If you don’t have a lot of experience with Ads then you may struggle to identify whether the organisation you have instructed to run your ads has the necessary knowledge and experience to deliver a profitable campaign for your business. However there are a number of ‘warning signs’ that can indicate that a person does not really know what they are doing and that you might be paying for bad Facebook Ads management.

Bad Facebook Ads Management – how can I tell?

Firstly, there are a few types of Bad Facebook Ads Management…

The Del Boys

These guys have usually seen how much professional ads buyers earn and want a piece of the cake too. They’ve paid for a course by a ‘Guru’ and now they’re an expert. Just like that! They know a few buzz words, they’ll try to impress you with throwing some technical jargon into the conversation.

How do I know if I’m dealing with a Del Boy? Ask some simple questions – how long have you been running ads? Who are your clients? Do you have any professional digital marketing qualifications (at this point they will probably tell you that they were trained by [insert Guru’s name])

The Pivoters

These guys have usually come from a Social Media page management or Google Ads background, and thought adding another string to their bow would increase their earning potential. This can sometimes be a full-service digital agency. Sometimes they build websites as their primary business service. They have a reasonable level of experience in all-round digital marketing, but they’re not experts in Facebook Ads. They can put a simple campaign together to a reasonable standard (usually lead gen) but do not understand the mechanics of the Facebook machine. They’re probably okay at running low spend local ads.

How do I know I’m dealing with a Pivoter? Their website will not highlight Facebook Advertising as being their specialism. They may talk a lot of about running Lead Generation ads (which are much simpler and easier to run than E-commerce, with instant results) They will talk a lot about metrics such as reach “you can reach X amount of people” or sell it as “You can get leads for £X each”.

The Have-A-Go Heroes

The ‘have-a-go-hero’ is one that troubles us the most – we have seen brand new marketing graduates who have never ran an ad campaign in their lives, packaging up “Facebook Ads Bundles” such as “10 Boosted Posts for £300”. Or they are sometimes social media freelancers (or even Virtual PA’s!) who have boosted a few posts, and decided to offer it as an upsell. They mean well, but don’t usually have a clue what they are doing.

How do I know if I’m dealing with a Have-a-go-hero? As they do not have any experience in the mechanics of Facebook then a simple questions like “What type of campaign objective do you think would be best?” or “What are your initial thoughts on funnel ideas?” will produce a blank expression.

What are the warning signs of Bad Ads Management?

We’ve covered how to identify the types of people who may not be so great at delivering results, but if it’s too late and you’ve already instructed someone to manage your campaigns – what now? Could your campaigns be doing better?

Here are some common occurrences we see that should give you a tip-off that the person handling your ads may not have the appropriate level of knowledge and experience:

1. You do not pay for the ads yourself – they tell you how much they’ve spent on ads and add it to your invoice. This should trigger as a BIG warning sign that something is not right. Any reputable ads buyer will be using your own Ad Account, with the ads billed directly to you by Facebook. Sadly, this tactic usually has deliberately unethical motives – to take ownership of your account data so if you end your contract you will lose your data, to rack up points on an AMEX card for themselves to use on flights etc, or to falsify the ad spend and overcharge you.
2. They have asked you for passwords – Facebook Ads are managed using Facebook’s integrated Business Manager platform, where they can request access to your assets either as a Partner (best practice) or by requesting access to your Page/Ad Account. If they are asking for your Facebook password – run! (the same applies for Social Media Management, nobody should be asking for your password, or telling you that you need to add them as a friend to manage your pages)
3. They are running ads without a Pixel installed on your website – if you do not have a correct and working Pixel on your website.
4. Your Ad Account is in dollars or another currency that isn’t your own – This is a school boy error, a mistake in the Ad Account set up that cannot be changed once set. This means you are paying more for your ads than is necessary because of the poor exchange you will be getting as the dollars is converting to pounds.
5. They will not give you access to your ad account – it is very easy to create a smoke screen with ‘fake results’ with Facebook Ads if the client does not have access to the ad account from which the ads are run. Gil David of RunDMG (a reputable Ads Buyer and Ads agency owner) recently reported that he had discovered an agency was running ads for over 100 different businesses from one single ad account! One business = one ad account. If other client’s data is all mixed up amongst your own, it is complete disaster.
6. They have no strategy – your ads planner / buyer should have a clear strategy for different phases of the buying journey (cold traffic, warm traffic, hot traffic) If the ads are being created ad hoc, with no real plan, they will ultimately fail.
7. They have not asked the right questions – one of the first questions a reputable buyer will ask you, is for details about your product, stock levels, the conversion rate of your website and margins. They need to accurately assess whether the campaigns are going to deliver a profitable return for you. If you sell £10 books, which cost you £6 to produce – it is highly unlikely that ads are going to generate a profit for you from a single book sale. Sometimes brands run ‘loss making’ ads because they have a strategy for Lifetime Value (LTV) for example, gym wear and fashion brands where there is a plan in situ that uses email, SMS marketing and other strategies to keep that customer returning and spending more each time. If you haven’t been asked “What can you afford to pay to acquire each sale?” then alarm bells should be ringing.
8. They do not have access to Google Analytics – an ads buyer needs to have access to GA (or an alternative system) to check traffic volumes on specific pages before creating audiences, to monitor bounce rates, conversion rates and general on-site behaviour. If they do not have this, they cannot possibly be doing a good job without this data to hand.
9. They have not discussed your conversion rate – firing more traffic at a poorly converting website or landing page is not an effective strategy. The first problem to solve is why your conversion rates are poor. If your website conversion rate is typically 0.5% you need to spend TWICE as much on ads to generate the same result, than if your conversion rate was 1%, and four times as much as you would if it converted at 2%. By focusing on improving your conversion rate before increasing traffic you are reducing your CPA (cost per acquisition) and increasing your profits.
10. They blame your poor assets for their poor performance – if you are hearing “the ads aren’t working because the images are rubbish” or “you need a video created and that’s why they aren’t doing well” – they should have known what assets were at their disposal prior to engaging the client and if they were not suitable, addressed this issue before running any ads.

This is by no means an exhaustive list – but some of the most common issues we see as Facebook Advertising specialists.

As a ‘best practice’ a Facebook Ads marketer should hold a Facebook Blueprint Certified credential – this is a tough two hour exam costing £120 and sat under strict proctored exam conditions, which must be re-sat annually to maintain certification. While it does not mean that this person is ‘good’ at marketing – it does show a degree of proven competence in understanding the mechanics and systems involved in ads planning and buying.

There is no real rationale for not having this certificate if you’re a professional ads planning/buyer, other than because someone knows they cannot pass it.

You can find Nikki’s Blueprint Badge here 

The post Bad Facebook Ads Management – Warning Signs appeared first on Hesford Media.

Scary times indeed.

I am firm believer in creating your own luck; the Government have announced a generous £330bn bailout package, but it is still unclear how, and when we can access the funds on offer and so we need to do what we can for ourselves to stay in the black.

Marketing your way out of the Coronavirus Crisis

Restaurants & Cafes

Based on Government advice, footfall is going to drop. It may be for two weeks, it may be for 3 months. But people still need to eat and meat/fish is still pretty sparse in the supermarkets. What opportunity is there for you?

1. If you have a WordPress website, it is fairly easy and inexpensive to add a Woo Commerce online ordering system (we can do this for around £400-500) allowing people to order online. You can pay to promote with Facebook Ads locally, which we can set up for you. Including a ‘ No Contact” option, to leave food on the doorstep and ring the bell.
2. ‘Bring Mother’s Day to You’ –  Mothers Day would have been one of your most profitable days, but now these will have been cancelled. However, you more than likely have phone numbers/emails for all these people. Why not create a special Mother’s Day dining package for a set price per head, that will be delivered to a designated address on Mother’s Day at their chosen time? Even if families don’t want to get together and dine as a group – I am sure many would purchase this option for their Mum ‘Hey Mum, I’ve arranged for a special dinner to be delivered to your house at 6pm Sunday. Enjoy and sorry I can’t be there!” – better than a bunch of flowers. Text marketing is an effective way to get this message out there.
3. Push the sale of gift vouchers (spend £10 for a £15 voucher, spend £20 for a £30 voucher etc) – redeemable anytime in 2020 excluding Christmas etc. Yes it will impact margin, but you need cash coming in now to survive this.

Beauty and Hair Salons

1. Many people with limited mobility are going to struggle in isolation to wash and dry their own hair. You could consider a home-hair service (you would need to be equipped with a mask and gloves that are changed after each appointment)
2. Consider late night openings and perhaps even Sunday opening if there is still demand, to increase revenues that will see you through the inevitable Coronavirus lockdown that is coming.
3. Gift vouchers for Mothers’ Day – could you hand deliver gift vouchers in your local area for those unable to see their parents to give a gift? A gift voucher for a lovely facial, hand delivered to my Mum’s house on Sunday morning to be redeemed when this whole things is over would make a perfect gift.
4. There are a lot of ladies who are anxious about being confined with their better half, who is going to see them without their brows/lashes/Botox etc, a final push for appointments before an inevitable lockdown would be a smart move.

Training Companies and Coaching

1. Health and Safety, First Aid, business training – can this be taken online? People suddenly have a lot of time and nowhere to go.
2. Businesses need a mentor/coach now more than ever, one-off 30/60 minute Skype consultations for a fixed fee would be appreciated by many a stressed business owner right now. They may even lead to ongoing work once normality has resumed.
3. People are spending many more hours on social media as they scour the web for news, and occupy their time forging human interaction of some sort. Now is a great time to create videos – give advice, expertise, promote your videos, work on your own marketing.

Accountants

1. A lot of people right now are searching for information about Coronavirus will affect their financials – how and when will the SSP be paid? What is this £10,000 grant and how do I get it? How do I ask HMRC for a payment delay? Should I be handing over the VAT payment I had saved for April payment or hang onto it? Content is your friend – create SEO rich content (or ask us, and we can do it for you!)
2. Create online Surgeries by Skype (maybe 15 minute free consultations) if you have the time to do so. Now is a great time to build authority and market yourself to businesses who will remember the help you gave them when things return to normal. And if they are using your service, it’s probably because they don’t have an accountant they can ask.

Law Firms

1. With Personal Injury taking a huge hit ( as claimants are unable to attend medicals, putting the cheques on hold) and Court closure preventing the progression of ongoing cases – what services are still in demand? With our law clients we are looking closely at the areas of law that may have increased in demand (commercial litigation, debt recovery, insolvency, employment law) and we are promoting these heavily using Facebook Ads and online marketing.

Personal Trainers and Gyms

1. Pretty soon, none of us will be able to go to classes, the gym and like Italy/Spain it may even attract a hefty fine if you’re caught going out running. People like me who train 6x a week, the prospect of being in isolation for weeks fills me with dread. Create closed groups where workouts and ideas can be shared. Create webinars. Online programmes. Home workouts. Here’s an example: create a group, create a daily workout that can be timed (20 sit ups, 10 lunges each leg, 20 air squats, 20 press ups, 50 jumping jacks – everyone logs their time in the group, maintaining a sense of competition and purpose) That closed group might have some real value to sell programmes and sessions when everything returns to normal.
2. The supermarkets are pretty short on meat, eggs, fish – create recipes that are clean and high in protein based on what people have in their freezers and cupboards.
3. Go Live on Instagram – do Q&A’s, ask people what their biggest fitness concerns are, give advice, build your authority.

What else can you do to help your business survive Coronavirus?

If you don’t already have a budget and forecast, now would be a good time to look at your income and expenditure. Once you’ve cut back on everything you can cut back on, what’s your break even cost? That’s how much you’re aiming to bring in as a minimum.

Schedule your marketing content as far ahead as possible, just in case you become unwell and can’t stay on top of it.

Come up with inventive Social Stunts – use this time to build your social pages, because there have never been more people online at a time!

The post Coronavirus – Your Business Survival Plan appeared first on Hesford Media.

We believe there are some circumstances where it is better to hire someone in-house, and some circumstances where you are far better off outsourcing it to an agency.

When is it better to hire in-house?

When you already have a marketing team

Companies who already have a thriving marketing department, with at least one experienced marketer on hand to offer support on a day to day basis are probably better off hiring someone on an employed basis.

Unless the hire you are making is quite senior (5+ years experience) there is a good chance they can do more harm than good to your marketing efforts, without someone with vast experience overseeing their work.

While marketing is often sadly undervalued; it takes many years of learning to become competent in a number of areas. Many marketers, even after many years only become excellent in one discipline such as SEO or Pay Per Click. If you need an all-rounder, this can be problematic.

When you only need someone to focus on one specific area of marketing

If you are specifically looking for an SEO expert, or a Google PPC expert then there’s a good chance you can find someone competent to work in-house. The challenges arise when you want them to be experienced in multiple areas.

When the tasks are very basic

If your expectations are that you require someone to carry out some basic marketing tasks, such as email marketing and keeping social pages updated, answering messages and helping with admin tasks in the office – then an Apprentice is likely quite capable of carry this out after some training has been provided and it probably isn’t necessary to outsource this to an agency.

When is it better to hire an agency?

When you have a limited budget

If your budget is only going to be able to afford you a junior marketer, and you don’t have someone to support that person with their marketing efforts then it is better to outsource this to a professional.

An inexperienced marketer who is given the responsibility of the marketing function, without any senior support is likely to feel overwhelmed. They will be spending their time trying to work things out for themselves, and there’s a really good chance they could seriously harm your SEO and social pages by taking the wrong approach.

Your sales are inconsistent

If you are not entirely sure that you will be able to afford a marketers salary in six months time; it is better to hire an agency where your contract is 3-6 months. While an agency won’t be thrilled if their invoices are paid a few days late, the consequences of failing to pay your employees can be devastating on their families.

They require a number of tools for their role

Employers often forget about the vast array of subscriptions and tools required to carry out a marketing function. Adobe licences, PR Media databases, SEO subscriptions such as SEMrush/MOZ/Ahrefs, Mailchimp, Surveymonkey, Shutterstock…. these can easily reach £500 per month, whereas an agency already has all of these in situ to use on your client account. And that’s before we’ve considered the purchase of a laptop, Office licence, desk and chair.

You need expert marketing in various disciplines

If you need your marketer to be proficient in a variety of disciplines – Social media, PR, SEO, Pay-Per-Click… then someone who is really good is going to be hard to find, and you should expect to pay upwards of £35,000 for this sort of skill set.

Often employers have a budget of £20,000-25,000 but have a long list of skills required for the role, and ultimately, it just isn’t realistic that someone with these skills will want to work for little above minimum wage, unless they’re just not very good.

How much will a marketer cost to employ?

Below is a table of the real costs to an employer of hiring a marketer, at varying levels of seniority.

How do these salaries compare to hiring an agency?

Our retainers typically range between £500 and £2,000 per month, depending on the scope of work required. Some agencies cost a lot more, some a little less.

At the very top end for a full-service marketing package, this is still little more than a junior marketer’s salary and you are getting the wisdom of a whole team of experts, with advanced skills in array of marketing disciplines.

We are accountable to KPI’s, and you aren’t paying us for loo breaks, or a Monday morning chat about our weekend. If you consider how many hours per day an employee is productive, and how long is may take them to to complete a task compared to an expert – the overall result is a great deal more output for less cost to the employer.

The post In-House Marketing or Agency? appeared first on Hesford Media.

We hear from a lot of prospective clients that they feel nervous about hiring someone to run their Facebook and Instagram Ads.

They don’t really understand how it works, making it difficult to know which questions to ask in order to ascertain whether their chosen specialist can actually deliver on the services they profess to be an expert in.

How do you know if your expert actually knows how to do Ads?

• Be able to provide a written Facebook Advertising strategy with a prediction of CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) with some logical rationale to stack it up

• Ask you about your margins, and how much you can afford to spend in Ads to acquire each sale in order to maintain a profit

• Discuss with you your strategy for up-sells and lifetime Value (LTV) – how to retain existing customers into repeat purchases is just as important as finding new ones!

• Look at your website and your Google Analytics to offer advice on plugging holes in your funnel and where you might be leaking traffic – as well as solutions on how to resolve this (without up-selling their own website services!)

• Be honest and realistic about the results that can be achieved and when. ALL Facebook Ads campaigns required a period of testing.

• Be running your Ads from your Ad Account not theirs – this is a common tactic by agencies to cloud visibility over the extent of the work they are doing, and to make it difficult for you to terminate their services without losing all your account data

• Be able to write excellent copy – ask to see ads they’ve done for other people. Are they creative? Engaging? Visually pleasing?

We are always happy to offer free advice on whether Facebook Ads are the right avenue for your business – at Hesford Media we pride ourselves on integrity and honesty. We will tell you if we think you’re unlikely to see a return and suggest other marketing channels that might be better suited for your business

The post Is your Facebook Ads expert any good? appeared first on Hesford Media.