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Facebook Advertising: Clicks to Website vs. Page Post Engagement

Maybe it’s just me, but sometimes I find myself torn between choosing the Website Clicks or Post Engagement Facebook ad objectives. Even though Facebook clearly spells out which one you should use for different advertising situations, I think that there is a grey area not covered.

Which objective is right for your Facebook advertising campaign? Let’s do a little more digging to find out…

Post Engagement Facebook Ads

According to Facebook, Page Post Engagement objectives are meant to reach more people when you boost a post. Engagements on a post include Likes on your post or page, post clicks, comments, and shares. When determining overall engagement rate, you combine all points of engagement and divide by the total reach of the post. These ads can be in the form of photos, videos or text.

Post Engagement Ads using a Photo should be high quality and measure 1,200 x 900 pixels for a news feed image. Remember also; the graphic must be within the 20% text rule. Facebook provides this helpful grid tool to make sure your ads are within the guidelines.

Video Post Engagement Ads (different from Video Views objective) engage your audience with a video spot for up to 40 minutes (which I don’t recommend using the full time). The objective allows for 90 characters of text (body) and 25 characters in the headline. Although Video Post Engagement and Video View objectives may seem similar, I would recommend using the Video View option to get the most for your money. It will be better at measuring views and it includes a call to action button.

Text Page Post Engagement is simply boosted text. Facebook gives a maximum of 500 characters. What’s recommended for running an ad like this is to keep it to 150 characters or less for a clear and concise message. An example of a Text Page Post Engagement could be an endearing thought from your brand or a thank you note. In other words, stick to this objective when you want your audience to focus on your words at not a photo.

Clicks to Website Facebook Ads

Next up are the Website Click Ads. This objective is meant to send people to certain pages on your website. This could be a sign-up sheet, restaurant menu or really anything lead generation specific. Facebook recommends an image size of 1,200 x 628 pixels with 90 characters of text (body), 25 character headline, and 30 character link description.

More importantly, Clicks to Website Facebook Ads are meant to evoke your audience to take an action. The call to action options within this objective include:

  • Shop Now
  • Book Now
  • Learn More
  • Sign Up
  • Download

Recently, Facebook ads also rolled out the Clicks To Website: Multi Product option which allows you to showcase 3-5 images and links within a single ad to direct your audience to specific pages on your website. This option works best for those working with an e-commerce website.

NOTE: Clicks To Website are Dark Posts that appear nowhere on your page; unlike Page Post Engagement Ads that are posted to your Facebook page.

So which one should you choose?

When it comes to choosing which objective you should use, my major piece of advice is to hone in on what action you really want people to take when viewing your ad.

Clicking To Your Website

We would like to expect that everyone seeing a Page Post Engagement Ad would click on the link within the text, but most of the time, that isn’t the case. If your number one goal is to have people click on a link within your ad, I would strongly suggest going the Website Clicks route. This objective ensures that any action taken on the ad will track back to the link you provide. More importantly, the call to action button is the make or break feature with this objective. Here are a few examples when this ad would be best:

  • Working with an e-commerce website and promoting products on your website
  • Promoting booking reservations for a restaurant or similar establishment
  • Increasing clicks to a blog post or similar content
  • Encourage email sign-up
  • Increase e-book downloads

Encouraging Post Engagement

When it comes down to choosing between Website Clicks and Page Post Engagement, it’s best to choose the Post Engagement engagement when you want the maximum reach and amount of engagement on a post. These ads are also ideal for getting the most shares on a post. I think using this type of objective for advertising an event works the best. Here are a few more situations in which Post Engagement Ads are the way to go:

  • Advertising a sale or special discount
  • Announcing a grand opening
  • Political campaigns
  • Special brand announcements

How can we help you manage your Facebook ads?

And there’s my side to the story and I help clients drive website clicks and post engagement on a daily basis! What advice do you have for choosing between Clicks to Website and Page Post Engagement ads?

If your interested in running Facebook Ads to increase your brand awareness, increase sales or generate leads, click on the button below to set up a free Facebook Ads consultation with our expert team of social media gurus.