Facebook Ads Lookalike Expansion: Yes or No?

TL;DR

Use Facebook Lookalike Expansion when your ad account is mature, has substantial conversion data, and offers a product or service with broad appeal. Ben Heath advises caution if the account has not generated roughly 500 or 1,000 purchases, leads, or other optimized conversions. Expand lookalike percentages incrementally, test performance, and disable expansion if results do not improve. Read on to understand when broader targeting makes sense.

Transcript

hi guys it's ben heath from lead guru and in this video i'm going to talk about whether or not you should use facebook look-alike audience expansion when you're adding in look-alike audiences into your ad sets you may see that there's a little checkbox option for look-alike audience expansion which operates in a similar way to detail targeting audi... Read More

Key Insights

• Lookalike audience expansion allows advertisers to reach beyond their selected audience, potentially increasing campaign performance.
• This feature is beneficial for mature ad accounts with substantial conversion data, allowing for broader targeting.
• Newer ad accounts should focus on specificity to guide Facebook's machine learning in identifying potential customers.
• Products or services with broad appeal are more likely to benefit from lookalike expansion, unlike niche products.
• Before enabling lookalike expansion, consider increasing the percentage of the lookalike audience incrementally.
• Lookalike expansion will not override other targeting criteria such as age, gender, or location settings.
• Advertisers should monitor performance closely and be prepared to turn off expansion if it doesn't yield better results.
• Testing both lookalike expansion and detailed targeting expansion is recommended to identify the best strategy.

Questions & Answers

Q: Should you use Facebook Lookalike Audience Expansion?

Use it selectively rather than automatically. It is better suited to mature ad accounts, well-performing campaigns that need to scale, and products or services with broad appeal; newer accounts generally benefit from more specific targeting.

Q: What does Facebook Lookalike Audience Expansion do?

It lets Facebook reach people outside the selected lookalike audience when doing so is likely to improve performance. For example, a conversions campaign optimized for purchases can advertise beyond the lookalike to people Facebook considers likely to purchase.

Q: When should you turn on Lookalike Expansion?

Consider turning it on when the ad account is mature, the campaign is performing well, and you want to reach more people. The transcript says broader targeting usually performs better as Facebook accumulates more data about who converts.

Q: Why should a new ad account avoid Lookalike Expansion?

A new account may lack enough conversion data for Facebook's machine learning to identify likely converters. Specific targeting helps direct Facebook toward the prospects you believe are most suitable while the platform learns who responds to the offer.

Q: How much conversion data may be needed before using Lookalike Expansion?

Ben Heath says he would be reluctant to enable it without roughly 500 or 1,000 purchases, leads, or other conversions being optimized for in the ad account. These are cautionary reference points rather than a guarantee that expansion will improve results.

Q: Does Lookalike Expansion override age, gender, language, location, or exclusions?

No. Facebook's description says expansion will not go beyond the ad set's age, gender, language, or location selections, and it does not apply to excluded audiences.

Q: What should you try before enabling Lookalike Expansion?

Increase the percentage size of the lookalike audience incrementally before allowing Facebook to move beyond it. The existing guidance suggests testing a one percent lookalike and then trying two, three, or five percent to find an effective audience size.

Q: How should you test Facebook Lookalike Expansion?

Monitor campaign performance and be prepared to disable expansion if it does not produce better results. You can also test both lookalike expansion and detailed targeting expansion to determine which approach works best for the campaign.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Facebook Lookalike Expansion can enhance ad reach by targeting beyond the initial audience, but its effectiveness depends on account maturity and product appeal. New ad accounts should prioritize specific targeting to guide Facebook's learning process. Products with broad appeal benefit more from this feature.

• Incrementally increasing the percentage of the lookalike audience before enabling expansion is advised. Lookalike expansion respects existing targeting criteria, ensuring advertisers maintain control over age, gender, and location settings. Testing and monitoring performance is crucial for optimizing results.

• Advertisers should be flexible and ready to disable lookalike expansion if it doesn't improve performance. Testing both lookalike and detailed targeting expansions is suggested to determine the most effective approach. The video emphasizes the importance of strategic testing for successful Facebook ad campaigns.