If you do or aim to advertise your business on Facebook, taking a look at these case studies + lessons will give you ideas to improve your ads to get better results.

Case Study 1

Lesson 1 - Make the image visually attractive -

Because, of course, image (or other creative) grabs the attention. Here’s how to make your images stand out -

- Do not use stock photos

I’ll know from a scroll away if a post has used a cliché stock image. I’ll scroll through it shamefully, without even giving a glance. If you need using stock photos, find some of the fresh ones.

- Use real images with people looking at the camera.

It grabs people’s attention when someone (especially attractive) is looking at them. Because we tend to feel obliged to look back at someone who is looking at us.

-Use color that contrasts with blue

People subconsciously scroll through bluish images without giving a look, because Facebook is themed blue. Use contrasting colors to attract attention.

Lesson 2 - Start with action verbs like Get, Download, Start, etc.

Action verbs generate the energy of acting and it makes the person imagine themselves getting/downloading the product, by acting on the ad.

Case Study 2

Lesson 3 – Ask a question answered with YES

Are you a human? – Yes!

Are you a startup? – Yes!

Do you use ProductXYZ? – Yes!

Would you consider using our Product? – Ye.. Um Yes, let’s try.

Lesson 4 – Compare yourself with a competitor/product that is already famous

This comes from a simple logic – If you are showing guts enough to compare yourself with someone better than you, you are received better than you are.

Lesson 5 – Relevant

Well, how to make the ad reach to relevant people is a whole different story but making the viewer feel like the ad they are watching is relevant to them is very important. If I had seen the ad without the “looking for an alternative to HootSuite?” I might not understand what this CoSchedule thing is. That might lead me to believe that, whatever I am seeing isn’t relevant to me.

Case Study 3

Lesson 6 - Strong CTA

Tell them what to do.

Lesson 7 – Use Emoticons

Well, it’ not childish. And anyway, it grabs the attention to the important. See how this ad drives your attention to the download link. It’s the mixture of the word FREE and the arrow emoji.

Lesson 8 - Use keywords like – FREE, DOWNLOAD, TRIAL, TODAY, NOW, YOU

Case Study 4

Lesson 8 – Make them think or Leave them thinking

I was researching Facebook ads for this post when I found this ad. First thing I did was search – “What do Dropbox, Uber, and Airbnb have in common?” So, if I was scrolling Facebook and saw this ad, I would definitely show interest in the ad and click the play button.

Oh, and if you’re still thinking about Dropbox, Uber & Airbnb –it’s how they grew using referral programs.

Lesson 9 - Use unique words

Because common ad words and people will subconsciously – skip.

Case Study 5

Lesson 10 – Mention/show an influencer

You’re scrolling through Facebook and see “Is single-payer good for business?” VS you see an image of Warren Buffet. Which of these would make you stop scrolling? Right.

Case Study 6

Lesson 11 – W H I T E S P A C E

As Zen as Zendesk is, they know how to use whitespace to catch your eye.

Case Study 7

Lesson 12 - Share interesting content

Instead of selling directly to cold leads, let them engage them. Increase the engagement. Then use re-targeting ads to sell. Also, isn’t it a brilliant idea to show the product as a life hack!

See the 15 shares? Would you share if the content was more ‘salesy’?

Lesson 13 – Leverage carousel ads

Carousel ads let you add up to 10 images in a single ad. You can leverage this by showing different products, or the same products from different angles, or testimonials, show screenshots of how your product works, or you can even tell a story.

Case Study 8

Lesson 14 – Use numbers, special characters, facts, lists, charts.

Use them to show Social proof, Number of users you already have lives you have affected, etc.

Case Study 9

Lesson 15 - Write only the key message or the value proposition on the image

Facebook has this 20% text-overlay rules anyways so it doesn’t make sense to put much on the images. But, if you’re wondering what to write on the image – It must be the value proposition. In some cases, it makes sense to put discounts or coupons, but most of the time, it’s the value prop - in a few words. A small logo helps with brand recognition.





Yes, I know I said only 9 case studies and this is not a Facebook ad but is this powerful!

Power tip (16) - Use an unusual image

True story – I almost scrolled through this image. But, subconsciously it made my mind thinking that there was something unusual about it. Just before I properly see the next image – I felt this urge to solve the confusion. I scrolled up to see that it was a watermelon flying with balloons. I felt this need to read what the image is about.

And, BAM! There the marketing team behind the ad smirked!

[Image Source - adespresso.com]