Facebook springs into action after advertisers’ cite concerns over the efficacy of ad campaign on the social network
Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) unveils plans to raise its assistance to advertisers on its platform. In a recent blog post, the company informs it will upgrade its Conversion Lift advertisement tool which helps advertisers to accurately compare and evaluate various Facebook advertisements to determine which campaigns are most effective, for their respective businesses. The Conversion Lift tool was launched in January. Over the past nine months, Facebook let advertisers measure and observe whether their ad campaigns were effective by evaluating the growth of online and offline sales. The latest upgrade will allow similar analyses, in greater detail.
Previously, Conversion Lift analyzed two groups of Facebook users; one that is able to see the ad and others that cannot. It compares the conversion data from both groups which can be accessed in Facebook’s Custom Audiences pixel, or from an in-store point-of-sale (POS). The resultant analysis highlights the relative success of ads, in driving sales. The enhanced Conversion Lift tool will let advertisers conduct multiple tests on various control groups and then compare them. Advertisers can compare brand ads and direct response ads to see how mobile-based ads perform in comparison to the rest of the ad campaign. They can also compare photos of life-style formats against ads that show the product; to distinguish between different means of attracting users.
Basically, the improved Conversion Lift makes it possible for advertisers to compare multiple ad formats based on the same objective to assess which approach is the most effective for their cause. Aside from this, the tool will also check how ads contribute to in-app sales, so developers may boost revenues and downloads.
Facebook cites research by Wix; the cloud website platform, in its blog post. The referenced case study was conducted to check whether direct response ads bring in more premium subscriptions, alone; or when combined with other brand awareness techniques such as video ads. The conclusion was that a combination of formats yields better results.
Bidness Etc believes that Facebook aims to achieve to purposes with this tool Firstly, it wants to generate more business. Secondly, the company wants to act quickly to quell recent criticism by marketers who question return on investment (ROI) on ad spend on the social platform. Facebook wants to display that it cares about advertisers' concerns and is actively in pursuit of innovations that work for them.
Besides frequent updates to better engage Facebook users; the company also makes many efforts for third-party business and advertisers on its platform. It continues on efforts to make the social platform more connected, attractive and private. Facebook has partnered with several well-known publishers to open its news platform; similar to how Snapchat partnered with different channels to offer news, albeit on a much larger scale.
Recently, Facebook added a new feature that allows users to avail coverage of ongoing events as celebrities and politicians add their own captured material on the forum. Such growth in services and enhancement in technologies are quite frequent and serve to keep users entertained and logged on, for longer durations. Higher and more frequent usage of the platform means more ads can be viewed. In turn, this helps advertisers build brand recall and boost sales.
Facebook offers advanced online advertisement tools to its advertisers along with tips and other techniques that can help their purpose. The company continues to go the extra mile to attract advertisers. Its apparent willingness to bend over backwards for advertisers, warrants some suspicion. For example, recently the company agreed to test advertisements in GIF format on the social network. Its willingness to do so after nearly ten years of hesitation, is surprising. After all, the company's creator; Mark Zuckerberg has remained an ardent opponent of such ads for years. The sudden change in the company's stance towards ads in GIF format; comes on the back of an outcry from advertisers; not because of users' demands.
Facebook also recently added auto-play video ads for its partners in the Network Audience Developers group. The company's efforts to woe advertisers may be attributable to the fact that most advertisers still consider Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) to be the primary provider for virtual ad space which gets noticed. After all, Google is the biggest player on the web, at present.
Facebook is undoubtedly an emergent ad space to be, for advertisers. However, the company's incessant obsession with pleasing advertisers may not sit well with users of the social website. It is well known that the company shares a great deal of personal details about its users, with advertisers. In fact, a major strength of advertisements on Facebook is that they can be targeted based on users' profiles, preferences and online history. On the other hand, a plethora of recent researches highlight users' disdain for online advertisements.
Bidness Etc believes that improvements in tools that let advertisers assess the effectiveness of campaigns, are bound to please marketers. However, users usually perceive ads to be a nuisance; and the bombardment of these marketing communications can turn users off. Without users, tools to post ads and measure their efficacy; would be a fruitless endeavour indeed.
No comments:
Post a Comment