The easiest way to understand what the Facebook Audience Network is, is to think of it as Facebook’s equivalent to Google Ads’ Display Network for apps, whereby Facebook delivers your ads off Facebook and onto third-party apps, in-video and mobile sites — think Google Adsense. This gives advertisers extra reach off of the social platform while also providing apps and mobile sites the opportunity to earn money for the ads they are displaying. So, why should you care? Because not only are you able to capitalize on Facebook’s unprecedented targeting to increase your reach beyond it, but Facebook Audience Network placed ads cost a lot less than other Facebook ad types.

Using the same auction, measurement, targeting and delivery systems as Facebook ads, Facebook’s Audience Network options and creatives will differ depending on your ad objective. Currently, Facebook’s Audience Network supports these ad objectives:

Facebook Audience Network Benefits

As we mentioned, one of the most significant benefits of using the Facebook Audience Network is the low CPCs. At the end of 2017, AdEspresso did a full analysis on the CPC across all Facebook placements and found that Facebook Audience Network ads are still the least expensive placement option.

Another substantial benefit is being able to capitalize on Facebook’s targeting to bring your ads to potential customers while they are their mobile phones, thus extending your Facebook ad reach. This makes Facebook Audience Network placement great for promoting new products and driving new shoppers to your store.

Facebook Audience Network Cons

There are three main cons, or drawbacks if you will, to placing your ads on Facebook’s Audience Network:

• You don’t have control over the quality of the publisher site where your ads will be placed
• It is hard to measure offline conversions that Facebook’s Audience Network brings
• You have less control over how your ads are displayed and which sites they are displayed on

Yes, you can exclude categories, but advertisers can’t be 100% sure that their ads won’t be placed on content that is out of context with your products or online store brand.  

None of these Facebook Audience Network cons are deal-breakers, but it is important to know Facebook’s Audience Network limitations to be able to manage your expectations and do your best to work with the platform for the best results.  

Facebook Audience Network Ad Options

Advertisers have three Facebook Audience Network options: in-stream videos, native banner and interstitial, rewarded videos and native.

Pro Tip: Use the right ratios for your Facebook Audience Network Ads. Facebook suggests:

• For in-steam ad placements, use square (1:1) and full landscape (16:9) image/video ratios.
• For rewarded videos and native, banner and interstitial ads use either 9:16 or 16:9 image/video ratios.

The format and placement of your Facebook Audience Network ads are determined by your objective as set out by Facebook in these two tables:

How eCommerce Entrepreneurs Can Use Facebook’s Audience Network

There is no doubt that online store owners can take advantage of Facebook Audience Network ads to boost their marketing while driving down their average CPCs. But how? By following these 5 top Facebook Audience Network tips and guidelines:

1. Remember: Context is Everything

Facebook Audience Network ads are outside the confines of social media, therefore when it comes to creating your ads you need to think about context. This means reviewing your headlines, creatives and overall message to suit the context of where these ads will be placed.

2. Weigh Your Pros and Cons

Before jumping on the Facebook Audience Network bandwagon, weigh the pros and cons. Look at your business performance and Facebook stats, and test different Facebook Audience Network ads with small budgets before you spend a lot of time and money creating ads for this network.

3. Use Facebook’s Audience Network to Reach New Shoppers

By combining successful Facebook branding and product ads with Facebook’s Audience Network, you can reach more new shoppers outside of Facebook. For instance, Dynamic Facebook Ads can be pushed through audience networks to run remarketing campaigns off-site, catching potential shoppers where they are.

Bonus Content: 8 Quick Facebook Dynamic Product Ad Optimization Tips for Better Success 

4. Use Available Facebook Data to Push Exposure

Using Facebook’s excellent target audience segmentation, you are able to ensure that content placement is in line with the context of your brand, thus increasing the chance of getting more relevant clicks and engagement. Plus, by extending your ads to Facebook Audience Network placements, you have the opportunity to access even more data and metrics that you can use across your whole marketing strategy.

5. Use Facebook Audience Network to Boost Your Reach for Less

As we proved, Facebook Audience Network ads yield the lowest CPC cost across Facebook placement options. This makes it a great, cost-effective branding tool that allows you to cast a much wider net than just Facebook alone. Reach that you can later remarket, too, to move potential shoppers up your sales funnel.

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Easy, no?

The bottom line is that Facebook Audience Network ads can be a successful addition to your PPC marketing strategy, however, like with any advertising platform or placement, you need to test it to find the placement, creative and objective that yields you the best results for your online store brand.  

For those of you who want to monetize your app or website by displaying Facebook Audience Network ads, here’s how you can get started: Join Facebook Audience Network.

 

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