Start Wide, Refine Later [FB Ads Targeting Guide]

Hey,

The Facebook Ads algorithm is VERY powerful and knows 1,000,000 times more about its audience than we do.

And yet, many authors advertising with Facebook Ads (including me in the past), throttle the algorithm through tight targeting, so much so that the algorithm can't do its job effectively.

Don't get me wrong, tightening up your targeting once you have some data can definitely help.

In the beginning though, start broad, let Facebooks algorithm do its thing by testing different pockets of your target audience.

Once you know which segment of your audience is responding best to your Ads, then you can refine your targeting.

Start with broad targeting, then refine with data in-hand.

What does this look like in practice then?

I'm not saying to show your Facebook Ads to anyone and everyone!

The Detailed Targeting is still important (e.g. targeting Stephen King and Kindle Store). It's the demographics you need to keep broad to begin with, specifically:

Age: 18-65+
Gender: All Genders

Here's how that would look in reality:

Let your Ads run for 7 days with these settings, then come in, review the data, see which demographics performed best (i.e. which age bracket and gender generated the most clicks), and tweak your demographic settings accordingly.

That's really all there is to it.

Don't launch right out of the gate with tight targeting because you're not letting Facebooks algorithm flex its data muscles and discover the people in your target audience most likely to resonate with, engage with and click on your Ads.

So, the moral of the story... start wide, refine later.

To Your Success
- Matt