Key takeaways:

• To set yourself up for success, follow basic conversion principles for designing Facebook ads.
• Knowing the elements of a good Facebook ad ensures you have a solid structure to start from.
• Familiarize yourself with Facebook ad types and formats before you get started.
• Be thoughtful when choosing colors and images to ensure you’re representing your brand and sending the right message.
• Let your text speak for itself – that means don’t use too much!

Facebook is a constantly changing ad platform – if you’re not following those changes closely, you could get lost when it comes to designing ads. You might have the perfect product and amazing copy, but you’re still seeing your ads underperform.

Here’s a secret: Facebook ad design is as important as the actual product and advertising copy. You can have a great product or service to sell and use all the right words to sell it. Despite that, if your ad doesn’t follow the best practices for Facebook ads, it’s going to fall short.

To succeed at Facebook advertising, you need to have a strategic focus and understand what goes into an ideal ad. You can’t simply wing it – there needs to be a process behind your ad creative.

Luckily, once you know what goes into a good Facebook ad, it’s relatively easy to troubleshoot. For instance, is your ad in the right type and format for Facebook? Does it have a clear message and call to action? Maybe you need to put more thought into the colors and imagery you choose, or perhaps there’s too much copy for the viewer to slog through before they get to the point.

How to design ads for Facebook

When you advertise on Facebook, the entire point is to get customers to discover your brand and your solution, whether it’s a product or a service. Your ads show up on your viewer’s Facebook feed, and they’re scrolling because they want to discover something new. That’s what you have to consider when designing a Facebook ad.

On Facebook, in particular, there’s a concept called social proof in advertising that drives the way people interact with and engage with brands and products. If the ad seems natural and conforms to social norms, then the viewer is more compelled to interact. Facebook ads rely on the concept of social proof for success.

That means you have to lean on social elements to make your ad a success. Those social elements can include positive reviews, influencer mentions, or a similarity to a product you know the consumer already prefers.

It also means following specific formats and best practices in ad design. We already know that consumers respond to certain ad types and aesthetics. While it’s important to carefully select your ad elements and design and not simply copy what’s in vogue, following best practices ensures that you’re using what’s tried and true to structure your ad design.

Before you design, know Facebook ad recommendations

Before starting the design process, you need to know what’s considered standard for each element of the design, images, and text for a Facebook ad. Facebook has specific recommendations for each of these to help ensure they display properly on desktop and mobile.

• Image recommendations

Facebook recommends that you use images that are JPG or PNG with a ratio of 1.91:1 to 1:1. The resolution should be at least 1080 x 1080 pixels.

• Text recommendations

Text for each element is limited to a specific number of characters: 125 characters for primary text, 27 characters for the headline, and 27 characters for the description. Anything beyond this is truncated or cut off.

• Technical requirements

Your ad’s maximum file size is 30 MB while the aspect ratio tolerance is 3%. The minimum width by height is 600 by 600 pixels.

If you don’t follow these requirements, Facebook may not accept your ad, and if they do accept it, it won’t display properly. It’s critical to know these requirements before you start the ad design process.

5 super important things to know when designing Facebook Ads

You have to start with what you know works when you’re designing a Facebook ad. You can’t approach Facebook ads the same way you’d approach just any ad – some principles are universal but other best practices are very specific to Facebook. Here’s what to know when designing a Facebook ad:

1. The elements of a good Facebook ad

Every good Facebook ad has the same basic elements in play. It’s important to include all of them in your ad structure. They include:

• Headline, which acts as the hook for the primary text
• Primary text, which is the primary messaging and should remain within 125 characters
• Call-to-action, which compels the audience to shop at your store, browse your services, etc.
• Imagery, which includes the compelling video, graphic, or photo you use to catch the reader’s eye

Hint: It’s a good idea to try out A/B testing with the elements. Run two different versions of the same ad to find out which imagery, headline, or CTA is the most effective.

2. Facebook Ad types and formats

Facebook has a few specific ad types that you can choose from. The most popular is the single image ad, which appears in the newsfeed. You can also use video ads in your newsfeed, or Collections, Carousels, and Stories ads for an Instant Experience that pops.

3. Represent your message with clarity

Every single design choice that you make should have the end goal of a clear marketing message. The copy should directly support the CTA, and you can make font size choices that draw the eye to the most important parts of the message first.

4. Choose thoughtful colors and imagery

Similarly, your color and imagery choices should support your brand consistency and aesthetic while delivering a clear message. Choose colors that won’t blend in with the newsfeed so they stand out. Use a color palette to ensure the colors are complementary or contrasting, and select high-quality images or graphics that capture the eye and keep it there.

5. Use concise copy (less is more)

Don’t overwhelm your ad with too much copy! You have only a few split seconds to capture and keep the reader’s attention. If there’s too much text, it’ll be truncated so you’ll actually lose the opportunity for the reader to even see it.

Following these five best practices sets up your Facebook ad for the best chances of success. When you’re thinking about every element and approach to design, you’re more likely to end up with an ad that converts.

Ask an expert your questions about designing ads for Facebook

There’s a lot that goes into designing a great Facebook ad, and you might have questions about how to follow these best practices. Instead of struggling, you should ask an expert to get real answers about how to implement Facebook Ad best practices.

Model B has world-class ad creatives on staff, and we’re here to help you exceed with thoughtful ad (Facebook and other) campaigns that drive the growth and conversions you want. Contact us today so we can answer all the questions you have about Facebook ads!