SSA #038: Facebook Ads Failing? It Doesn't Matter

Read Time: 3.5 Minutes

For the past 2 months or so, I've been reading the same three bedtime stories to our twin boys, Jacob and Caleb, every single night, without fail:

– The Gruffalo

– The Gruffalo's Child

– Stick Man

All 3 of these books were written by the incredible children's author, Julia Donaldson, and illustrated by the very talented Alex Scheffler.

And within 2-3 weeks of starting this bedtime routine, the boys, who turned 3 in June, were reciting entire paragraphs from the books, word for word.

Now, I'm sure you're thinking to yourself, what has this got to do with Facebook Ads or running an author business?

Bear with me, there is a connection...

Put In The Reps

By reading the same books to our boys night after night, week after week, not only do they enjoy the stories themselves, but they are putting in the reps to learning new words and developing their imagination, along with the many other benefits reading offers.

And the same is true with anything in life; we have to put in the reps to get the results.

You wouldn't expect to brush your teeth once and walk out of the bathroom with a gleaming white set of gnashers.

Or do a 30-minute workout at the gym and strut out of there looking like a fitness model.

It just doesn't work like that.

You need to put in the reps consistently to see results.

Most of Your Facebook Ads Will Fail

Bringing the subject back round to Facebook Ads... the majority of the Facebook Ads you test will fall flat on their face.

But that's ok; it's to be expected.

I see around a 20% success rate with my Facebook Ads, meaning that 80% of everything I test fails. And I'm ok with that.

Why?

Because you only need a handful of Facebook Ads to see transformative results.

If you've been through my Facebook Ads For Authors Masterclass, or Jumpstart Facebook Ads For Authors, you'll know that I test my Ads using Dynamic Creative, which, in short, allows Facebook to do all the heavy lifting when testing your Ads.

And my Account Structure is incredibly simple, on purpose:

My Main Ad Set, which contains my winning, proven Ads, is holding everything together. So even if my Dynamic Creative Ads are about as useful as a chocolate teapot, the Ads in my Main Ad Set (of which there are 2-5 of them) will continue to deliver results.

Persistence Will Pay Off

There is a well-known saying that goes something like, and I'm paraphrasing here... "you can only fail if you give up."

And this is so true with Facebook Ads, and in fact, running an author business.

I'm not saying that you should keep pushing at something until you're blue in the face if the results aren't there. But you have to give things time.

As I often say, adopt a 2-3 year mindset, not a 2-3 week mindset.

At the end of 2022, when our Facebook Ads were just getting worse and worse (before I implemented the strategy I've been using for the duration of 2023), I fell off the proverbial bandwagon a little.

I forgot about Facebook Ads and started exploring other advertising opportunities, such as TikTok Ads, Pinterest Ads, and more. Just to feel like I was doing something useful, because no matter what I did, I couldn't get the Facebook Ads working again.

Thankfully, I caught myself after a week or so, and did the walk of shame back to Facebook Ads, a little bit hesitant, I must add.

I started putting in the reps again each day, trying to figure out how to get these Ads working once more, which I did, and haven't looked back since.

It took persistence, and there was definitely a sense of reluctance because I didn't feel I had it in me to revive the Facebook Ads.

There was a lot of self-inflicted pressure to get these Ads working again too, with Lori's royalties dropping, and myself teaching Facebook Ads to other authors, such as yourself.

It took some time, but I got there. 

I share this story because it goes to show that even someone who does this for a living (me) falls down sometimes and has a serious case of shiny object syndrome.

Wrapping Up...

This newsletter has been a little less tactical than some of the others I've written, but I felt it was important to share these stories, as I receive emails every single week from authors who, like I was at the end of 2022, are frustrated with their Facebook Ads not delivering the results they were hoping for.

A lot of this self-publishing game is in your head. Yes, the actions you take are important, absolutely, but your mindset is paramount to your success.

Without a solid mindset, you run the risk of throwing in the towel and giving up on your dreams.

Remember, the only way you can fail is if you give up.

You got this.

To Your Success
– Matt