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Facebook’s New WhatsApp Ads Expanding

WhatsApp Campaigns Rolling Out Further

Facebook announced at the tail-end of 2018 the forthcoming global rollout and expansion of WhatsApp ads in 2019.

As the world’s leading messaging service, by size, and with roughly 25% more users than Facebook Messenger, it was inevitable.

WhatsApp ads initially launched in August, via the Click-to-message Facebook advertising objective.

The campaigns have this week been expanded to incorporate richer reporting and analytics, adding traffic, conversions and page post engagement objectives into Facebook Ads Manager. Allowing advertisers to get extra visibility on Click-to-WhatsApp ad campaign performance.

High Performing, But Overlooked Facebook Ads

Click-to-message ads, if implemented well, can offer some of the highest performing campaigns on Facebook.

Advertisers can drive audiences from browsing the News Feed into a WhatsApp chat. Much like they’ve been able to do via Facebook Messenger for a few years now.

In essence, Click-to-message campaigns turn causal social browsing into a sales interaction, leapfrogging big chunks of the marketing funnel.

Not only are they impactful for sales, but any marketing objective where more direct user engagement is desired. For example, SMK recently advised a major car brand about the benefit of using for aftercare support for new vehicle purchases, when tied with Custom Audience targeting.

WhatsUp with WhatsApp for business?

WhatsApp offers Facebook vast untapped commercial opportunities. Alongside uncontested eyeballs for marketers in 2019.

Last January Facebook launched the WhatsApp Business app and business profiles for marketers. Click-to-WhatsApp campaigns followed, and full-blown WhatsApp Status ads are scheduled to launch shortly.

The WhatsApp Status ads are expected to function very similarly to Instagram Stories ads.

It is likely, as with many new Facebook ad placements, that WhatsApp Status ads will probably be more of an opt-out, than an opt-in. If not at launch, then certainly shortly after.

Therefore, many advertisers who leave their Facebook ad placements as automatically selected (which is the default), could discover in 2019 that they are running WhatsApp Status ads unintentionally. As was the case for many advertisers with Instagram, a few years back, and probably still is to this day.

Learn with SMK through December

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Live Member Clinics every Monday & Tuesday from 1 pm – 2 pm AEST

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