Facebook ads might not serve the same immediate solution type of needs that Google Ads do, but their strength lies in their ability to target certain groups of users or demographics, as opposed to the more SEO services based PPC Google Ads. Now, some recent reports are stating that Facebook has given access to a new ad customization feature to a select few users. This new feature allows the creator of the ad to use lists of contact information such as user IDs, phone numbers and e-mail addresses when customizing ads. This allows a business to target user profiles like never before to build their audience.
Facebook has stated that this user information will be encrypted and will not be used by the social network. On the other hand, businesses will not be able to gain any more data through this new feature, they must still gather the information as normal and can simply now use it when tailoring their Facebook ads. They will also still be able to choose other demographic markers such as age, gender and education.
From a business perspective this is a potentially huge development, as one will no longer be restricted to building an audience based on the specific demographic criteria that Facebook allows one to select when creating these ads. In other words, it may not be useful for a business to target people based on gender or education level.
Having acquired a user’s e-mail or phone number and permission to receive promotional material through conventional means, a business can effectively target those potential customers that were brought together into an audience through inbound marketing or SEO services. These users would represent more concrete leads than the average demographic-fitting Facebook user. This can allow businesses to better manage their social media campaigns, determining who is a fan and who needs to be attracted to the page.
In the end, this move represents a challenge to Google Ads solution-based advertising, since people who have given their information to a company may have been interested in or already purchased something that business offers. This is simply deepening the way social media can offer real results to a business, provided that business owners create partnerships with agile, professional social media marketing teams like Blue Hat.
