Find Out Why Your Limo Company’s Facebook Ads Suck

I get calls all the time from operators struggling to make sense of their Facebook Ad campaigns. Despite their efforts, either they aren’t getting leads, or their lead-to-sale rate is less than optimal.

What do you need to know if you’re looking to make the most out of Facebook Ads? In this article, I will show you why your company’s ads aren’t performing and what you can do about it. 

Looking for expert online marketing services for your limo company? Limo Marketer specializes in paid online ad services, social media management, marketing training, and more. Contact us today to get started.

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Why Won’t My Facebook Ads Work?

When it comes to Facebook Ads, it’s worth noting that they just aren’t the same beast as Google Ads, Bing Ads, or even SEO. Why? Well, Google Ads and those other examples are all search advertising. Facebook Ads are different. When someone goes to Facebook, they aren’t coming with intent.

Intent is the keyword here. When a potential customer is searching Google for an airport shuttle, they have every intention of finding a service then and there. Conversely, on Facebook, they’re usually scrolling through their feed — not looking for a shuttle service for their next trip. 

Because of this absence of intent, you’ll most likely have a higher close rate using Google Ads over Facebook Ads. However, staying present where people already are (Facebook feeds) shouldn’t be ruled out. Even without the highest possible close rate, Facebook Ads can be hugely effective in expanding your reach and winning you business.

What’s more, if you aren’t getting enough leads with Google Ads, Bing Ads or SEO, Facebook Ads could be the ticket. Advertising on Facebook can be a powerful tactic, you just need the right strategy to find potential customers.

What Facebook Ads Are, and What They Aren’t

Before we dive into the details, let’s get something out of the way. First, you’ve probably seen the feature to “boost” a post via Facebook. This is not the same as the Facebook Ads platform we are talking about. In other words: boosting a post isn’t the same as running a Facebook Ad.

Next point, the actual Ads platform is pretty complex. Facebook Ads uses powerful algorithms to help find potential customers based on their personal data. While boosting a post still goes through Facebook, these ads don’t have the targeting power of the Facebook Ads platform. 

To find Facebook Ads, you need to visit Business.Facebook.com. 

The Biggest Mistakes Operators Make With Facebook Ads

If your limo company or car service is struggling to make the most out of Facebook Ads, don’t worry. In most cases, you’re just making ads that are too generic. You need to cater the content to fit the platform.

Diagnosing underperformance is a good first step. 

Whenever an operator calls me up asking for advice with their campaigns, I’ll always ask two questions:

1. What are you offering in your ad?
2. Do you have a killer follow up process?

In my experience, these are the two most important factors for reaching success with Facebook Ads.

Mistake 1: No Offers

If a user isn’t coming to Facebook with intent, how can you get them to click your ad? Well, make them an offer. You need to give them something of value in exchange for their information.

This isn’t a small ask, either. For someone to hand over their personal information, they need a pretty good offer. What is a good offer? Here are a few examples:

• A package tour discount (like a $150 off a wine tour package)
• Percentage discount (needs to be more than 5% to 10% to be compelling)
• Hourly rental reduction (i.e., 5th hour free after 4 hours booked)
• A flat cash discount

First, out of these offers, I always recommend operators go with the package tour discount or flat cash rate. Particularly, the package tour discount works well because it gives an idea to the lead. It’s not only the transportation. It’s entertainment as well.

Second, let’s touch on the flat cash discount. This works well for a simple reason: it means no calculations on the user-side.

Instead of figuring out how a 5% discount works in their favor, a flat cash offer gives them a manageable number to understand.

Mistake 2: Bad follow up

How are you following up with your leads? You need a rock-solid follow up strategy to get a higher lead-to-close rate. If a lead accepts your offer, let’s say you used the package wine tour one, it might be that they don’t use the offer for a few months.

Clearly, a lot of people will do this. Remember that this isn’t Google Ads where a user is coming in with the intent of booking a ride. Because of this, you won’t see an initial high percentage of those leads close. If you’re lucky, you might get a 5-10% lead to close rate.

If you’re using customer relations management (CRM) software, which everyone should be, you can easily create an automated follow up strategy. This might include:

• An immediate call from a sales representative
• Another discount or offer to sweeten the deal
• Periodic SMS messages to follow up and close the deal

It’s pretty simple. For example, once a lead takes the offer, have an SMS message cadence reach out to them every two to four weeks. In the message, simply ask: “Hey, you downloaded this coupon, do you want to redeem it?”

Without a doubt, if you don’t create a killer follow up plan, your client acquisition costs will be very high. That’s the power of the follow up!

Example of a Facebook Ad Mistake

Here’s a little story. I recently had a chat with an operator running a Facebook Ad and getting loads of engagement. First, the ad itself was pretty entertaining. It featured a cute dog with a funny voice. Second, at the bottom of the ad was a small banner with his number. No offer at all.

Even so, this operator was very excited about the engagement this ad was getting. He had just gone through a Facebook Ads class and was happy with the results. Undoubtedly, something was missing.

This ad was getting tons of engagement, but no leads. Basically, he was paying for expensive branding, which works for views but not for sales. Here’s what the operator failed to do: 

• Get the user to fill out a lead form
• Get the user to ask for a quote

This should be the goal of your ads. Engagement is great, but branding-specific marketing is just too expensive for small business operators.

Facebook Ad Tools You Can Use

Now that you know about the power of the offer and the follow up, what other tools do you have at your disposal? Through the Facebook Ads platform, you have quite a few ways to make the process easier for the customer.

Facebook Lead Ads

Let’s talk about Facebook lead ads. With lead ads, the platform auto-fills information from the user’s profile. The best part? They never even leave Facebook. It all happens inside the platform. Facebook Ads uses all that personal information to feed their algorithm.

Additionally, it will reference their demographics when making future decisions on ad placement. The more, the better. As a result, the system will get better at finding potential prospects.

Facebook Pixel → Landing Page

Next, If you’re not using lead ads, you should be using Facebook Pixel. Let’s say you’re sending your lead to an optimized landing page. If you have the Facebook pixel installed, the system will grab all the same data points as lead ads. 

For this reason, you need either lead ads or the pixel. Once you have 30-40 submissions, the algorithm will find similarities in profiles to uncover potential customers.

What Facebook Ad Strategy Should You Use?

Facebook Ads can be a powerful marketing tool for your business. It works but is more of a long game than other platforms, like Google Ads. The strategy isn’t right for every type of operator. It will depend on the services you offer.

If your business relies on users who need service on a particular date, like an airport shuttle transfer for a corporate client, Facebook Ads might not be as successful as search advertising. 

Who is Facebook Ads Right for?

I’d suggest that you stand a good chance of winning at Facebook Ads if you fall into categories like these:

• Executive sedans or Sprinter vans (like for a wine tour)
• Party buses
• Stretch limos

Remember that most users aren’t going to Facebook with the intent to book a ride. You need to give them the idea.

Facebook Ad Results: The Numbers

What can you expect from Facebook Ads? What’s the cost for leads?

The best I’ve ever done is around $4 to $6 per lead. With Google Ads, you’re going to spend around $6 to $15 depending on if you’re in a low competition or high competition market. Even so, while it seems like Facebook Ads is the winner here, what about the lead-to-sales close rate? This could be 5-10%. If you have a killer follow up, you could get 20-30%.

If you’re using Google Ads, you can expect a 20-35% close rate. With this math, you get a $60 client acquisition cost for Facebook Ads and $45 for Google Ads. 

Upgrade Your Limo Marketing Strategy With FB Ads

If you’re hunting for ways to make the most out of your limo, party bus, or black car transportation business marketing, Limo Marketer can help. Not only do we offer expert marketing training for operators, but we can tackle other aspects of your marketing strategy, from social media management to SEO. Get in touch today to learn more!