I recently had the chance to sit in on a webinar hosted by Justin Kistner of Webtrends and Jason Keath of Social Fresh, where they addressed the age-old (well, not that old) question: Does Facebook advertising really work?

This question has been in the forefront of debate recently with General Motor’s announcement that the company is pulling all of its advertising from the social network. So, we must know, did GM make a good choice? Is Facebook advertising really worth it?

The short answer is yes!  The long answer: certain types of ads work better than others. Here are a few important things I learned that will help you create the most efficient and effective Facebook ads:

1. Use many highly targeted ads versus one big-reach ad. It’s better to create separate ads that target specific groups (i.e. twenty-something females with an interest in interior design, middle-aged men that enjoy exercising) than it is to create one all-encompassing ad.
2. Target ads to fans for conversion. Fans are seven times more likely to click on an ad than a non-fan. An added bonus? Cheaper CPC (that’s cost per click).
3. Link ads to Facebook apps instead of websites. What happens to fans that click on a Facebook ad that leaves Facebook? They go back to Facebook. Ads that don’t redirect traffic to a different website receive twice the conversion rate than ads that do leave the site. In short, keep fans on Facebook engaged by directing them to an app on your page!
4. Refresh creative regularly. Ideally, you should update your creative within 72 hours after launching the ad. This ensures a higher CTR (click-through rate) and will keep your audience intrigued.

So what do you think? Did you find these tips helpful? We’d love to hear your comments, and please stay tuned – we’ll be sharing a few best practices when it comes to writing copy for your Facebook advertisements.