"Content is King," as they say – without it, social media advertising doesn't happen, and potential customers can't be won over to your brand. But this often creates a challenge: your company once again has no current content that can be used as creative for an ad. Now it's time to get creative yourself. Here are a few ideas on how you can get creative with little effort. The goal? To design content that outperforms the competition and engages your target audience so they react to your post, share it, and ultimately buy your product.
1. Stop Motion Video
Videos remain the format with the highest engagement, especially on mobile. But producing video ads doesn't have to be expensive. You can create engaging stop-motion videos using images you already have. For example, the Create to Convert app makes it quick and easy to create exactly these kinds of short videos.
You should also keep the following in mind:
A) Capture Attention: Make sure it is immediately clear what the product is and what is being advertised.
B) Highlight your brand name early: Brand awareness within the first 3 seconds generates a positive conversion lift.
C) Short and sweet: Create short videos for better performance: The conversion value is 7% higher than with long videos. What is the promotion you might be advertising? Ask questions and keep the text under 280 words.
2. UGC (User Generated Content)
When it comes to marketing and selling, word-of-mouth is always more effective than advertising and ads. We humans prefer to trust people we already follow or perceive as authentic. Therefore, if you integrate user-generated content into your ads, you can easily showcase your products as they are used in real life.
Also helpful:
Tip 1: Ask for it!
Simple, but incredibly helpful. Actively ask your customers to share their experiences with your product with their friends on social media channels and to mention your Facebook page, your Instagram profile, or the direct link to your landing page.
Tip 2: Repost your customers' content
User-generated content increases conversion rates! Interact with your community to build greater trust.
3. Slideshows
Slideshows always work! Create a high-quality, custom ad without the cost or effort of a video production. With slideshow ads, you can combine multiple images, videos, text, and audio to grab your target audience's attention and tell a story. Just like videos, slideshow ads play automatically on smartphones, tablets, and computers on Facebook and Instagram, and they loop continuously. You can create these directly in Facebook Ads Manager.
4. GIFs
Because slideshows are only a few seconds long, they fit well with the short attention spans we have developed online. The production effort is usually low, and the format can now be used everywhere. You have the option to create your own GIFs or pick suitable ones from existing libraries.
Find GIFs here:
- Facebook and Twitter media library
- Giphy
- What Should We Call Me
- Reaction GIFs
5. Boomerang
Not strictly a GIF, but this ad format still falls into the category of motion graphics. Your products are presented in a video loop. With minimal effort, you can take the product you want to promote, integrate it into an everyday scenario, and you have another way to showcase your product on social media platforms.
6. Influencers
Don't underestimate the "power" of influencers! Whether it's spoken-word videos, story ads, or link ads, the reach and awareness influencers provide is enormous. The advantage here is that influencers usually create the content themselves.
If you ever run out of content ideas, there is another option:
Varying your approach
How do I reach which target audience?
To act strategically and ensure no group is overlooked, you should always use the funnel as a guide. The goal of a conversion funnel is for as many prospects as possible who are engaged at the top of the funnel to convert at the bottom and accept your offer. While a 100% conversion rate isn't realistic, a well-optimized conversion funnel will yield significantly higher rates than having none at all. Essentially, the funnel acts more like a filter that sifts out uninterested users, leaving only customers at the end.
Reach different target audiences using the same content you've already created.
1. Top funnel / Awareness
The priority here is to reach a large audience and encourage engagement. A small discount, such as 5%, can help draw users to your landing page and, in the best-case scenario, generate initial sales.
2. Middle Funnel / Engagement
Now it's time to use your content to reach people who are already interested in your brand or product. A BOGO (buy one, get one) offer is a great way to motivate social media users to complete a purchase. It has minimal impact on your margins (no discount) while still being highly effective.
3. Bottom Funnel
How about 20% off? After all, these are often customers who just need a small nudge. Lowering the price often works wonders here.
4. Loyalty
You can entice people who are already at the very bottom of your funnel with things like product launches. You just need an elegant way to reach out to your existing customers again.
Simple tricks and small changes can often open up entirely new paths and possibilities. Let your creativity run wild! Often, simple tools and a little time are all you need to conjure up high-performing visuals for your ads.
