What is Facebook?
Facebook is a social network with more than three billion monthly users and the advertising platform through which Instagram ads are also bought. For a business it plays two roles: a page where people check that the company exists and replies, and targeting by interest, behaviour and location that can be measured down to an order. Organic reach is small; the paid side is what works.
What a business uses it for
- The page is where people check that the company exists, is active and answers: reviews, opening hours, recent posts, a quick reply to a message.
- Posts reach only a small share of the page’s followers without paying, so they work best as proof of life and for the customers who already know you.
- Groups, local, professional or about a hobby, are where questions are asked and recommendations given; useful to take part in, not to advertise in.
- Ads, bought in Meta’s ad tools, run on Facebook and Instagram together, with targeting by interest, behaviour and location, and measurement down to the order with the Meta Pixel and the Conversions API.
Example
A furniture workshop posts photos on its Facebook page several times a week; each post is seen by about 150 of its 4,000 followers. It sets up one campaign instead: €15 a day, people within 60 km who are interested in interiors and home renovation, a carousel of finished kitchens with prices “from €3,800”, leading to a page with a short enquiry form.
Over a month the campaign reaches 38,000 people, brings 46 enquiries at about €10 each, and five of them become orders. The page keeps its posts and reviews, because people who see the ad click through to check them before writing.
Why it matters for a business
Facebook plays two different roles, and they are easy to confuse. The page is a place of trust: people look at it before they buy, especially from a small or local business, and an abandoned page with unanswered messages costs sales. The ad platform is a sales channel: it can reach precisely chosen people at a known cost and measure what they did.
Organic reach alone rarely grows a business today. The usual working combination is a live, answered page, plus paid campaigns with a clear goal and proper tracking.
What to ask
- Does our page answer, at a glance, what we do, where and how to reach us, and do we reply to messages quickly?
- Who has admin access to our page and ad account, and is it in a business portfolio we control?
- Do our ads have one clear goal, and do we measure enquiries or orders, not only clicks?
- Is the Meta Pixel set up with consent, and does it record the actions that matter?
Posts, community and reporting on Facebook are part of our social media management; paid campaigns with a goal and tracking are part of our Facebook and Instagram ads.