32. How to Run Ad on Facebook: A Friendly, Step-by-Step Guide for Busy Entrepreneurs with Liz Boer
- Oct 30, 2023
- 12 min read
Updated: Feb 10
If you're building a digital course, membership, or online program and feel like organic marketing is a slow burn, learning how to run ad on facebook can feel like handing your business a reliable engine.
Over the years I've learned that paid traffic (especially Facebook and Instagram ads) isn't magic — it's predictable muscle that gets your offer in front of the right people at the right time.
In this post you'll learn a practical, step-by-step approach to Facebook ads: what to plan, how to set up the basics, what to measure, how much to budget, and when to DIY vs. hire help from ads expert Liz Boer. She'll share real-world perspective from a paid ads coach who has worked in corporate media and with consumer brands, plus grounded advice for moms and busy founders who need systems that free up time instead of stealing it.
If we haven't met yet, I’m Brittany, an online marketing strategist for female entrepreneurs. I teach women how to make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality through smart, actionable marketing strategies that get them seen, loved, and paid. Whether you’re eager to DIY your way to success or hire professionals to help you along the way–my goal is to make sure you walk away with the clarity you need to see the results you desire and build a life you love.
Meet Liz Boer
Liz Boer is a paid ads coach and sales funnel strategist who has over 12 years under belt in digital marketing. During this time she has worked closely with elite entrepreneurs and online coaches helping them to generate predictable income and impact with online courses and membership programs.
Table of Contents
How real marketers Find their way to paid ads
The path to paid traffic often starts with a common frustration: "If I could just get more leads, my offer would sell." That was the aha moment for many marketers who moved from old-school media buying and agency work into helping small businesses. They realized that while great offers change lives, visibility is the bottleneck — and paid ads solve that bottleneck by putting the offer in front of targeted people consistently.
Whether you come from an agency, corporate media, or are a parent building a business on evenings and nap times, learning how to run ad on facebook is about creating an engine that brings the right people into your funnel predictably so you can focus on product and strategy — not constant content hustle.
Paid ads vs. organic Marketing — why both matter
Organic content builds trust, personality, and proof. Paid ads bring scale and predictability. Think of organic as the foundation and paid as the accelerator.
Organic: great for validation, relationship-building, and proof of concept. It’s low dollar, high time.
Paid: great for predictable reach, targeting, and faster list growth. It costs money but buys time and scale.
The best strategy blends both: prove the product-market fit organically, then use paid traffic to speed growth and reliably fill launches, masterclasses, or memberships.
Liz's Core concepts you need to understand before you run any ads
Liz shares her top 4 tips to ensure your ads convert well:
Know your audience. If you don’t know who you’re speaking to, ad dollars go to the wrong people. Write down who they are, what they care about, and what’s stopping them today.
Validate the offer. Use organic channels to make sure the program or product resonates before you pour ad spend into it.
Build the experience. Ads don’t end at a click. A landing page, email welcome series, and clear next steps are essential for converting paid visitors into buyers.
Measure outcome-based metrics. Ads are a numbers game — decide your revenue goal, back into how many sales you need, then calculate how many leads and clicks are required.
She shares even more tips in our conversation of the Go Get Great podcast ↓
Step-By-Step of How To Run Ad on Facebook
Step 1 — Set up the technical basics (so your ad data is useful)
Before you launch your first campaign, make sure the backend work is done. These steps keep your ad spend from being guesswork and allow you to build powerful audiences for retargeting.
Install the Meta Pixel on your site. This small snippet tracks visitor behaviour and lets you build custom audiences like “visited sales page but didn’t purchase.”
Verify your domain in Business Manager to avoid tracking disruption and to enable conversion optimization.
Create clear landing pages for webinars, masterclasses, or lead magnets. Keep them uncluttered with a strong call to action.
Set up at least a basic email sequence — a welcome email and a short follow-up series. 80% of people expect a welcome email after opting in.
Connect your accounts (Instagram, Facebook Page, Ad Account) inside Meta Business Manager so everything shares data cleanly.
Step 2 — Campaign architecture: cold traffic, warm retargeting, and sales
A launch-friendly funnel usually follows three stages. Knowing how to run ad on facebook across these stages is what makes paid ads effective.
Cold traffic (Attract) — Use conversion or lead-gen campaigns to bring new people to a webinar registration, masterclass sign-up, or lead magnet. Target based on interests, behaviours, or lookalikes built from your seed audiences.
Warm traffic / Retargeting (Nurture) — People who visited your registration or watched your video but didn’t register should see ads that remind, clarify, or provide urgency. These campaigns capture lost opportunities.
Sales (Convert) — During your promotion window, retarget people who attended your webinar or visited the sales page. Use testimonial creatives, urgency messaging, and clear calls to action to recover stalled buyers.
Types of Facebook ads and when to use them
When people ask about different kinds of ads, they usually mean different audiences and campaign goals. Here’s how to think about them:
Lead generation ads: Best for building a list. Use them to promote a webinar, masterclass, or free download. Lower friction equals lower cost per lead.
Traffic and conversion ads: Send people to a landing page with the goal of registering or purchasing. Use conversions when you want the pixel to optimize for a specific action.
Retargeting ads: Target people who took an action (visited page, watched a video, engaged with content) but didn’t convert. These are high ROI because the audience already knows you.
Lookalike and interest-based ads: For scaling, create lookalike audiences from your best customers or use interest targeting to test new segments.
Creative strategy: what to test and why it matters
Ads are only as good as the message and creative. Start with a small set of assets and rotate them in tests.
Begin with 3–5 creatives per campaign: a mix of short videos, testimonial clips, and single-image/carousel ads.
Test headlines, primary text variations, and CTAs. If your copy doesn’t speak to a clear pain point, clicks will be low.
Match creative to audience stage: cold audiences need awareness and education; warm audiences need trust and proof; sale-stage audiences need urgency and clarity.
How to know if your ad is working — key metrics to watch
Liz notes that the KPIs you track depend on the campaign objective. Here are guided checks for typical funnels:
Cold lead campaign: Look at cost per lead (CPL), CTR (click-through rate), and landing page conversion rate. If CTR is low, change creative. If CTR is high but conversions are low, optimize the landing page.
Retargeting campaign: Watch return on ad spend (ROAS), cost per purchase (if direct-to-sale), and frequency (to avoid ad fatigue).
Webinar funnel: Track registration rate, show rate (how many registrants attended), and sales conversion rate from attendees.
A simple rule: don’t blame the ad right away. Check the landing page, form visibility, page load speed, and email confirmation steps. Often the fix is outside of Facebook Ads Manager.
How long should you run an ad before making changes?
Give the algorithm time to learn. Meta recommends about 5–7 days for a properly funded campaign to gather meaningful data. If you’re running a very small daily budget (like $5–$10/day), leave it longer so it can collect enough events.
Practical guidance:
Run campaigns for at least one full learning cycle (5–7 days) before major changes.
Monitor daily, but avoid frequent pauses that reset learning.
If performance is extremely poor (very low CTR or policy rejections), troubleshoot immediately.
Budgeting: how much Facebook ads should you start with?
"How much do I spend on Facebook ads?" is the top question. The answer depends on your goals and existing assets. A helpful approach is an ad calculator that starts with your revenue goal.
Steps to budget:
Decide your revenue target for a launch or month.
Divide by your product price to determine how many sales you need.
Use your expected conversion rates (industry averages or your past launches) to estimate required leads.
Estimate cost per lead (based on similar offers) to calculate ad spend needed to generate that many leads.
Practical minimums:
Start with lead generation campaigns: these are lower CPL and good for learning.
Many coaches recommend starting around $1,000 for an initial launch campaign you want to scale, then reinvesting returns. If that's not possible, start smaller but expect the timeline to be longer.
Smaller budgets (e.g., $5–$20/day) can work for learning and testing but require patience and longer run times.
Remember: it's not just about how much Facebook ads cost — it's about your expected return. Back into spend from your revenue goals to keep expectations realistic.
Quick ad math example
Want a fast formula to help plan? Try this:
Revenue goal: $10,000
Product price: $500
Sales needed: $10,000 / $500 = 20 customers
Assume conversion (from lead to sale): 5% (industry averages vary)
Leads needed: 20 / 0.05 = 400 leads
If cost per lead is $5, ad spend required: 400 x $5 = $2,000
Adjust these numbers to your reality: if conversion is higher, cost per lead is lower, or product price is different, your spend changes.
Back-end essentials for ad success
Ads don’t work in a vacuum. When you're asking how to run ad on facebook, set up these basics for better outcomes:
Landing page clarity: Make CTA obvious, reduce distractions, and check mobile experience.
Email sequences: At minimum, a welcome email and a 2–3 email follow-up to nurture and remind registrants.
Tracking and attribution: Confirm conversions are recorded and aligned with the campaign objectives.
Creative assets folder: Organize the 3–5 creatives you’ll rotate per campaign so your team (or you) can iterate quickly.
DIY vs. Hiring a Facebook ads manager (what to expect)
Should you DIY or hire an agency or coach? Both paths work — it’s about your capacity, timeline, and how hands-off you need to be.
DIY — Great for budget-conscious founders who want to learn. You need time to test, risk making avoidable mistakes, and patience for the learning curve.
Guided DIY — Work with a coach who teaches you how to set up campaigns. This blends learning with faster results.
Done-for-you (DFY) agency — Best if you want hands-off management: ads, creatives, A/B tests, weekly reporting. Expect higher cost but save time and get professional targeting and policy-compliance handling.
A pro can save you wasted spend by avoiding policy rejections, optimizing bids, and setting the right audiences. If you choose DIY, get a mentor and start with a clear, step-by-step plan.
Common mistakes that waste ad dollars
Launching ads before validating the offer or message — leads that aren’t the right fit will not convert.
Not installing the Meta pixel or misconfiguring it — you’ll lose tracking and retargeting power.
Having a poor landing page (slow load times, unclear CTA, or no urgency).
Pausing and restarting campaigns too often which resets the learning phases.
Not nurturing leads via email — many leads need follow-up to convert.
Expecting overnight success — ads are a system that improves with iteration and scale.
Practical 30-day plan: From zero to your first funnel
Days 1–5: Define your market, validate messaging, and finalize your lead magnet/webinar content.
Days 6–10: Install pixel, verify domain, build landing page, and create a short welcome email sequence.
Days 11–15: Produce 3–5 creatives (videos, testimonials, images). Prepare ad copy variations that speak to pain points and benefits.
Days 16–20: Launch cold traffic lead campaign with clear conversion objective. Start small but meaningful budget ($20–$50/day if possible).
Days 21–30: Monitor for 5–7 days, then adjust creatives or landing page as needed. Start retargeting people who visited but didn’t convert. Scale budget on winning creatives.
Checklist: Essentials to complete before you click “Publish”
Audience profile written (who, what, where, pain points)
Meta Pixel installed and domain verified
Landing page built and mobile-optimized
Email welcome sequence created
At least 3 creatives ready
Budget plan based on revenue goal
Measurement plan (KPIs defined)
Creative prompts for your first Facebook ad set
Use these starter ideas to make quick, testable creatives:
A short founder story video: 60–90 seconds about why you built the program.
A pain-point carousel: each card highlights a common struggle and hints at a solution.
A testimonial clip: 30–45 seconds of a past student describing transformation.
A clear demo or walkthrough: show a quick peek inside the course or training.
How to scale without losing your sanity
Once you find profitable creatives and a predictable CPL, scale gradually and keep an eye on frequency and ROAS. Reinvest a portion of profits into more creative testing and expanding lookalikes. If you want to stay hands-off, consider hiring a Facebook ads management team to run A/B tests, optimize audiences, and manage budgets professionally.
Real talk: Policy rejections and friction
Meta policies change and can be strict. Ad rejections happen — sometimes for small wording choices. If you work with a pro, they will know safer language and substitutes to avoid disapproved ads. If you DIY, always review Meta’s ad policies and keep a few compliant templates on hand.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should I budget for my first Facebook ad campaign?
There’s no one-size-fits-all number. Start by deciding your revenue goal, then back into the number of sales you need and the expected leads required. Many coaches recommend starting around $1,000 for a launch you want to scale quickly, but you can begin with smaller budgets ($5–$20/day) if you’re testing and willing to be patient.
Do I need a big email list before I run ads?
No, but having a seed audience (even a small list) helps build lookalikes and lower early costs. If you’re starting from scratch, focus on lead-generation campaigns to quickly grow an email list you can nurture via a welcome sequence.
How do I know if my Facebook ad is working?
Check KPIs aligned with your objective. For lead-gen, monitor cost per lead, CTR, and landing page conversion rate. For sales, monitor ROAS and cost per purchase. Also inspect landing page load time and UX — often fixes are off-platform.
How long should I run an ad before making changes?
Give campaigns a learning window—typically 5–7 days with a sufficient daily budget. If budget is tiny, allow more time. Make adjustments after the learning period rather than pausing and restarting too frequently.
Is Facebook ads management worth the cost?
If you value time, want faster results, and prefer hands-off execution, professional Facebook ads management can be worth the investment. An experienced manager reduces policy errors, iterates creative, and optimizes audiences efficiently — often saving wasted ad spend and producing better ROAS.
What’s the #1 thing to fix if ads aren’t converting?
Start with the landing page experience. If ads get clicks but people don’t convert, fix the landing page copy, CTA visibility, form usability, and page speed before changing creatives.
Closing thoughts — start small, think systemically
Learning how to run ad on facebook is an investment in predictability. Paid traffic won’t fix a weak offer, but when paired with clear messaging, a welcoming follow-up sequence, and a clean landing page, it becomes the engine that helps you scale without always being on social.
If you’re ready to add paid ads to your marketing mix, start with an audience, a validated offer, and a small, realistic budget. Track the right metrics, give the algorithm a chance to learn, and iterate on creative and messaging. Over time, ads become less scary and more like a well-tuned system that supports your business goals.
Want help deciding whether to DIY or hire?
If you'd like a quick review of your funnel, ad readiness, or budget plan, reach out to a paid ads coach like Liz or Facebook ads management professional who can evaluate whether paid traffic is the right next step for your business, or if you should tighten your offer and organic messaging first.
Remember: ads are a tool, not a silver bullet. With clarity, patience, and the right technical foundation, you can run Facebook ads that consistently bring in the right leads — and give you the time and space to focus on product development, strategy, and life outside the business.
Connect with Liz
Come say hi!
Give us a follow if you're ready to take life from good to great, you'll be the first to know when we share more about motherhood and business. If it really resonated, the kids and I would do a happy dance if you left us a review 💗 ~ Brittany
00:00 Intro
4:15 Liz's business journey
8:36 The difference between paid ads and organic growth
11:00 Saving time with paid traffic
13:00 Different types of ads
19:30 Getting started with paid ads
26:45 Using a podcast to generate leads
28:30 Budgeting for ads
36:15 How do you know your ads are working?
41:30 Making your ads more effective
45:30 Working with a paid ads manager
48:00 Wrap up
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