Facebook Ads, Facebook Boosted Posts…what does it all mean?!
With all of the different ways to communicate on Facebook, it’s important to know which is the best way to do it.
Believe it or not, there is a method to Facebook’s madness. Each way to communicate a message through Facebook serves a different purpose, which is why there are so many options!
As social media experts, we often get asked what the difference is between Facebook boosted posts and Facebook ads. Both are important and cost money, but each one has a different algorithm for reaching users and therefore delivers different results.
It’s important to note that both Boosted Posts and Facebook Ads are great options for advertising. Whether to use one method over the other comes down to your marketing objective and the results you are looking to achieve from your social media campaign.
Facebook Boosted Post: A social media post that an advertiser assigns a budget to in an effort to increase its reach.
- Simplest way to advertise on Facebook
- Created through the front-end of your business page
- Optimized to deliver engagement (comments, reactions, and shares)
- Can contribute to increasing your Facebook following
- Shows as a Sponsored Post on your target audience’s News Feed
- Post remains on your page’s timeline
- Has access to basic Facebook targeting, but not as in-depth as a Facebook ad
- Can be pushed to Instagram and Facebook Audience Networks but must also be on Facebook
- Once a budget is applied, the advertiser can then manage a boosted post through ads manager
So if your goal is to push out a Facebook post that is on your timeline for maximum engagement, a boosting your post is a great way to do that.
Facebook Ad: Advertisements created through Facebook Ads Manager that are delivered through selected Facebook platforms for a designated purpose.
- Must be created through Facebook Ads Manager
- Offers more advanced and customizable solutions based on your goal, including:
- Website Traffic
- Awareness
- Lead Generation
- Video Views
- Messages
- Conversions
- Catalog Sales
- Store Visits
- Improved targeting and custom audience creation tools available
- Run ads during specific time periods with customizable ad scheduling
- More advanced data for measuring the success of the campaign
- Shows on users’ News Feeds as a Sponsored Post
- Can be pushed through selected Facebook Audience Network and partner platforms exclusively, such as only running an ad through Instagram
If you have a specific goal in mind, such as increasing your website traffic, a Facebook Ad would be the best way to deliver the results you want.
