How to Get Better Results with Facebook Ads

For businesses looking to thrive in a competitive digital market, mastering Facebook Ad and Instagram Ads is non-negotiable. As of 2025, success on the platform is less about manual tweaking and more about giving Meta’s powerful AI the right creative fuel to work with.

This expert guide provides a clear playbook for improving your campaign performance and growing your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS).

Step 1: The Foundation of Facebook Ad (Before You Spend $1)

Before launching any campaign, you must have the fundamentals in place. Skipping these steps is like building a house with no foundation.

• Install the Meta Pixel: This is the most critical first step. The Pixel is a piece of code on your website that tracks visitor actions. Without it, you cannot accurately measure sales or leads, and Meta’s AI cannot learn who your best customers are.
• Define Your Business Goal: Choose a campaign objective that matches your desired outcome. Don’t just chase likes.
  • Example: If you’re an e-commerce store in Austin wanting online sales, your objective must be “Sales,” not “Traffic.” If you’re a real estate agent in Miami looking for qualified inquiries, your objective is “Leads.” This tells the AI exactly what success looks like.

Step 2: The Fuel of Facebook Ad (Your Creative and Audience Strategy)

In 2025, your ad creative is your most important lever for success. Meta’s AI is brilliant at finding the who, but you are responsible for the what and why.

• Lead with Vertical Video: The vast majority of users will see your ads on a mobile device. Prioritize short, attention-grabbing, vertical videos (9:16 aspect ratio) designed for Reels and Stories. Show your product in action within the first 3 seconds.
• Craft a Clear Message: High-quality visuals and direct, benefit-driven headlines outperform clickbait. Understand your audience’s pain points and motivations. A person looking for a skincare product for acne is motivated by the desire for clear skin and confidence, not just a low price, your ad should speak to that outcome.
• Provide Strong Audience Signals: While Meta’s AI is powerful, it needs a good starting point.
  • Lookalike Audiences: This is your most powerful tool. Create Lookalike Audiences based on your list of best existing customers, website purchasers, or top-engaging followers. This gives the AI a high-quality “seed” to find similar new customers across the country.
  • Retargeting: Don’t forget warm users. Re-engage people who have visited your site, added items to their cart, or engaged with your Instagram page. A simple reminder can be the final nudge they need to convert.

Step 3: The Engine of Facebook Ad (Mastering Meta’s AI and Optimization)

This is where you leverage the platform’s intelligence. Your job is to guide the AI, not micromanage it.

• Embrace Advantage+ Campaigns: For most businesses, especially in e-commerce, Advantage+ Shopping Campaigns are Meta’s recommended and often best-performing option. You provide the creative and some initial audience suggestions, and the AI handles the detailed targeting and placement optimization to find the most efficient path to conversion.
• A/B Test What Matters: In the age of AI targeting, the most important thing to test is your creativity and your offer. Don’t waste time testing dozens of minute interest groups. Instead, test two completely different ad videos or two different offers (e.g., “10% Off” vs. “Free Shipping”) to see what truly resonates.
• Monitor Performance in Ads Manager: Regularly check your key metrics (Cost Per Purchase, ROAS, Cost Per Lead). If a campaign is performing well, give it a stable budget to keep learning. If an ad creative is underperforming after a few days, turn it off and replace it with a new one.

Tip for Small Budgets: If you’re working with a limited budget, it’s far more effective to promote one core product or service at a time. Concentrating your spend allows a single campaign to gather enough data (at least 50 conversions per week is the gold standard) for Meta’s algorithm to exit the “learning phase” and begin optimizing effectively.

By building a strong foundation, fueling the algorithm with compelling creativity, and trusting Meta’s AI engine to handle optimization, you can achieve significantly better results and a higher return on your investment.Ad Types for Winning Campaigns

Master All 16 Facebook Ad Types for Winning Campaigns

Looking to supercharge your online business presence? Mastering the types of Facebook ads is no longer optional; it’s a necessity. With billions of users and powerful targeting options, Facebook provides marketers with one of the best platforms for visibility, conversions, and ROI. However, with over 16 ad types, understanding what each one does and when to use it is the difference between a scroll past and a click. By mastering these ad types, you’ll be in control of your Facebook ad campaigns, confident in your ability to effectively reach your target audience.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll break down every Facebook ad format, highlight best practices, and show you how to streamline your ad creation with VidAU.ai. You’ll be guided through each step, ensuring you’re informed and confident in your ad creation process.

With VidAU, you can launch video ads in just minutes, saving you time and effort. This efficiency allows you to focus on other aspects of your marketing strategy, making you more productive and your campaigns more effective.

Best Practices for Running Facebook Ad

Before diving into ad formats, understand these best practices to boost campaign performance:

1. Make It Visually Appealing

High-quality visuals are essential. Your message should be clear, mobile-optimised, and accompanied by a strong CTA. Use VidAU’s product-to-video feature to craft conversion-ready visuals in minutes.

2. Stay Authentic

Keep your message genuine. Avoid clickbait and ensure your content reflects your brand’s tone. Authenticity helps create trust, which is key in Facebook’s crowded content feed.

3. Know Your Audience

Utilise Facebook’s targeting features based on age, interests, and behaviour to serve ads to the right people. Narrow targeting often increases relevance and ROI.

4. Track and Optimise

Use Facebook Pixel and analytics tools to analyse results and adjust strategies. Tracking helps marketers identify what works and what doesn’t.

Understanding the 3 Levels of Facebook Ad

Facebook ad structure includes three essential levels that work together for a successful campaign:

1. Campaign

This is where you set your primary objective, brand awareness, website traffic, conversions, or video views. A well-defined campaign objective guides your creative approach.

2. Ad Set

The ad set determines your audience, placements (e.g., Instagram, Messenger, desktop, mobile), schedule, and budget. It’s the layer where targeting gets refined.

3. Ad

This is your final creative. It includes text, visuals, video, a headline, CTA, and links. This is where VidAU’s product ad becomes powerful, transforming scripts into engaging videos.

All 16 Facebook Ad Types (With Examples)

Let’s break down each Facebook ad type and when to use it, plus examples to bring them to life:

1. Facebook Ad: Page Post Engagement Ad

Used to boost visibility and interactions, likes, comments, and shares on a specific post. For example, consider creating a behind-the-scenes video to foster a deeper connection with your audience.

2. Facebook Ad: Page Like Ad

Drive traffic to your page and gain followers. New businesses often utilise this ad format to establish an audience quickly.

Example: A fitness coach launching their Facebook page uses Page Like Ads to attract local fitness enthusiasts.

3. Facebook Ad: Clicks to Website Ad

Ideal for e-commerce brands or blogs seeking to boost traffic. These ads redirect users to an external page.

Example: A tech company promoting a product page during Black Friday.

4. Website Conversion Ad

Focuses on actions like purchases, sign-ups, or downloads. Requires Facebook Pixel setup.

Example: A SaaS platform utilises conversion ads to drive sign-ups for its free trial.

5. Facebook Ad: App Install and Engagement Ad

Encourages app downloads or re-engagement. They include direct call-to-install buttons.

Example: A meditation app uses this ad type to drive installs during Mental Health Awareness Week.

6. Facebook Ad: Event Response Ad

Promote events and drive RSVPs. Useful for webinars, in-person events, or virtual launches.

Example: An author promoting their live book reading session uses this format.

7. Facebook Ad: Offer Claim Ad

Attract customers with time-sensitive deals. Include online or offline redemption options.

Example: A skincare brand uses offer ads to promote a 25% discount during a flash sale.

8. Facebook Ad: Video Views Ad

Maximise exposure for your video content, it could be a tutorial or a testimonial.

Example: A cooking school promotes its recipe video to attract new learners.

9. Facebook Ad: Local Awareness Ad

Target customers near your physical location.

Example: A coffee shop targets ads within a 10-mile radius to announce their new store.

10. Facebook Ad: Carousel Ad

Showcase multiple products, features, or stories in a single swipeable ad.

Example: A fashion brand highlights its latest collection using one image per outfit.

11. Facebook Ad: Dynamic Product Ad

Serve personalised product ads to users who viewed or added items to their cart.

Example: An online shoe store retargets cart abandoners with relevant products.

12.Facebook Ad: Slideshow Ad

Great for budget-conscious marketers. These use static images but play like a video.

Example: A hotel creates a vacation teaser video using still images of its resort.

13. Lead Ad

Collect contact information directly within Facebook.

Example: An insurance agency offers a quote calculator in exchange for lead data.

14. Canvas Ad (Instant Experience)

A mobile-exclusive format that provides immersive storytelling using full-screen media.

Example: A car brand introduces a new vehicle model, accompanied by videos, images, and specifications.

15. Retargeting Ad

Target individuals who have interacted with your content but haven’t converted.

Example: A real estate agent re-engages people who visited a listing but didn’t schedule a showing.

16. AI Video Ad

These are automatically generated videos using artificial intelligence for scripts, avatars, and visuals. Use VidAU to create polished, data-backed video ads at scale instantly.

Why Use VidAU for Facebook Ad?

VidAU simplifies and enhances your Facebook ad creation with tools built for speed and performance:

• Text-to-Video: Turn written content into polished videos.
• Sample-to-Video: Repurpose Old Content with New Energy.
• Product URL-to-Video: Instantly convert product pages into ads.

Conclusion

Understanding and applying the right Facebook ad type can dramatically improve your campaign performance. Each format serves a unique purpose, and when paired with VidAU’s AI video tools, you can create eye-catching, high-converting content in record time.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How many types of Facebook ads are there?

There are 16 major Facebook ad types, including engagement ads, video ads, and AI-driven ads.

2. What are the best Facebook ad formats for beginners?

Carousel ads and video views ads are intuitive and deliver high engagement.

3. How much do Facebook ads cost?

Ads can range from $0.50 to $2.00 per click, depending on the targeting and competition.

4. Are AI ads effective on Facebook?

Yes, AI video ads improve engagement, reduce creation time, and allow better scaling.

5. Which VidAU tool helps with Facebook ads?

VidAU’s product-to-video and text-to-video tools are great for building fast, high-quality creatives.