the simplified Facebook Ad Builder inside Leadpages.
