Facebook is the biggest social network in the world. With an astonishing 2.7 billion users in the second quarter of 2020. Due to its sheer size, businesses can no longer ignore Facebook. If you’re a business owner looking to expand your business, it is the ideal place to do so. Most of your current and future customers are present there.
Before we get into the meat of the topic, let's discuss a few essential things. One of the biggest mistakes people make is they try to start a business through Facebook. Facebook is not a place to build a business from scratch. You must already have a stable company before you plan to advertise it. Even with all of the features, it offers – more on that later.
You must know that your product or service is something that people want. A mediocre product can find moderate success through advertisement, but a lousy product is doomed to fail. Start small; see how well your product does. If it sells, analyze the type of people buying it.
Advertisement, in general, is essential to a business's success. However, Facebook will only increase your audience. It won't build the foundation of your business. So, make sure your business plan works. Now let’s get into the topic at hand.

Facebook Ads - Getting Started

In 2007 Facebook introduced Facebook Ads. For the longest time, the platform was a hopeless cash sink with minimal returns. In reality, businesses hadn't figured out how to properly utilize the platform for maximum returns. Over time, Facebook's constant updates, coupled with increased knowledge among business owners, has propelled the platform as one of the best places to advertise.  
To get started, Facebook offers an excellent course to learn their platform – Facebook Blueprint. The course benefits from the fact that Facebook themselves developed it. The course will teach you everything you need to know about the platform.
They give you a tutorial of the platform itself, different strategies to employ, effective marketing tactics and audience targeting tips. Also, there are a plethora of user-made guides online. You can find highly informative blogs and videos that will bring you up to speed in no time.
An important skill to pick up early on is to learn copywriting and design. The success of your advertisements depends on how well customers receive them. The content of your advert must captivate those who come across it. On Facebook, visuals matter the most, while text compliments it.

Facebook Analytics

One of the hallmarks of the Facebook Ads platform is its great analytics. All of the critical information is laid out already. You simply have to analyze the data. Thus, you have more time to focus on figuring out the right strategy rather than wasting time compiling the data yourself.
Of course, interpretation of the analytics depends upon your skill as an advertiser. Identifying the right metrics and making decisions based on them. The easiest thing to look at is the CTR (click-through rate). It refers to the number of people clinking on your ads and is generally a safe metric.

Micro Targeting

Micro Targeting is a powerful feature of Facebook Ads. You can choose exactly which audience you'd like to see your ad. You can target based on behaviors, demographics, interests, age ranges, connections, locations or languages.
Facebook Ads offers the most flexible targeting system compared to other platforms. This means you have more outstanding options to tailor-make ads to specific groups. Again, it depends on your skill as an advertiser on how well you can utilize this feature.
Targeting used to the fullest potential allows you to increase your reach while saving money. Industry experts say that proper use of the platform generally shows some of the best ROIs (Return on Investment). Thus, it would help if you studied consumer psychology and generic advertising techniques.
One of the most efficient techniques is to do your homework about your consumers. Learn as much about as possible. Their general interests, which posts they respond to and target based on that. Focus on a higher conversion rate rather than farther reach. As in the end, what matters is how many people buy your product.
Most consumers will look at your advertisement or page once and never look at it again. The simple reality is that people come to Facebook to relax. To keep users on the platform, Facebook gives a backseat to business posts over those from friends and family.
Thus, Remarketing becomes a vital strategy to increase conversions. The technique involves showing ads to those who have already interacted with your content. Over time, the consumer becomes more familiar with your product. Familiarity builds trust. Trust leads to increased conversions.

Choosing the Right Ad

Another mistake commonly made is not having an exact target audience in mind. It is essential to know what kind of activity you want.
Do you want to target new customers?
Customers that are on the fence?
Or remarket to those who have already engaged with your business?
Facebook Ads help you choose precisely the kind of ad you want to create. The platform assists you in selecting the type of ad, target audience, time frame and budget. Thus, knowing which audience you want to target means utilizing the platform more efficiently and saving money.
Lookalike audiences (LLA) is a great feature to generate new leads. LLA allows you to find consumer groups for your product that you didn't know existed. However, it would help if you were careful as not all LLAs will translate to conversions. Thus, testing is essential.

Conclusion

The power of social media for business cannot be understated. Business pages allow direct communication with consumers. Interact with your customers, ask them about your product and use that feedback to grow.
The Facebook ads manager is not as easy as there is a learning curve associated with it. However, through repeated testing, you can eventually figure it out. Trial and error are the first steps to success. You will not get results overnight. But through patience and a willingness to learn, you will eventually be rewarded.