20 Statistics That Prove Facebook Ads Are a Great Investment

“Are Facebook Ads worth it?”

We hear this question a lot from small business owners who aren’t sure if they should invest in advertising on Facebook, but even after all these years (and many controversies), the popularity of Facebook shows no sign of waning, making it a worthwhile platform for many businesses.

In this article, we’ve collected some stats that prove Facebook Ads are still a great investment…

Are My Customers Still on Facebook?

This is a common concern of many business owners. Haven’t people moved to Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok? Who still uses Facebook?

You might be surprised by the answer, shown in the following stats:

Facebook has 2.74 billion monthly active users, a 12% increase from September 2019 (Hootsuite)
Facebook is the world’s third-most visited website (Hootsuite)
69% of Americans use Facebook (HubSpot)
Users between the ages of 25 and 34 are the largest demographic on Facebook, with 72.8% of users landing between the ages of 18 and 44 (Sprout Social)
86% of internet users with $100K+/year incomes use Facebook (Sprout Social)

Remarkably, Facebook’s reach and influence continue to grow year after year. Although many up-and-coming social media networks have been touted as the next big thing, Facebook retains its position as the most-used platform. Every few years, there seems to be a trend of news stories about people leaving Facebook because of privacy concerns, politics, or any number of other issues, but somehow Facebook has continued to dominate.

Are My Customers Really Using Facebook To Make Buying Decisions?

So we know that people are still using Facebook—but does that mean Facebook is influencing their buying decisions?

Consider these stats:

48.5% of B2B decision makers use Facebook for conducting research (Hootsuite)
15% of Facebook users use the platform to look for products (HubSpot)
78% of U.S. adults made purchases based on discoveries made via Facebook in 2018 (HubSpot)
18.3% of U.S. adults made a purchase through Facebook last year, more than Instagram, Pinterest, and any other social media platform (Hootsuite)
Two-thirds of Facebook users visit a local business page at least once a week (Hootsuite)
62% of people report being more interested in a product after seeing it on a Facebook video (Hubspot)

Clearly, people are using Facebook to research products, find products to buy, and some are even purchasing products through Facebook.

How Effective Are Facebook Ads?

We know people are using the Facebook platform to find products and services, as well as to engage with local businesses. But what about advertising on Facebook? Does it work?

Here are some stats that demonstrate the power of Facebook Ads:

Facebook has the most ads and the highest click-through rate (CTR) of any other social media platform (Sprout Social)
Facebook has an advertising audience of 2.14 billion (Hootsuite)
The average Facebook user clicks on 12 ads per month (Hootsuite)
Facebook Ads provide the highest return on investment of any social advertising channel (Hubspot)

Facebook has a treasure trove of information about each of its users, which can be leveraged into precision targeting for advertising. No other platform allows this level of targeting, and it’s this feature that makes Facebook Ads so effective.

Not only can you target potential customers based on their demographics and interests, you can also target people who have recently visited your website and shown an interest in your products. Because advertising is its bread-and-butter, Facebook has continued to roll out new features and tools for its advertisers, making managing campaigns and analyzing their results easier and more efficient than ever.

If you want to ensure a return on investment by making sure you’re reaching the right audience, it’s hard to beat Facebook Ads.

Why Should I Pay for Facebook Ads When I Can Post on My Business Page for Free?

This is another common question that small business owners have. If they invest more in building up their business’s Facebook page, can they get organic reach without having to pay for Facebook Ads? What about partnering with influencers who have large Facebook followings and asking them to promote your business or products on their pages, since they have a larger reach?

While there was a time when businesses could use savvy social media marketing to build an organic following, it’s getting harder and harder — because, naturally, Facebook wants you to pay for ads!

Here’s why using your business page just doesn’t compare to the reach you have with paid ads:

The average engagement rate for Facebook posts is 0.18% (Hootsuite)
Pages with fewer than 10,000 fans have slightly higher engagement, but even this is only 0.52% (Hootsuite)
The average engagement rate for Facebook video posts is 0.26% (Hootsuite)
Link posts receive 73% less engagement than video posts (Hubspot)
Only 35% of marketers report successful influencer campaigns with Facebook (Hubspot)

Of course, it’s important to invest in social media management as well, but it’s best used for connecting with customers and increasing the visibility of your brand. For actual conversions, Facebook Ads are better.

The Bottom Line

Facebook Ads remain a terrific advertising option for most small businesses. If the demographics you’d like to target line up with Facebook’s user base and you understand how to use audience targeting to your advantage, you can get a great return on your investment with the Facebook Ads platform.