How to Create a Facebook Ad for Page Likes

Building an audience on Facebook can be a direct way to establish credibility and connect with potential customers. One of the most common goals for businesses is to increase their Page Likes, creating a built-in audience for their content. This article will walk you through the entire process of setting up a successful Facebook Ad campaign specifically designed to get more likes for your page.

Why Run a Page Likes Campaign?

In a world of complex marketing funnels, focusing on something as simple as a "like" might seem old-school, but it still holds significant value. Page likes aren't just a number to show off, they represent a community you are actively building. Here’s why they’re still important:

• Builds Social Proof: When a new visitor lands on your page and sees thousands of likes, it instantly builds trust. It signals that your business is established, active, and valued by others.
• Creates an Owned Audience: Every person who likes your page is someone you can reach organically with your posts (though reach is limited, it is not zero). These followers are "warm" contacts who have willingly raised their hands to hear from you.
• Foundation for Ad Targeting: You can create audiences of people who like your page and target them with special offers or new content. You can also create valuable "Lookalike Audiences" to find more people just like your existing followers.

Before You Start: Prepping for Success

Before you spend a single dollar on ads, a little prep work goes a long way. Running ads to an incomplete or inactive page is like inviting guests to an empty house. Make sure your page is ready to make a great first impression.

Optimize Your Facebook Page

When someone sees your ad, their first move will likely be to click on your profile and see what you're all about. Give them something impressive to look at.

• Profile and Cover Photo: Use a clear, high-quality logo for your profile picture and an engaging cover photo that represents your brand.
• Complete the "About" Section: Fill out every relevant field. Clearly state what your business does and who you serve. Make it easy for visitors to understand your value.
• Pin a Great Post: Pin your best-performing or most welcoming post to the top of your feed. This could be an introduction video, a client testimonial, or a link to your most popular resource.
• Post Recent Content: Ensure you have at least a few recent, high-quality posts on your profile. A page that hasn’t been updated in months looks abandoned and won't earn you many new likes.

Define Your Target Audience

Who do you want to attract? Be specific. Think beyond basic demographics and consider the psychographics of your ideal follower.

• Demographics: Age, gender, location, language.
• Interests: What other pages, authors, tools, or brands are they interested in? What related hobbies do they have? (e.g., interests in "HubSpot," "Social Media Today," or "Gary Vaynerchuk").
• Behaviors: Are they engaged shoppers? Business page admins? Small business owners?

Thinking about this now will make setting up your ad targeting much easier and more effective.

Step-by-Step Guide: Creating Your Page Likes Campaign in Ads Manager

With your page primed and ready, it's time to build the campaign in Facebook Ads Manager. Follow these steps carefully to ensure everything is set up correctly.

Step 1: Choose Your Campaign Objective

Navigate to Facebook Ads Manager and click the green "+ Create" button.

Facebook will ask you to choose a campaign objective. For page likes, select "Engagement." In the past, "Page Likes" was a standalone objective, but it now lives under the more general Engagement category.

Step 2: Name Your Campaign

After selecting Engagement, you'll be prompted to name your campaign, ad set, and ad. Be descriptive with your naming conventions to keep things organized. For example:

• Campaign Name: Page Likes - Q3 2024
• Ad Set Name: US - 25-45 - Business Interests
• Ad Name: Personal Picture - Copy A

Turn off the "Advantage campaign budget +" setting for now. This feature (formerly CBO) optimizes your budget across multiple ad sets but is easier to manage at the ad set level when you're just starting.

Step 3: Configure Your Ad Set

The ad set level is where you define your targeting, budget, and placement. This is the most crucial part of the setup.

Conversion Location

At the top of the Ad Set screen, you’ll be asked for your conversion location. A dropdown menu will appear. Make sure to select "Facebook Page." This tells Facebook your goal is to drive likes directly on your page.

Below this, ensure your correct Facebook Page is selected.

Budget & Schedule

Set a daily budget that you are comfortable with. You can start small, even with just $5-$10 per day, to test the waters. A daily budget gives you more control and flexibility than a lifetime budget. You can set a start and end date if you want the campaign to run for a specific period.

Audience Targeting

This is where your audience prep work pays off. Start by defining your basic demographics:

• Location: Target countries or regions where your ideal customers live. You can get as specific as cities or zip codes.
• Age & Gender: Set the age range and gender you want to target. Don't leave it broad unless you're sure your audience is that widespread.
• Detailed Targeting: This is where you target based on interests, behaviors, and demographics. Start typing your ideas from the brainstorming session you did. For example, if you're a marketing consultant, you might target people interested in "Digital Marketing," "Content Marketing," and software like "Salesforce" or "Canva."

Pro Tip: Don't forget to exclude people who already like your page. There’s no point in paying to show a page like ad to your existing fans. Under the Detailed Targeting section, click "Exclude" and start typing "People who like or follow your page" and select your page. This simple step can save you a significant amount of money.

Placements

Facebook's default is "Advantage+ Placements," which automatically shows your ads across their entire network (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, etc.). For a Page Likes campaign, you only need to run the ad on Facebook itself. Select "Manual Placements" and uncheck all platforms except "Facebook." The ad typically performs best in the "Facebook Feeds." You can unselect other placements like Stories, Reels, in-stream videos, and search results to focus your budget.

Step 4: Design Your Ad Creative

Finally, it's time to create the ad itself. This is what people will actually see in their news feed.

For a page like campaign, simplicity is your friend. Your ad has one job: convince someone that your page is worth a "Like."

Ad Format

Choose either a single image or a video. Video often gets better engagement and can result in a lower cost per like. Here are some creative ideas:

• An Image of You: A friendly, high-quality headshot or a photo of your team builds a human connection. People connect with people.
• Show Your Value: If you sell physical products, use an eye-catching product photo. If you provide a service, use an image that represents the outcome, like a happy client or a chart showing growth.
• Short Video: Create a simple 15-30 second video of you speaking directly to the camera. Introduce yourself and tell people what kind of content they can expect if they follow your page.

Ad Copy (Primary Text)

The copy should be short, direct, and benefit-driven. Don't just ask for a like - give them a reason to give you one. Tell them what's in it for them.

Bad Example: "Please like my page!"

Good Examples:

• "Like our page to get simple, actionable e-commerce tips delivered to your feed twice a week."
• "Running a small business is tough. We share daily insights on marketing, sales, and productivity to make it easier. Click Like to join us!"
• "Want to stay ahead of the latest AI trends? Follow our page for news, tutorials, and expert analysis."

Call to Action

For a Page Likes campaign, Facebook automatically uses a "Like Page" call-to-action button with a thumbs-up icon. You don't need to configure this - it's handled for you.

Step 5: Publish Your Campaign

Double-check all your settings - campaign objective, budget, targeting, exclusions, and ad creative. Once everything looks good, hit the green "Publish" button. Your campaign will go into review, which can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. Once approved, it will start running.

Monitoring and Optimizing Your Campaign

Your work isn't done after you hit "Publish." To get the most from your budget, you need to monitor your performance.

• Check Cost Per Result: In Ads Manager, the most important metric for this campaign is "Cost per Page Like." This tells you exactly how much you're spending to acquire each new follower. Costs vary by industry, but a good goal is to get it under $1. Many highly optimized campaigns can get this down to $0.10-$0.50.
• Test Different Creatives: Create a second ad within the same ad set but use a different image or copy. Let them both run for a few days, then pause the one with the higher cost per like. This is simple A/B testing and can dramatically improve your results.
• Look at Frequency: If your frequency metric starts climbing above 2.0 (meaning people are seeing your ad multiple times), it might be time to refresh your creative or broaden your audience to avoid ad fatigue.

Final Thoughts

Running a Facebook Page Likes campaign is a valuable way to build social proof and create a community around your brand. By setting the correct objective, carefully defining your audience, and creating compelling ad copy, you can grow your following with people who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer.

Once your campaigns are up and running, analyzing the data in Ads Manager is critical. However, exporting data and trying to connect it to your overall business goals can become an endless cycle of manual reporting. We simplified this entire process with Graphed. You can connect Facebook Ads and your other data sources, then use natural language - just like talking to an analyst - to create dashboards that show your cost per like, track how it trends over time, and visualize your key metrics in one place, all updated in real-time.