What Are Meta Ads

At Lillian Purge, we specialise in Local SEO Services and have developed comprehensive guidance on what are meta ads.

Meta Ads are paid advertisements that run across Meta’s platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and the Audience Network. They allow businesses to reach specific audiences based on location, interests, behaviour, and demographics. These ads appear in users’ news feeds, stories, and sidebars, blending seamlessly into the user experience while promoting products, services, or brand awareness.

Meta Ads are managed through Meta Ads Manager, a central platform where advertisers can create, target, and monitor campaigns. This system gives businesses full control over their ad spend, audience targeting, creative design, and performance tracking.

How Meta Ads Work

Meta Ads use an auction-based system where advertisers compete for placements. Instead of simply rewarding the highest bidder, Meta considers three main factors: bid amount, ad quality, and user relevance. This means that a well-crafted, engaging ad can outperform one with a higher budget but lower relevance.

The process begins when you create an ad campaign and choose an objective, such as increasing website traffic, generating leads, boosting local awareness, or driving sales. Meta’s algorithm then delivers your ad to the users most likely to take that action based on their past behaviour and interests.

Types of Meta Ads

Meta offers several ad formats to suit different goals and creative styles. The most common types include:

1. Image Ads – Simple static ads featuring a single image, ideal for product promotion or local announcements.

2. Video Ads – Engaging visual content that can appear in feeds, stories, or reels, often used for storytelling or showcasing services.

3. Carousel Ads – Multiple images or videos in a swipeable format, allowing you to highlight different features or products.

4. Collection Ads – Combine video and imagery to create an interactive shopping experience directly within the platform.

5. Lead Ads – Designed to capture customer information without users leaving the app, useful for booking services or collecting enquiries.

6. Dynamic Ads – Automatically display personalised products to users who have previously visited your website or interacted with your content.

Each format serves a different purpose, and combining them strategically helps businesses reach audiences at every stage of the buying journey.

Why Businesses Use Meta Ads

Meta Ads are one of the most powerful digital advertising tools available because of their ability to target specific audiences with precision. Key benefits include:

• Advanced targeting options: Businesses can focus on users by age, gender, location, interests, and online behaviour.

• Remarketing capabilities: Reach people who have already visited your website or interacted with your social media pages.

• Measurable performance: Meta Ads Manager provides detailed analytics so you can track impressions, clicks, conversions, and cost per result.

• Scalability: Suitable for all budgets, from small local businesses to global brands.

• Cross-platform reach: Your ads can appear across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and partner sites simultaneously.

These advantages make Meta Ads particularly effective for local businesses that want to connect with nearby customers and drive in-person visits or online enquiries.

How Meta Ads Fit into Local Marketing

For local businesses, Meta Ads can be a game changer. By targeting users within a specific radius or postcode, businesses can reach people who are most likely to visit their store or use their services. For example:

• A restaurant can promote weekend offers to nearby residents.

• A salon can advertise appointment availability within its local area.

• An estate agent can showcase properties to users searching in specific neighbourhoods.

Combining local SEO with Meta Ads creates a powerful digital strategy. SEO attracts organic traffic through search results, while Meta Ads generate immediate visibility among targeted local audiences.

How to Create an Effective Meta Ad Campaign

1. Define Your Objective – Choose whether your goal is brand awareness, website traffic, engagement, or sales.

2. Identify Your Audience – Use Meta’s audience targeting tools to define your ideal customer by location, interests, and demographics.

3. Craft Strong Visuals and Copy – Use high-quality images or videos and concise, persuasive text that encourages action.

4. Set a Realistic Budget – Start small and adjust based on performance data. Meta allows daily or lifetime budgets for flexibility.

5. Monitor and Optimise – Regularly review analytics to see which ads perform best, then adjust targeting, creatives, or budgets accordingly.

Measuring Success

Meta Ads Manager provides comprehensive reporting to help you evaluate your campaign’s performance. You can track metrics such as:

• Impressions (how many times your ad was shown)

• Click-through rate (CTR)

• Conversion rate

• Cost per result

Analysing these insights helps you understand which campaigns deliver the best return and where improvements can be made. Over time, data-driven adjustments lead to stronger performance and better ROI.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Targeting too broadly, which wastes budget on uninterested users.

• Using poor-quality images or videos that fail to attract attention.

• Neglecting mobile optimisation, even though most Meta users browse on phones.

• Forgetting to test multiple variations of the same ad to find the best-performing version.

Avoiding these mistakes ensures your campaigns stay efficient and effective.

Final Thoughts

Meta Ads give businesses of all sizes the ability to connect directly with their ideal audience across Facebook and Instagram. When used correctly, they can drive traffic, boost conversions, and complement your SEO efforts by reaching customers who are actively engaging on social media.

For local businesses, Meta Ads are an especially powerful tool, helping you reach nearby customers at the right time with the right message.

At Lillian Purge, we help businesses create and manage high-performing Meta Ad campaigns that support broader SEO and marketing goals. By combining targeted advertising with local search optimisation, we help your business attract more customers and grow sustainably online.

We have also written in depth articles on How to Advertise on Facebook for Free and How Meta Ads support Local SEO and brand awareness as well as our Facebook Advertising Hub to give you further guidance.