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Katherine George, Facebook ads expert, Oh So Social Marketing

Minal meets… Katherine George, Oh So Social Marketing

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Katherine George, Facebook ads expert, Oh So Social Marketing

I don’t know about you, but I can’t fathom Facebook ads. I’ve tried and tried to understand how it works. I’ve even had a few attempts at setting them up. But, I had to finally admit to myself that my brain isn’t wired that way.

So, I decided to have a quick training session with Katherine George of Oh So Social Marketing. And I have to say, I was impressed! Her knowledge of Facebook ads is incredible. I know it’s something many small businesses struggle with, so I was very excited when Katherine agreed to do this interview.

Business background

Minal: Tell me a bit about your business. What do you specialise in?

Katherine: At Oh So Social, we are social media experts. We offer all elements of social media management, strategy, consultancy and training. We are Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok agency partners, work on all social media networks and trade around the world, so social media is really our thing. 

Minal: When and why did you start your business?

Katherine: I started Oh So Social in 2014 (I think) I had come back from living in Brighton and it was before social media management was really a thing. I was looking after the Dancing on Ice tour and had to keep borrowing internet from local businesses (Cornwall problems), when I did this people saw what I was doing and the next thing I knew Oh So Social was born. I had clients before I had a plan or even a business name so the entire journey has been a quick learning curve.

Let’s talk Facebook ads

Minal: OK, after an awful year for so many businesses, the dates earmarked for opening up will get people thinking about promotion. How can they make Facebook advertising a part of these campaigns?

Katherine: With all social media advertising it’s vital you have a plan before you start randomly pushing the boost post button. Have a clear goal, a clear customer and more importantly, a clear sales funnel to make sure you can guide people through the customer journey.

Ask yourself, when are people going to start looking for my product/service; when are they going to feel confident enough to buy and; what is my product/service lead time. Work backwards from these questions and look at turning organic posts with clear CTAs (Calls to Action – the thing you want people to do) and high engagement into adverts to support your sales funnel.

Minal: Would you say Facebook ads will only work for product-led businesses?

Katherine: No! We use Facebook adverts for everything: ticket sales, services, restaurants, hotels. Facebook ads can be used to sell anything if they are done well.

Minal meets Katherine George: With all social media advertising, it's vital you have a plan before you push the boost post button. Click To Tweet

Minal: What’s the first thing people need to do when considering using Facebook ads?

Katherine: Get some training. It’s very easy to waste money on Facebook ads so either get some one-to-one training with an accredited Facebook trainer or attend some free training with #SheMeansBusiness or a Facebook Blueprint Lead Trainer. We have a Facebook group where I deliver my group Facebook training for free, so there is plenty of help at hand.

Minal: What about images vs. videos? What would you recommend people use in their ads?

Katherine: This really depends on your customer and what you are trying to sell. If it’s a range of products, I like an image carousel. If it’s an experience, video works much better.

Minal: I’ve heard you talk about testing ads. Can you explain what people should focus on?

Katherine: When testing adverts, it’s vital to know what you want your adverts to achieve. If you are looking for sales you will measure your results by final conversions, while for an increase in brand you will be looking at vanity figures. It varies for each business but a good golden rule is, set yourself a clear goal, create two or three adverts which will support this, once the adverts are complete look for the one with the strongest results, then use this for a starting point for your next campaign. All content, organic and paid is always a test, so keep testing and keep learning.

Minal meets Katherine George: A good golden rule is to set yourself a clear goal for your Facebook ads. Create 2 or 3 ads that will support this. Once the ads are complete, look for the one with the strongest results and use this as a… Click To Tweet

Minal: Can you explain the difference between an ad and a boosted post? Which one would you recommend people start with?

Katherine: In the most simple form, a boosted post is an advert. The difference is where they are created. A boosted post is done from the Facebook page or Instagram account, while adverts are created in ads manager. I would always recommend getting some training and learning the basics of ads manager, even if it’s just audience creation. Once you have created audiences in ads manager, you can use this increased level of audience targeting on your boosted posts. Without this knowledge of audiences, it’s very difficult to get a good ROI (return on investment) from adverts.

Minal: People often forget the important bit of measuring in marketing. What are your tips to make sure people understand what they got for their spend?

Katherine: Set goals with clear ROI opportunities. Within social media adverts, people get carried away with increasing engagement or page likes; however, you don’t have a way to prove ROI for these. Create Google goals and give clear monetary values to all stages in your sales funnel. This will massively help you to understand your ROI.

Minal meets Katherine George: To understand whether your ad worked, you need to set goals with clear return on investment opportunities. Click To Tweet

Minal: Business Manager, Pages Manager, Creator Studio and now Facebook Business Suite. Where should micro and small businesses be focusing to manage their pages and ads?

Katherine: Whichever they prefer. Some people love Business Suite, while others like Business Manager. There is no right or wrong here, do what is best for you.

Minal: Would you change any of the above advice for Instagram ads? If yes, what?

Katherine: If you create your adverts on Facebook, they will place them on Instagram. So always create your adverts in Facebook ads manager and let the platform do the hard work. It will display your adverts onto Instagram but with Facebook’s superior targeting so it’s the best of both worlds.

I hope you picked up some tips to help you create your ads. Katherine certainly provided some great nuggets. Do give Oh So Social a follow on social media.

2 thoughts on “Minal meets… Katherine George, Oh So Social Marketing

  1. Interesting blog, thanks a lot. My three “takeaways”: 1) don’t skimp on audience research 2) think about your customers’ journey as they interact with your content 3) video works better for experience-based businesses

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