Cubeit Social

How iOS 14 Will Affect Facebook Ads For Your Business

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 15:46:00 GMT

What iOS 14 means for the future of Facebook ads

If you own a small business that relies on Facebook ads, all the talk about the iOS 14 update might have you a bit on edge.

Don’t worry — this isn’t the end of Facebook ads .

Like everything else over the past year, you may need to adjust and adapt to the changes coming.

And as entrepreneurs, we’re used to evolving and adapting, right? When problems arise, we think outside the box, come up with innovative solutions, and keep going.

But with so much information out there about the iOS 14 update, it can feel overwhelming to take it all in. That’s why I’m here! To break down what you can expect with iOS 14 so you can stop suffering from information overload.

What changed in iOS 14?

Apple's latest , update goes beyond home screen design changes and new memoji features. Apple’s newest update primarily revolves around privacy permissions.

The biggest change? You’ll now have the choice of whether you want to allow tracking when using apps on Apple devices or not.

That’s right. Apps will now need to get your , permission to access your data and other information — this includes tracking your data across websites.

What this will look like is a prompt asking if you want to opt-in for these apps to access your data. If you choose not to share your information, apps will stop tracking your activity.

This update will make it easy for users to opt-out of Facebook apps accessing their data. And when this happens, Facebook will no longer be able to track user behavior (i.e. what apps you’re using and what you’re doing inside those apps).

In that scenario, the Facebook app will no longer be able to report back to , advertisers with information — like click-through rates or sales.

So, what does this mean for advertising through Facebook?

The update may lead to less tracking and more privacy . And this impacts the pixel, conversion tracking, and targeting. Which, in turn, affects how you go about advertising on the Facebook platform.

Think about it, when given the choice, most people will opt for more privacy.

In fact, it’s estimated that approximately 70% of Apple users share their Identifier for Advertisers ( , IDFA ) with app publishers. But after this change, that number could drop down to 10% to 15%.

And yes, more privacy is good in the grand scheme of things. But the flip side? From the perspective of a small business owner, there is some concern…

As you know, having a specific audience is essential to focus on who is likely to work with you or buy your product. So, small businesses use this data to create audience-specific ads. And with smaller budgets than big corporations, small businesses need as many options to refine targeting as possible.

This is why there is so much concern surrounding the iOS 14 privacy changes.

That said, how this will affect ads depends on how you’re using them.

These new privacy measures will have the biggest impact on mobile app ads .

If you have a free app that generates revenue through ads, Facebook won’t be able to show targeted ads through your app if iOS 14 users don’t allow tracking.

As you can imagine, Facebook isn’t thrilled about these changes and claim Apple is doing this to generate more revenue. Why? Because Apple doesn’t get a cut from Facebook ad revenue. Yet, they do get a cut through in-app purchases or subscriptions.

And as for those using “ , Facebook Audience Network ”, they may also be heavily affected.

The Facebook Audience Network is mostly for building brand awareness, where lead generation comes more from Facebook and Instagram newsfeeds.

So, where does this leave you when it comes to advertising your business through Facebook? Especially if you’re using this as means of building brand awareness…

There are a few steps you can take to make sure you’re still reaching the right audience.

Make sure you have a WIDE range of methods you’re using to grow and interact with your audience.

Like anything else, you don’t want to have ONE strategy. Have your go-to plan, and backup plans B and C.

Some other strategies you can use in addition to Facebook ads?

“We’re still trying to understand what these changes will look like and how they will impact us and the rest of the industry, but at the very least, it’s going to make it harder for app developers and others to grow using ads on Facebook and elsewhere.” – , David Wehner , Facebook CFO

As you can imagine, there are still a lot of , questions surrounding the overall impact of iOS 14.

If Facebook can’t track users because so many are opting out of tracking...

As Wehner said, we don’t know just yet… the impact of these changes is still unknown and many questions still remain.

The results are largely dependent on how many iOS 14 users there are and how many of those users allow tracking. And, of course, only time will tell.

“There are no problems, only solutions.” – John Lennon

With all that’s going on in the world, you have enough to worry about right now. If you need help developing your strategy, schedule time for a free consult and I’ll make sure you’re prepared for these changes and changes yet to come!

Let’s create a solid marketing strategy for your business to continue to not only survive but thrive.

Schedule a call with me , today !

Social Media Holidays - How Should You Use Them?

Wed, 06 Jan 2021 17:58:00 GMT

You're trying to plan your social media content but you just don't know what to post. You might think to yourself, "Is today a National Day or something? Maybe I can post about that?"

National Days, Weeks, Months are a type of content that you can use for your Social Media Content Calendar. However, there are mistakes people make when posting about these National Days that result in low reach, low engagement, and basically end up a waste of time.

Here are some tips to make use of these "Social Media Holidays" in the right way:

Use them sparingly.

Social Media Holidays are a great way to connect what is happening in the larger world to yourself and your business. However, this shouldn't be a large portion of your social media content.

I would reserve at most 1 or 2 posts for National Days or Holidays or if you aren't posting consistently, at most 5% of your posts should be based on National Days or Holidays.

Make it personal.

If anything, make the posts personal to you, your story, and your business. Avoid using generic graphics that you create on Canva or PicMonkey.

Instead, post a behind the scenes picture, a powerful quote, or something else personal that allows your audience to relate and connect.

The goal of your social media content is to be relatable, authentic, and valuable.

Here are some great examples of using National and Social Media Holidays the RIGHT way.

Merry Christmas

Have more questions about how to use Social Media Holidays in your Content Calendar? Join me for my Content Calendar training!

Email me cubeitsocial@gmail.com to find out the next FREE training!

Facebook Business Manager - Free Tools You're Missing!

Wed, 11 Nov 2020 02:05:00 GMT

Do you manage your Facebook page from Facebook.com? Or do you manage it from your Facebook App?

If you want to truly grow your business and invest in growth, make the move to Facebook Business Manager ASAP.

What is Facebook Business Manager?

According to Facebook :

Here are all the FREE tools you're missing out on!

If you're going to build custom audiences based on an email list, you have no choice but to create a Business Manager Account. Plus, you'll receive better support from Facebook with a Business Manager Account than just a Facebook page on its own.

How to Create a Business Manager Account.

In most cases, it can be pretty easy, but if you have ad accounts you want to transfer from personal ad accounts, Facebook Pixels from personal accounts, or retrieve assets from other individuals.... It can get pretty complicated. If you are having issues setting up your Business Manager Account, set up a call with me and I can help problem solve or we can work through it together.

Here are the basic steps to ensure you set it up CORRECTLY.

First, go to business.facebook.com and click Create.

Next, create your Business Manager Account. You'll have to put your Business Name, your name, and your business email (Note: this doesn't have to be the same as your email you use to login with Facebook. This is where you'll get notifications, etc.).

Then, you will have to confirm that this email is associated with this Business Manager Account. Once you receive that email you'll be able to complete the setup. You'll want to connect your Facebook Pages, any existing Ad Accounts, Instagram accounts, and/or Pixels. You'll do that in the "Business Settings" section.

Click "Business Settings". You'll see the screen below.

Go to Page and click " Add " and you'll either select "Add a Page" -- This is an existing page you have access to as an admin or you will request access to a page that someone else has access to, or finally you can even create a new page here.

You'll go through this same process for "Ad Accounts".

Then, you'll assign the appropriate people with the appropriate roles for each of these assets.

If you do not have a Facebook Pixel setup, you'll also want to set this up and install this on your website. Facebook Pixel setup as well as set up of Custom Conversions is a bit technical but worth going through to create high performing ads.

Once you have this setup, you get all this access:

If you would like more support on setting up Business Manager and your Pixel , schedule a time to contact me today!

How to Find Fantastic (and Free!) Images for Social Media and Your Website.

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 16:28:00 GMT

Let’s say you’ve crafted some amazing content, and now you need to embellish it with a stunning image. You search Google images and find the perfect photo. You can just copy and paste it, right?

Not so fast!

You may be able to find any image on the internet, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you can reuse any image that you find. The Copyright Act of 1976 prohibits any unauthorized use of creative works (such as images, film, or text), and protects the author’s right to copy, distribute, alter, and display the work.

It can be tricky to know what you are or are not allowed to use, but fortunately there are some great resources to help you find fantastic images and stay on the right side of the copyright laws. (Disclaimer: this is not legal advice.)

Copyright, Creative Commons, and Public Domain – Oh My!

You are probably familiar with the copyright symbol: ©. In general, copyright is automatically given to the author or creator of a work. It’s always best to assume that an image or work is under copyright, even if you don’t see the symbol.

Creative Commons is a non-profit foundation established to facilitate the proper use of creative works on the internet. It provides a framework to know what the rules are for reusing a work that is under copyright. There are 6 different Creative Commons licenses, ranging from very permissive (attribution only) to very strict (no alterations or derivatives, only for non-commercial use, must credit author).

Some works are in the public domain, which means the copyright protection has expired or been waived. In general, creative works automatically become public domain 70 years after the death of the author. Some living authors may waive their exclusivity rights and release works immediately into the public domain. Creative Commons released two public domain symbols: © and CC0.

Free Image Resources

There are several places to find free images online. Attribution is appreciated but usually not required.

Sites like Unsplash and NegativeSpace features an extensive collection of images from incredible photographers.

Pexels is a great source for high-quality images and videos.

Pixabay has illustrations, vectors, and music in addition to photos and videos.

Wikimedia Commons is a great resource for works of art or vintage illustrations. (Double check that the image you choose is in the public domain; some photos of works of art are copyrighted by the photographer.)

Google Image Search has a setting under “Tools” that allows you to search by license . Toggle “Labled for Reuse” for a quick search of images that are likely to be in the public domain or under a Creative Commons license. You may need to dig deeper to verify the attribution requirements, but it can be a helpful tool if you need to find an image quickly.

Also, you can search by size as well to ensure the image you choose will show up unpixelated (not blurry) on your website or social media channels.

Why Use Images?

According to Buzzsumo , Facebook posts with images see over 2x as much engagement compared to posts without images. Articles with images every 75-100 words were also shared twice as much as articles with fewer images. Buffer reports that tweets with images get 150% more retweets than tweets without images. Furthermore, outbound links tend to have lower reach than an image with a link in the post itself. The average engagement rate for link posts on a facebook page is 2.72% When looking at the 500 top Facebook posts of 2018, images accounted for 18 percent of the top posts, while Links made up a mere 0.2 percent.

One caveat: make sure that you are posting images that are relevant to your brand or message. Avoid posting images “just to post an image,” and avoid images that are overused, trite, or unrelated to your content. Not sure if you are using images effectively? Schedule your free 30-minute consultation with us and we can evaluate and strategize your visual marketing plan.

How to Use Trello to Transform Your Social Media and Content Planning

Wed, 08 Jul 2020 14:06:00 GMT

Trello is a fantastic tool for creating content calendars, managing tasks, and facilitating communication within your team. With its array of tools and features, it can be a one-stop shop for brainstorming, collaborating, planning, and visualizing your social media marketing strategy. Instead of having multiple email threads, share drive folders, and various other communication platforms, Trello simplifies things by allowing you to organize and manage all of your projects and conversations in one place.

Trello 101

Trello is made up of different boards . Think of a board as an individual notebook that you'll divide up into tabs, or as a book which contains multiple chapters. You could have a board for each different client or project.

Within each board, there are lists . These would be the tabbed sections of a notebook, or the chapters in a book. Each list contains cards , which you can think of as the pages of the notebook, or paragraphs in a chapter. Cards contain the individual items of content you are planning.

Boards can be assigned to teams , made up of individual members . Each card can be specifically assigned to team members. Within each card, you have the option to set a due date , attach files , add a checklist , and chat with team members about that specific card. You can also add a label , which allows you see that you're using a wide variety of posts types in your overall content calendar.

Getting Started

After creating an account: Step 1: Create a Trello board for your business. I recommend building a different board for each business you manage if you're an agency.

Step 2: Choose a background for your board. You can choose your own image, an image from Unsplash, or a color.

Step 3: Create lists to hold all of your cards. Sample lists include Weekly Content Calendar, Instagram Stories, Blog Schedule, Content Ideas, Marketing Emails, Upcoming Events, Completed Posts. The possibilities are endless and can be tailored to your needs. For example, the lists on this board are: - List 1: Tips for Social Media Posting - Lists 2- 5: Each week of the month is its own list. - List 6: Completed Posts - List 7+: Buckets for Ideas for Content

Step 4 : Create cards on each list. In the example, list 1 (Tips on Social Media Posting) contains a card with a link to an Instagram caption maker, and a card containing relevant hashtags to that client’s content.

Lists 2-5 hold cards that contain the individual social media content for each day of each week. The card holds the attachment of the image, and the description contains the caption and hashtags. There is a checklist option if you need to create a to-do list for that card. The due date allows you to see its completion status at a glance. There is a chat box that allows the team member assigned to that card to post questions or comments (even tagging specific colleagues if needed).

Once a card has been completed, I drag it over to list 6, which holds all the cards that are finished. This keeps my upcoming content front and center on the board, making it easier to access. You can also reuse content on your completed board in the future, just by using a separate image or video. Reusing content is important and helpful in driving traffic to blog posts or reminding people about specific products or specials that you are still promoting.

It’s also great to have a “catch-all” list for brainstorming ideas for future content. When a card becomes developed and it’s ready to be scheduled, it’s simple to drag and drop it onto another list (the weekly content board, for example).

Want to learn more?

This is a basic overview of how to use Trello, but there are many more features and tools to explore on this fantastic platform. Here are some tips for putting bold/italics/headings into Trello Descriptions: ( https://help.trello.com/article/821-using-markdown-in-trello )

Interested in learning how you can craft the perfect content calendar for your social media platforms? Want to learn more about how to use Trello to manage your team and brand? Contact us today for a free 30-minute consultation!

How to Target the Right Audience

Mon, 22 Jun 2020 14:08:00 GMT

Targeting the Right Customer

If you are marketing on social media but aren’t seeing the growth you want, you may be advertising to the wrong audience. Navigating custom audiences and lookalike audiences can seem intimidating, but mastering this marketing tool is the key to growth and converting to sales.

The Ideal Customer

Let’s say your company sells skateboards. If your ads are going out to 75-year-olds, you are probably throwing your money away. Look at your product or service, and ask yourself: who is my ideal customer? Are they male or female? Aged 18 to 24, or over 45? What social media platform are they using -- Instagram? Facebook? LinkedIn? Get a clear idea of who is most likely to respond to your brand and prioritize marketing to that customer.

Examine your current data sources

When targeting the ideal customer, it’s helpful to identify who is already engaging with your brand. These questions will help you discover how to create your custom audience:

1. Do you have a website with Facebook Pixel set up? Pixel will track your website’s traffic and retarget those customers who have already heard of your brand and visited your site. These people will be more likely to purchase your product or service.

2. Do you have an email list? This can be a list of customers who have already bought from you, or it could be email addresses that you captured by offering a freebie on your website, or ideally, both. Your email list is a great tool for creating a custom audience since it is made up of “warm” customers.

3. Are you active on social media? Your followers are a great audience since your brand and message have already resonated with them. (However, understand that when you post on Facebook, you only reach 5-10% of your current following . There are some best practices to use to improve your organic reach, but this is the general average across Facebook.)

Create a custom audience for “warm” customers

After you’ve examined your current data sources, that information can be used to create a custom audience to retarget with ads. Always retarget people who visit your website, have purchased in the past, are on your email list, or follow you on social media. People may forget about your brand, and you need remind them that you’re still out there creating new products and providing great new services! Because it can take anywhere from 5 to 20 touch points before a potential customer converts to a sale, you want to make sure you are visible on a regular basis.

Increase your reach by creating a lookalike audience

After you’ve targeted customers who are already aware and interested in your brand, you can create a lookalike audience to reach a new pool of potential customers. As the name suggests, a lookalike audience has similar characteristics to the warm audience you’ve already found, and will be more likely to be interested in your product or service. These are the best people to target when introducing your product or service with a Facebook ad. Direct them to a landing page, a lead generation campaign to obtain their email address, or to your website with clear calls to action.

Use targeting tools within Facebook posts

In Facebook posts you can choose to make your post "Public" on your page, or you can target specific interests, locations, or demographics. See screenshot below.

Don't see this available for you? Make sure it's enabled in Settings under General. Then select "Audience Optimization for Posts" in the middle of the page and click "Edit." Check off the box that that allows you to begin using the feature.

We’re here to help!

Creating Facebook ads and custom audiences can seem daunting at first, but this is something that we love to help small businesses do. Reach out to us for free 30-minute consultation and learn how we can help support your business’s growth!

Facebook 101: What to Post and How to Maximize Organic Reach

Mon, 22 Jun 2020 14:08:00 GMT

Learn the best practices to maximize your organic reach - aka, reach as many of your followers as possible in your social media posts on Facebook.

Decreased Organic Reach

Over the last 3 years, Facebook's algorithm has changed where it is now more challenging for businesses to reach the majority of their followers.

Most Facebook posts only reach between 2-5% of followers organically.

Quality over Quantity

Rather than posting, "just to post"; post content that is:

RELEVANT

RELATABLE

VALUABLE.

Each of your posts should have purpose.

Are you bringing to your audience's attention that you are now providing a new service? Are you launching a new product? Do you have an offer?

To determine your purpose, you need an understanding of your audience, as well as, your social media goals.

The Not-So-Secret Ratio

In the social media marketing world, this is the ratio that has proven to be best for balancing promotional material with other relevant and interesting content.

Value can come in a variety of forms: inspiration, humor, education, etc. For instance, people love stories!

Think to yourself: How are you making your audience want to interact and return to your social media profile?

Not only do you want to provide value to your customers, but you also want to engage with the larger social media community! Share content from other social media accounts, build relationships with influencers and tag them in content you've shared, or collaborate with other small businesses to provide a special offer, package, or even create a contest together!

Finally, spend 10% or less of your time on social media promoting your actual product or services. You don't want to come across as "spammy", and further, Facebook will reduce your reach on posts that seem promotional in nature.

GREAT TIP: Avoid words like: "Buy Now", "Shop Now", "On Sale Now", etc. Instead, use

promotional language in the graphic or image on Facebook rather than in the actual caption.

Consistency is KEY!

Whatever you plan to create for yourself, stay consistent. Be sure to post each and every week. If you stop posting, this hurts your organic reach for the future.

Rather than deciding to post multiple times a day, set a goal for 2-3 days per week. Something that is doable and that you can keep up with! You don't want to set a goal that is impossible to keep up with and then hurt your chances of your audience seeing your post in the future.

Video, Video, Video!

Finally, VIDEO. Video is THE BEST way to reach your audience. If you're not using video right now, this is one of the most important tips you can walk away with.

When ranking best reach based on the content you post, here is what Facebook has told us with regards to their algorithm:

1. Video

2. Images

3. Text

4. Links

Use subtitles as much as possible. 85% of people will keep videos muted!

Outbound links are one of the worst posts to have on your Facebook Page. Facebook wants to keep their users on Facebook!

Videos, on the other hand, have the best organic reach out of all types of content posted on Facebook.

Videos do not have to be created by a professional videographer. There are many apps you can use and programs to create high quality videos without needing to hire someone professionally to do it!

Further, many videos that aren't professionally created, can do well on their own! You don't need fancy editing programs!

I will be devoting a future blog JUST on how to incorporate more video on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, so stay tuned!

Happy Posting!