How To Use Facebook Video Ads to Generate B2B Leads
As social media platforms continue popping up and newcomers gain even more popularity, some have suggested Facebook might be losing steam – but, according to recent statistics, it’s showing no signs of slowing down. Facebook’s current 2.07 billion active monthly user base grew 16 percent in 2017 from the year prior, according to Zephoria.
If changes in the social advertising landscape had you hesitant about testing Facebook Ads for your B2B lead generation driving efforts, it’s safe to say that your audience is there – and video ads are one of the most effective ways to give yourself a competitive edge.
When it comes to Facebook video ads, they are still a heavily underutilized creative format for B2B brands. Videos are effective in capturing the attention of potential customers and more often than not, they convert at higher rates over their static image counterparts.
If you are looking to generate B2B leads for your business, give Facebook video ads a try as a creative way to promote your webcasts, ebooks, products, tools, and services.
Welcome Leads Through Webcasts
Hosting an upcoming webcast? Drive leads through a promotional video that shines a light on the sign-up benefits. As a mutual trade-off, share enough information to give your target audience a taste and pique interest, but not enough to give away the best information that you have to offer, until they sign up with their contact information and attend.
To capture the lead, send users to a landing page with additional webcast details and a registration form. For an alternative method, test to see if you can drive higher lead volume at a lower cost per lead, by testing a lead gen specific ad unit with a video, as this format often proves to be more effective than static images.
If you’re looking for something more engaging, test some videos that showcase the webcast host inviting users to join the webcast or, if you hosted a similar webcast in the past, use a former attendee that can share a snippet of what they learned by attending before and the valuable information you can learn by signing up for the upcoming webcast.
If the webcast is free to attend, be sure to mention this in the ad copy or the video itself as an additional incentive to sign up and lock in that lead.
Let’s take a look at a great example of a static image ad and discuss ways we could further enhance its visibility and effectiveness using movement.
Below, Foxley does a great job on this particular ad by using a friendly face, bright colors, and captivating copy; however, with how quickly people tend to scroll through their feed, something with motion would increase their chances of stopping and viewing.
Take static images a step further by creating a video or slideshow ad to capture impressions and then use the other ad assets to entice them to sign up. If you are unable to create a full video, test micromovements on an otherwise static image. Alternate the color or size of something on the image in a looping .gif file or create a Cinemagraph.
Flixel is one company that designs stunning cinemagraphs that are worth looking into. Take advantage of the free trial they offer and test out a cinemagraph for an upcoming campaign, regardless of it being for a webcast, eBook, product, tool, or service that you offer.
Entice With eBooks
When was the last time you saw an eBook video ad in your News Feed? Spotting Sasquatch in the wild may be a more frequent occurrence. Use this to your advantage and test out a video ad to promote your eBook in exchange for leads.
Let’s take this next excellent static image example from LinkedIn and rethink how we can bring it to life with motion.
This ad would be a terrific candidate for a stop motion video, where the video starts and stops seamlessly and creates the impression of movement. To create a stop motion video, one of our favorite video apps is Stop Motion Studio, available in both iTunes and Google Play.
B2C brands aren’t the only ones that can have fun with video. There are many ways B2B brands can creatively and professionally showcase their business using video ads to others in effort to drive leads and sales.
Showcase Your Services, Tools, and Products In Use
How can your product help save time and money for a potential customer? How can it generate more money for their business? Demonstrate your tool in action with a video ad by showing real people using it, describing the benefits, and include screenshots of what they can expect to see or experience. Hubspot does an outstanding job answering these questions and showing features of their CRM in the ad below. View the full ad on AdEspresso.
To drive leads with a video ad that may be similar to this, send users to lead form landing page on your website or use a lead generation ad format on Facebook. If you want to test this in a remarketing campaign and your business allows for discounts or free trials, mention that in the ad as well to increase your chances of acquiring the lead.
Facebook Video Ad Specs
Facebook’s design recommendations for video ads are as follows:
Video Recommendations:
- Recommended Length: Up to 15 seconds
- Recommended Aspect Ratio: Vertical (4:5)
- Sound: Enabled with captions included
Video Specifications:
- Recommended format: .mp4, .mov or .gif
- Required Lengths By Placement:
- Facebook: 240 minutes max
- Instagram Feed: Up to 60 seconds
- Resolution: 600px minimum width
- File size: Up to 4 GB max
Slideshow Specifications:
- Use high resolution images or a video file to create a slideshow
- Facebook and Instagram: 50 seconds max
- Slideshows will loop
If you run video ads that have sound, adding captions is highly recommended. Many users scroll through their feed on mute and we also don’t want to disregard anyone who may be hearing impaired.
Your video should tell the full story of what you are trying to portray contextually, visually, and audibly, enticing them to click through and convert into a lead or even further down the funnel, as a sale.
Adding captions is a quick and simple process with Facebook’s caption feature that is available at the ad level. By selecting the option, Facebook will scan your video, provide a script, which you can review and if there is anything that needs adjusting, it’s easy to edit.
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Regardless of your business model, industry, or goals as a B2B product of service provider, your customers are on Facebook and video ads can help draw in leads. Stand out among the stillness of the News Feed with Facebook video ads and reach your lead acquisition goals.
As someone who lives for connecting people, making the connection between consumers and brands is what Akvile DeFazio, President and Digital Advertising Specialist at AKvertise, Inc., a social media advertising agency, does best. Her areas of expertise are ecommerce, event marketing, mobile apps, and lead generation, by way of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn Ads. Connect with her on Twitter at @AkvileDeFazio or at AKvertise.com.