Facebook Ads or Boosted Posts? Let’s Break Them Down!

Okay, let me begin with telling you Facebook is an AWESOME resource when it comes to marketing your business, BUT to get the results you are looking for it is important to understand how to properly market your business using Facebook. That is where Navarro Creative Group comes in!

This blog is your resource to understand the difference between Facebook Ads and Boosting a Post on your business Facebook page. So, let’s get started!

Before you decide to advertise on Facebook, you need to decide what your advertising goals are. Some goals can be reached by boosting a post, while others are best reached by creating a Facebook Ad; and there are differences. Here is what you need to know in order to make the best decisions for your ad goal.

Boosted Posts:

Boosted posts are one of the simpler ways to advertise your business on Facebook and a great way to get more people to engage with your content on your page, ex. Like, Share, Comment on your post. Boosts use the posts from your business page, and in order to reach an audience of your choice, you spend some money. Boosted posts differ from Facebook Ads in that they are not created in Ads Manager and they don’t offer the same customization features like an ad.

When you Boost a post it will show up in your chosen audience’s newsfeed as an “ad”. The reason Facebook calls a boosted post an ad, is because they require a budget to share it with a wider audience. This is the main similarity it shares with a Facebook Ad.

Now, on to the ‘How To’. Start by choosing a post that is already published on your page. We recommend one that is already receiving some action organically. There are 3 things you need to tell Facebook when boosting your post:

1. Who is your audience: This is where you will decide your demographics and the type of people with whom you want to connect.
2. What is your budget: You will tell Facebook how much you want to spend on your campaign.
3. How long do you want your ad to run: You will choose the duration your campaign is to run.

Once you complete these steps, press Boost. Facebook will review and approve or deny your ad. If approved, people whom you chose in your target audience will begin to see your ad in their newsfeed.

Facebook Ads:

Facebook ads are created through Ads Manager and offer more customizable features than a boosted post. When creating a Facebook Ad you have many advertising objectives to choose from to help you reach your business goals and your targeted audience.

Like I stated earlier, Boosted posts are optimized for page likes, comments, shares, or overall brand awareness, whereas Facebook Ads can be optimized for website conversions, video views, app installs, shop orders, and MORE!

You are probably thinking, “Okay, what can I do with Facebook Ads that I can’t do with boosted posts?”

Well, here we go:

1. You can choose different placements for your ad. When boosting a post you can only share to Facebook or Instagram, whereas Facebook Ads give the choice of where you want your ad to be placed. For example, Facebook Newsfeed side ads, Messenger ads, Instagram stories, instant articles, and Audience Network.
2. You can choose specific ad objectives. Having different ad objectives allows you to really focus your campaign and line it up with your current business goals. Using the full ads system in Ads Manager lets you choose objectives like store traffic, conversions, and lead generation.
3. You can maintain creative power. Creating an ad in ads manager allows you to design an ad that speaks to your goals – and your target base. You can create carousel ads, video ads, and picture ads with specific descriptions and call-to-action buttons that will drive your audience to take more action.
4. You can use advanced targeting capabilities to narrow down your audience. While you can decide interests, age, and gender for boosted posts, Facebook Ads take it one step further by allowing you to create overlapping audience types, lookalike audiences, and more!

Now that you understand there are differences between a Boosted post and Facebook ad, the next question is, “How will each type of advertising fit into your Facebook Marketing Strategy?”

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