As previously discussed, Facebook recently rolled out its new Sponsored Story advertisements. And in normal MGH fashion, we decided to run a few tests on ourselves to explore the differences between the two ad types – specifically the new Sponsored “Like Story” ads vs. the Traditional “Like” Facebook ads. Here’s what we found:
Appearance
The first element we compared was appearance. As you’ll see below, the Sponsored “Like Story” ad focuses solely on the connection between the target audience and their friend’s connection to the Page, while the traditional “Like” ad predominantly focuses on a creative message.
Directing Action
After developing the ads, we took a look at our ability to dictate a user’s action once they clicked on the ad. Using the Sponsored “Like Story” ad, our options were limited, as Facebook automatically set the ad to direct to the Page’s Wall, or default tab setting.
Traditional “Like” ads, on the other hand, allowed us to send users to any section of our Page we denoted. This is part of a recent update by Facebook, allowing admins to choose a destination tab for each traditional “Like” ad they create. This means Page administrators can drive users to customized tabs based on their demographics. For instance, a company that serves both the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore areas could create two different welcome tabs and different ads for each city so that when a user clicks on their respective city ad, they will immediately be directed to a tab customized with more localized and relevant information.
Comparative Results
So how do these two types of ads compare in terms of results? We ran a quick test campaign with the two ads pictured above, spending roughly $15 on each type of ad and targeting the same audience (people who live within 25 miles of Baltimore, MD; are age 25 and older; whose friends are already connected to MGH).
Here are the results of our experiment:
Sponsored Story Ad:
Spent: $14.58
Likes directly to the ad*: 2
Click-thrus from ad to page: 41
Traditional “Like” Ad:
Spent: $14.79
Likes directly to the ad*: 30
Click-thrus from ad to page: 38
*Only includes Likes directly to the ad itself; not Likes collected after a user clicks-through from the ad to the Page.
As you can see, preliminary results show, in this case, the traditional “Like” ad out-performed the new Sponsored Story ad. However, further experimentation will be needed in order to determine the conversion rate of users who “Like” the page after clicking-thru from the ad.
Conclusion
The point of sharing our quick experiment is not to discount the new Sponsored Story advertisements. Every ad campaign is unique and, had we used a different image/copy in our traditional “Like” ad, or had we tested the ads against a different target audience, our results could have significantly varied.
What we do hope you take away is the importance of exploring all of Facebook’s ad-type options, as well as the necessity to test various target audiences and creative options, in order to find the best fit for your message and brand. Additionally, it is equally as important to constantly monitor your ads’ performance and make adjustments in order to make the most out of your Facebook advertising investment. Because, with the right strategy in place, Facebook advertisements can be one of the most cost-effective ways to recruit new potential customers to your subscription Fan base.
