Get Your Facebook Ads Ready for Q4 In COVID-19

Prepare your ads for the final quarter of 2020

2020 has been wild all around, and the final quarter is going to be no exception. Historically, Facebook prep for Q4 has meant increasing your investment — after all, the average cost-per-click (CPC) for Q4 Facebook ads increased 36% year over year.

But what does Facebook prep for Q4 mean in the era of COVID-19, a time when 62% of US shoppers say they now do more online shopping than before?

Well, it means an even busier Q4 for e-commerce businesses and digitally marketed merchants seeking a leg up in a saturated world.

Here’s five ways you can Facebook prep for Q4 this year…

Prepare for online shopping that’s more active and more consistent

Despite the fact that the state of the US economy has faltered this year (not unlike the rest of the pandemic-affected world), online shopping has actually increased. The most obvious reason for this is because it’s innately socially distanced. However, online shopping is also a therapeutic respite for many folks living in an uncertain time (new NPR research shows 20% of Americans are spending more now than before the pandemic).

Whatever the root cause, 34% of US shoppers say their planned holiday spend isn’t affected by COVID-19. Those who do expect to alter their spending hope to purchase items with an affordable price (34% would choose the cheaper of two products) and reliable product reviews (26% would pick an item with better reviews).

With all this in mind, Q4 shopping is going to be online-forward on a consistent basis. Your Facebook prep for Q4 ought to take this into consideration.

Recognize the value of your ads, even if the costs fluctuate

For Facebook ads, CPC tends to spike more with higher peaks during Q4. This is because the volume of ad spend increases leading toward the end of the year.

Higher CPC may make the cost of your ads more expensive, but maintaining marketing consistency will ultimately help you acquire more leads and convert new sales.

Make mobile a priority — now more than ever before

In the past, 83% of Q4 spending on Facebook ads occurred through mobile devices. The trend toward mobile is nothing new, but it’s even more relevant these days.

Reports show that US mobile ad spend will actually grow in 2020, despite the fact that experts expect overall US ad spending to drop by a lot as a result of the pandemic. Last year’s US ad spending was at $252.19 billion. Before COVID-19, projections saw this number increasing by $20 billion, but it’s now expected to decrease by $16.4 billion. Regardless, mobile ad spending accounts for most of digital’s growth this year.

In short, mobile is holding the economy high, and as you perform your Facebook prep for Q4, you should hold mobile just as high.

Are you working through the sales funnel?

Start working the buyer’s journey early and consistently. Retarget to folks using automated methods, and reel them in by the time the holidays roll around. The fourth quarter is just three months long, but it’s a long journey nonetheless.

Leverage new social media features

The biggest social media feature this year may have been Instagram Reels, but Facebook itself wasn’t immune from alterations. Specifically, we saw the advent of:

• Sponsored posts for Facebook Groups
• Accessibility improvements
• Notification updates for pages that users follow
• Paid virtual events for businesses and creators

Making the most of these new features will undoubtedly benefit your Facebook prep for Q4.

Facebook prep for Q4 in COVID-19 is different, but the values of paid ads remain the same

This year doesn’t look like the rest. As we delve into Q4 — a time for holiday shopping and home prep (just in case we get another lockdown, of course) — it’s important to take a good, hard look at your Facebook ads.

Are you maximizing their potential? If not, these five tips will get you where you need to go.

We hope this helps!

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We have multiple holiday ad resources coming soon. To check out how you can use artificial intelligence to supercharge your advertising efforts, head over to Lightning AI to get the details.