Ooh, iOS software updates… AKA, the bane of my existence (and, like, everyone’s. Always. Can you just chill, Apple?!)

But, really though — iOS updates are something we’ll always have to navigate in this online business space, and it’s silly not to learn how we can maximize benefits and still rock things like ad campaigns alongside these updates. However, the April 2021 iOS 14.5 update has really challenged a LOT of people who rely on Facebook ads to scale their businesses and promote their launches.

Here’s what you need to know to navigate iOS updates with ease:

First off  — what is the iOS update?

The huge iOS update that had the most impact, also known as iOS 14.5, came to fruition because of online privacy — which is something that’s obviously hugely important (and continues to be only more important as time goes on). Since we truly do everything on our phones, from shopping to texting to calling and everything in between, the iOS update aimed to solidify and strengthen some privacy aspects of the iPhone.

The point? To give phone users a lot more control over the information that gets shared with advertisers and the like. 

We get it. But, for Facebook and IG ads, this update has made a big difference — especially since the new update feature, which allows users to opt out of being tracked, has caused a big drop in engagement and a big increase in algorithm fluctuations. 

While companies like Facebook and other software providers are currently working to find ways for advertisers and privacy standards to live in harmony, we’re at a bit of a standstill with it all right now — and there are a few (non-intimidating!) things you can do. Step one? Go through this checklist before you run any ad:

My iOS Update Checklist 

1. Verify your domain.
2. Install cAPI on your website software host (similar to the FB pixel)!
3. Configure aggregated events.
4. Toggle on advanced matching.

Step 1: Verifying your domain

You’ll want to verify all domains that you’re running ads to, but please note, all subdomains will also be included! So if you verify something like “systemenvy.com”, “blog.systemenvy.com” will also be verified. 

Step 2: Installing cAPI

For installing the conversion API, it is helpful to get assistance from a developer, or someone who is more skilled at the technical stuff. It does make it a lot easier if you are using software or a platform that is listed as a partner on Facebook.

Step 3: Configuring Aggregated Events

In your pixel area of business manager, you will click on Aggregated Events and then prioritize the most important events for which you are running ads. 

Then choose ‘Configure Web Events’ and choose your verified domain where you are sending traffic;

Because we mainly work with digital course creators, a purchase is typically our highest prioritized event, followed by a lead and then perhaps add to cart.

Step 4: Advanced Matching

You can find this in your Event Manager Settings;

It’s not nearly as complicated as it sounds, either — promise. We also recommend taking tons of screenshots (pixels break!) and keeping alllll of your info in a table like this: 

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While we know firsthand that this stuff can seem overwhelming and kind of frustrating, it’s still important to keep it top of mind. As marketers, entrepreneurs, and advertisers, we have to learn how to keep privacy AND sales in harmony… and taking simple steps like this is how we can do that.

I may be in the business of making money from helping people create solid Facebook ad campaigns, but the last thing I want is for anyone to waste their money and time making ads that aren’t getting the results they want. In fact, teaching others how to run the most efficient ads is my specialty, and it all boils down to knowing the tricks experts use to reduce how much it costs you to get the most clicks, leads, sales, or whatever your goal may be for your ads.

Although Facebook ad costs depend on many factors, like how engaged your audience is and the type of industry you’re in, there are always ways to lower your costs for each action someone takes with your ad.

SET UP THE META PIXEL AND CAPI

Whether you have yet to start creating ad campaigns or aren’t having any luck with your current ones, I want you to do this one thing that will help your future efforts: install the Meta Pixel on your website. This little pixel is an optimization genius that you can’t afford to ignore.

The small code goes on your site and tracks important information about your users and integrates that information with your Facebook campaigns so that you can target the most relevant people, measure conversions, and stop wasting money. It has tons of insights that show you how people use your site, what they visit, and what’s most important to them to help you tailor your ads accordingly.

Facebook/Meta has all the details on how to install and use it, which you can find here.

The next one is a little more complicated but is so worth it to have it installed. That is the conversion API. cAPI is another bit of code that allows your server to connect conversion events, meaning customer action, to Facebook. cAPI works alongside the Meta Pixel to help advertisers improve the performance, measurement, and data collection of their Facebook ad campaigns. The installation process depends on where your content is housed. WordPress is a partner with Facebook so it’s a little easier, but there are workarounds for most platforms using a little bit of code. 

In order to install cAPI, make sure your domain is verified, and events are prioritized as well. These are all steps to help us get all the data we can with the iOS update. Here are more details from Facebook for getting everything installed. 

PUT EFFORT INTO YOUR LANDING PAGES

You might think that it’s your ads that aren’t converting well when in reality, it could be that your landing pages for your ads aren’t enticing enough to keep people where you want them or do what you want them to do. This is one area where many people fail to realize what they’re doing wrong.

If you’re going to put a bunch of money into something, put it into paying someone to make your landing pages stand out. These are the areas of your website where people will come after clicking through your ad, so they need to be super relevant to what they just clicked on and engaging. They should also have clear call-to-actions so your audience knows what they should be doing once they get there.

TARGET, TARGET, TARGET

It’s so important to target the correct crowd – not too broad and not too narrow. One way to gauge your target audience is by viewing the ads’ Relevance Score. This little tool shows you how much your ad information matters to the people you’re targeting. The higher it is, the better. Surprisingly enough, many creators don’t even know this score exists or how to use it to its full potential.

Targeting is an essential part of a Facebook ad campaign strategy because the more specific your ad is for your audience, the likelier your chances of getting action. The lower your cost-per-click, the higher your return on investment!

…AND THEN TARGET AGAIN!

Then comes retargeting. Retargeting is targeting people who have already had some interaction with your business, whether it’s through your Facebook page or website. Maybe they’ve made a purchase from one of your ads in the past or have clicked an ad, visited a landing page, and signed up for whatever you were offering. These people already have an interest in your business, so they’re an excellent audience pool for targeting again without having to find a new audience to target.

One of the easiest ways to make this work for you is by using the Facebook Pixel to see who’s clicked on your ads and had an interaction on your website through those ads. Create a custom audience in your ad campaign and choose the people who have visited landing pages similar to the ones you’ll use for this campaign. Of course, because of the iOS update, this is more limited than it used to be, but still worth it especially when you’re driving consistent traffic to a page.  

MAKE YOUR ADS MORE APPEALING

Your ads themselves might need some sprucing up if you’re not getting the cost-friendly results you want. Think about the ads you click on most: Are they plain with no real value, or do they get you interested and excited about a product or service enough to want to learn more about it?

You might need to rethink your images and copy for better results that will stop people from scrolling past your ads and get more of them to click on your offer.

GET CREATIVE WITH YOUR CREATIVES

Experimenting with different types of ads is a huge part of successful ad campaigns on Facebook. It may take some time (and extra money) in the beginning to run a variety of campaigns and ad types – like a carousel, video, etc. – to learn what your audience likes best. Once you do, though, you should narrow your options to a few choices that you know work well, reducing the amount of time and money you have to spend figuring it out for each campaign.

EXPERIMENT WITH YOUR CTA

There are a few criteria your call-to-action needs to meet to be the most effective, regardless of your niche, audience size, and what you’re selling or offering:

Clear and concise (no wordiness and difficult-to-understand language)

To the point (people should know exactly what you want them to do)

Show excitement (“Get a lower payment today!”, “Order now for 30% off!”)

Includes command verbs (order, shop, learn, download, etc.)

Again, though, experimentation is crucial. Depending on your audience, you might have a better click-through rate with certain wording than you do with others, like “Learn more with our free guide” instead of “Shop the collection now.” Testing out all this stuff in the beginning can lead to much lower costs for future campaigns.

Facebook ads definitely get expensive if you’re more focused on pumping out ads for more cash flow than you are about all the other aspects of a successful campaign. Take time for some A/B testing and utilize the several free Facebook ad tools that spell everything out for you to lower CPC. Come back here and let me know what’s working for you and what isn’t – I’d love to help!

xoxo,

Kerry Swetmon

The Facebook ad world is  a big one, absolutely packed with random terms and tons of numbers to remember on any given day.

And, if you’re not actually a FB ad expert (which, hey! Most people aren’t!), it can be reaaaaally tricky to know which of those terms and numbers are, like, actually important to pay attention to.

See, every piece of Facebook ad data does matter in the long run, but there are really just a few we recommend our entrepreneurs pay attention to: budgets/frequencies, clicks, and good ole’ pixel events.

And, if you read that like “whaaat?!” don’t you worry — we’ve got you.  

First things first — personalize your Ads Manager dashboard.

When you take a look inside your Ads Manager dashboard, you’re going to see a ton of categories that you might not understand. The key? To personalize it so you see the good stuff!

If you visit your dashboard, you’ll see a little drop-down arrow next to the words “Column: Performance.” Click it, and select “Personalize Columns.” Now, you can personalize exactly what you see.

Select the metrics you actually want to see, and drag and drop them in the order you want! This almost immediately takes away an absolute ton of confusion for you, since you’ll be able to only see the things you already understand on a high level. Win, win. And feel free to use the pre-set options that you see in the image column above. If I’m looking at something quickly, I like the Performance and Clicks option. 

Still confused as to which ones you should highlight? Keep on readin’!

What Facebook Ad Metrics *Actually* Matter

While you build out your custom dashboard and start implementing a great ad strategy, there are a few things that are more important to pay attention to than anything else. 

A big part of a great Facebook ad strategy comes down to the very high-level basics: i.e., the ones you need to be knowledgeable about, no matter what. I recommend keeping this super general, too: costs and results.

So, bookmark this + keep coming back to it!

Results: Depending on your goal (leads, sales, engagement, etc), the Results column will be your best friend. If you aren’t seeing results, you can start diving deeper into why (see this blog post for how to diagnose this.) Your result will be whatever you chose for your objective when you set up the campaign. So, if it’s leads you’re going for, your result will be the number of leads. If it’s purchases, the number of purchases will show in that column. I’m sure you can see why this is my top metric as my clients are looking for results! And again, if you aren’t seeing results, try to diagnose why.

Costs: When you’re running an ad strategy, you’re obviously spending money in hopes for a desired result… which is why you absolutely must keep an eye on the amount you’re spending.

The Cost per Result column is where you’ll find the cost per action. So, again, if you’ve set up your campaign to get leads, you’re “cost per result” will really be your cost per lead. Once you run ads for some time, you can begin to predict what a great cost per lead is. And it will depend a lot on what your offer is, what industry you’re in, and who your audience is. I like to tell this story about a client I had many years ago. He was a diamond broker. We marketed his ads to diamond buyers. It was a hard sell. Our cost per result was gigantic but when we secured just one result (1 lead), it sure paid off. Tens of thousands of dollars. So, obviously his cost per lead/result would be much, MUCH higher than my current clients who are selling digital courses and offering freebies, right? So, our costs per lead are typically between the $1 – $8 range, depending on the audience). 

So, pay attention to your cost per result and test different creative, copy, audience and offers to see if you can get that cost down. 

Bonus: other metrics: Ok, so we’ve got the basics above. Now, when you’re ready, there are a few other metrics I like to look at. Cost per impression is always interesting to me. This is what it is costing you to “impress upon” 1000 people. During the holidays I was seeing this number up to the $80 range, which, for our audiences, was outrageous. And it allows me to think about strategy. Do I want to try other, less expensive audiences? Or is the return on ad spend still fruitful enough to keep going? Or do we want to focus on engagement ads (which are inexpensive) until after the holiday? So, cost per impression can be insightful. Frequency is also a number I like to pay attention to. Frequency is the number of times any ONE person has been shown your ad. I personally like to keep this number at 3 or below, however, during a launch, when we’re pushing people for just a few days toward a sale, that number might be higher. And I’ve heard other advertisers say that they let it reach 6 or even 8. It’s a personal preference but the further that number climbs, it’s an indicator to me that people are being bombarded again and again and we likely need to widen our audience. 

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And, there you have it: the Facebook ad metrics that really and truly matter! Stop stressing about everything else, ok?!  In a nutshell, start high level and as you become more comfortable, you can start digging deeper!