What audience targeting should you use for Meta lead ads?

Go broad, because for lead ads the ad does the targeting, not the audience settings. Make the ad specific about who it's for and give that person a reason to keep watching. The wrong people scroll past and the right ones fill in the form.

Targeting is one of the questions I get asked most. People expect a list of interests. What they need is a better ad.

Most targeting advice is about which settings to pick or which rules to follow. Very little of it asks what the ad should say, and that's where the targeting actually happens.

Why audience settings are the wrong lever

Most people treat targeting like a filter they have to get perfect. They stack interests, shrink the audience, watch the size estimate, then tweak it again when leads dip. From my observation, that's effort spent in the wrong place.

The ad is what tells the right person this is for them. It's also what tells everyone else to keep scrolling. A vague ad shown to a narrow audience still pulls the wrong people. A specific ad shown to a broad audience pulls the right ones. I break down interest targeting versus creative targeting in this video.

How the ad does the targeting

An ad that targets well does two things straight away.

• It says who it's for. Plainly. The type of customer, their situation, the problem they have. If the person watching isn't that, they know to move on.

• It gives that person a reason to keep watching. Something specific to them, not a generic promise anyone could make.

That's the first filter. Then qualifying questions on the form, with conditional logic, finish the job. Someone who doesn't fit can't submit. Lead quality is decided before the click, not in the audience settings.

Example: our solar business targets customers with high average electricity bills, so our ads talking about solutions to that sized bill and above.

I help advertisers who spend upwards of $500 per day on meta, so my ads talk about strategies for that level of spend.

When are lead is generated off the back of ads like this - THAT signal gets sent to your ad account. THAT is how meta truly learns about who to target every day after.

More leads = targeting = more qualified leads.

Go broad and stop watching the audience size

I don't obsess over audience size. A bigger audience gives a well-scripted ad room to find the right people. A tiny one gives it less room, and you end up making targeting decisions the ad should be making.

Location is the exception people always raise, because a service business can only work where it can get to. I drop a pin on the area we service and set a radius, rather than picking a whole state, then tick "further limit the reach" so Meta can't show the ads outside it. We learned that the hard way on Qvolt, when leads started coming in from outside our service area. On age, I now set a bracket rather than leaving it fully open. On Qvolt, when 80% of the budget drifted to people over 65, we took 65+ out and lead volume came back for the same budget.

Then there are the extras people reach for: lookalikes, customer lists and Advantage+ audience. I don't use lookalikes or interests. They're 2018 strategies, and on a local area they shrink your audience by over 70%. Customer lists need to be big, above 10,000 last I checked, and well matched to Facebook profiles, so I don't think they're worth it. Better to qualify in the ad and the form. Advantage+ audience I leave on when targeting a whole country for the extra reach, and turn it off for a local service area, because it will show the ads outside it.

Retargeting is not where you start. Brand retargeting only earns a place once lead gen is already profitable.

What to test instead of audiences

When results dip, people go back to the audience. They swap interests, narrow it or duplicate it with a different age range. From what I've seen, that rarely moves anything that matters.

Test the ad instead. Not micro tests like two headlines or one changed word. Test meaningfully different ad types and different bait, meaning a different reason for the right person to put their hand up.

• A talking head ad against a sketchbook ad.

• A case study against an ad that teaches something useful.

• A different offer or reason to enquire.

Give each ad its own ad set and budget. At four days I judge a new ad on cost per lead against a kill line. That's the fastest number, an early warning. An ad that passes runs to around 20 leads, then I judge it on how many became qualified, booked appointments. Cost per booked appointment is the number that tells you whether the ad is working.

Why not judge each ad on sales? Sales take too long and there are too few per ad. On Qvolt the sales cycle is about six weeks, so you'd wait six weeks to judge each ad on maybe one sale. That's not enough to tell you anything. Selling is the sales team's job. The ad's job is to put booked appointments in front of them.

How to tell if you're reaching the right people

Don't judge targeting on the audience settings or on cost per lead alone. Judge it on who comes through. Do they answer the phone? Do they book an appointment? Are they the kind of customer you want? That's why cost per booked appointment is my north star.

If the wrong people keep coming through, look at what the ad says and what the form asks before you touch the audience. I explain how I check whether I'm reaching the right people in this video.

FAQ

Should I use broad targeting or interests for Meta lead ads?

Broad. The ad does the targeting when it's specific about who it's for and gives that person a reason to keep watching. Stacking interests on top of a vague ad doesn't fix the ad.

Does audience size matter for Meta ads?

Not as much as people think, and I don't obsess over it. A bigger audience gives a well-scripted ad room to find the right people. The ad decides who puts their hand up.

How do I stop the wrong people filling in my lead form?

Filter before the click and on the form. Say plainly in the ad who it's for, then use qualifying questions with conditional logic so people who don't fit can't submit.

What should I test if not audiences?

Meaningfully different ad types and bait, not small copy changes. Give each ad its own ad set and budget. Check cost per lead at four days as an early warning, then judge each ad on what a booked appointment costs you.

Should I use detailed targeting to narrow my Meta lead ads?

Only for the limits your business genuinely has, like the area you can actually service. Beyond that, keep it broad. The ad does the targeting when it's specific about who it's for.

Should I run retargeting ads for lead generation?

Not to start with. Get lead gen profitable first. After that, brand retargeting can earn its place.