So you want to find an audience and you want to find them online.
The lowest hanging fruit for you is definitely Facebook and Instagram ads.
If you’re looking for how to set up ads on Facebook or how to run them on Instagram, this is not the article for you. In this article, we’ll cover the most powerful thing you can do in order to get crowdfunding backers with your ads.
The main mistake I see creators and founders make when approaching Facebook ads is that they go too generic. Facebook is a platform with 2.41 billion users. Its counterpart, Instagram, has 1 billion monthly active users. That’s a lot of people. Among these 3.4 billion people, there’s a niche segment in there of people who want your product and want it enough to leave you an email and maybe even a deposit.
You want to run advertising in order to get leads in your pre-launch stage so that you can get ready to have a big bang on Day 1.
Here’s how to use Facebook for crowdfunding.
Crowdfunding backers are special
It’s true. They’re people who pay money for a product that doesn’t even exist yet. They’re the super early adopters who are way ahead of the pack. They’re not like your usual Amazon online shopper or the usual Chubbies or Allbirds online shopper.
Again, they’re not afraid to spend money on something that doesn’t exist yet. Compare them to other online shoppers who spend money and expect their product to arrive at their doorstep within two days (and with free shipping, thanks Amazon) and you have a completely different subset of people.
The way I see it, there are two hurdles that creators must overcome when it comes to crowdfunding:
- Selling the idea of crowdfunding
- Selling the new product
If you target people who are already familiar with crowdfunding, you’ve already surpassed one of your two hurdles. These people already believe in the power of collectively pooling money into helping someone bring a completely new product to life.
That way, all you’re left to do is convince potential backers that your product is the best one out there.
So think about it – would you want to use your dollars to send ads to people who are more likely to pay for your product or those who will be less likely to pay for your product?
Well, Nalin, when you put it that way, the answer is pretty obvious, huh? 😉
The key to using Facebook for crowdfunding success
Always filter for “crowdfunding”, “Kickstarter”, and “Indiegogo”.
What does all of this mean in practice?
There are three ways to approach Facebook and Instagram ads:
- Run the ads yourself
- Hire an Advertising Manager who knows crowdfunding to run ads
- Hire an Advertising Manager who doesn’t know crowdfunding to run ads
In all of these cases, you’d always want to filter for the words “crowdfunding”, “Kickstarter”, and “Indiegogo” for every single audience that you create.
Really, that’s the main key takeaway from this whole article. This is especially important when you are running the ads yourself or when you’re hiring an Advertising Manager who doesn’t have a clue about crowdfunding.
Filtering for these audiences already lifts a huge burden off your chest. You’re already limiting the type of people who see your ads to those who are willing to pay for a product that doesn’t exist yet and then wait for months (maybe even years) to get it.
As I mentioned earlier, you won’t have to first convince them about crowdfunding (since they already know). Now you just have to convince them that your new product is something that they really do want. It’ll simplify your life and marketing.
What to do in Facebook Business Manager
We won’t go into how to create a Facebook Business Manager or Advertising Account in this article, but you can easily do it yourself.
Here is what this tactic looks like in the dashboard:
1. Find the Audiences page within the Assets section of your Facebook Business Manager.
2. Click Create Audience and choose Saved Audience.
3. Choose locations, age gender, languages, depending on your project.
4. In Detailed Targeting, include “crowdfunding”, “Kickstarter”, and “Indiegogo”
5. Click Narrow Audience and fill in information for your project audience
Where to go from here
Facebook advertising can be a little bit complicated to understand at first, but it can yield great results for your lead generation, crowdfunding campaign, and business beyond crowdfunding.
Since the platform neatly categorizes the millions of people using it every day, it’s a great place to get attention and bring awareness to your brand and product. The best part is that you can narrow your ads down to specific audiences and desired actions to get the results you need.
Get started with your crowdfunding Facebook and Instagram ads today by getting a copy of the ad swipe file. Inside you’ll get the blueprint for ads from million-dollar campaigns.
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We’re here to help you crush your crowdfunding campaign and fund your dream. Our team has helped creators successfully launch and raise over $13 million on Kickstarter and Indiegogo. We’re so excited to help you on this journey to launch!
