The Ultimate Guide To Facebook Ad Formats (Updated 2023)

facebook ad formats and specs

Facebook ads are a powerful tool for reaching millions of potential customers in the digital era. With more than 2.8 billion people using Facebook every month, it is the most popular social media platform in the world. That’s why businesses need to know how to choose and use the right Facebook ad formats for their goals and audiences.

Understanding Facebook Ad Formats

Image Ads

Image ads are a classic and widely-used Facebook Ad format that can be highly effective in capturing users’ attention and driving engagement. With the ability to showcase high-quality images and graphics, image ads are a versatile way to promote products or services, build brand awareness, and drive conversions. Here are some key features and best practices for creating effective image ads on Facebook:

Features:

  • Can feature a single image or multiple images in a carousel format
  • Can be displayed in various aspect ratios, including vertical, square, and landscape
  • Can be used with various ad objectives, including brand awareness, lead generation, and conversions
  • Can be displayed on both mobile and desktop devices
  • Offers a range of placements, including feeds, stories, and audience network

Best Practices:

  • Use High-Quality Images: The quality of your images is crucial to the success of your image ad. Use high-quality, visually appealing images that are relevant to your brand or message. Avoid using low-quality or blurry images that can detract from the effectiveness of your ad.
  • Use Clear and Compelling Copy: While images are the main focus of image ads, it’s still important to use clear and compelling copy to convey your message. Use concise and persuasive copy that aligns with the visual content and encourages users to take action.
  • Choose a Strong Call-to-Action: A strong call-to-action (CTA) is important for any Facebook Ad format, and image ads are no exception. Choose a relevant and compelling CTA that aligns with the specific goal of your ad campaign and encourages users to take action.
  • Consider the Aspect Ratio: The aspect ratio of your image can impact the effectiveness of your ad. Consider the placement where your ad will appear and choose an aspect ratio that is optimized for that placement.

Placement Options:

Image ads can be displayed in various placements across Facebook and its partner networks, including:

  • Facebook Feeds
  • Facebook Stories
  • Instagram Feeds
  • Instagram Stories
  • Audience Network

Design Specs:

  • Image Size: The recommended image size for Facebook image ads is 1200 x 628 pixels, with a minimum width of 600 pixels. For Instagram feed ads, the recommended image size is 1080 x 1080 pixels, while for Instagram stories, it’s 1080 x 1920 pixels.
  • Image Format: Facebook supports a range of image formats, including JPG, PNG, and GIF. For Instagram feed ads, only JPG and PNG formats are supported.
  • Image Quality: To ensure that your image ads appear crisp and clear, it’s important to use high-quality images with a resolution of at least 72 dpi.
  • Text Overlay: Facebook has a text overlay tool that measures the amount of text on an image and assigns it a rating. To avoid having your image ad’s reach reduced, it’s best to use minimal text overlay and keep it to less than 20% of the image.

Video Ads

Video ad is a powerful and popular Facebook Ad format that allows businesses to create engaging and immersive ad experiences for their target audience. With the ability to tell a visual story and showcase products or services in action, video ads can be a highly effective way to capture users’ attention and drive engagement.

Features:

  • Can be up to 240 minutes in length
  • Can be displayed in various aspect ratios, including vertical, square, and landscape
  • Can be used with various ad objectives, including brand awareness, lead generation, and conversions
  • Can be displayed on both mobile and desktop devices
  • Offers a range of placements, including feeds, stories, and audience network

Best Practices:

  • Grab Attention Quickly: With so much content competing for users’ attention on Facebook, it’s important to grab their attention quickly with your video ad. Use an attention-grabbing opening shot or sequence to capture users’ attention and entice them to keep watching.
  • Use Clear and Compelling Storytelling: Video ads provide a unique opportunity to tell a visual story and connect with your audience on an emotional level. Use clear and compelling storytelling techniques to convey your brand message and encourage users to take action.
  • Optimize for Mobile: The majority of Facebook users access the platform on mobile devices, so it’s important to optimize your video ad for mobile viewing. Use a vertical or square aspect ratio to ensure your ad takes up as much screen real estate as possible and is optimized for mobile viewing.
  • Use Captions or Text Overlays: Many users watch Facebook videos with the sound off, so it’s important to use captions or text overlays to convey your message and ensure that users can understand your video content even if they’re not listening to the audio.
  • Test and Optimize: As with any Facebook Ad format, it’s important to test and optimize your video ads for the best results. Try experimenting with different video lengths, aspect ratios, and messaging to see what works best for your audience.

Placement Options:

Video ads can be displayed in various placements across Facebook and its partner networks, including:

  • Facebook Feeds
  • Facebook Stories
  • Instagram Feeds
  • Instagram Stories
  • Audience Network

Design Specs:

  • Video Length: Facebook recommends keeping video ads between 15 and 60 seconds in length, depending on the ad objective and placement.
  • Video Size: The recommended video size for Facebook video ads is 1280 x 720 pixels, with a minimum width of 600 pixels. For Instagram feed and stories video ads, the recommended video size is 1080 x 1080 pixels, while for Instagram stories, it’s 1080 x 1920 pixels.
  • Video Format: Facebook supports a range of video formats, including MP4 and MOV. For Instagram feed and stories video ads, only MP4 format is supported.
  • Video Quality: To ensure that your video ads appear crisp and clear, it’s important to use high-quality videos with a resolution of at least 720p.
  • Sound: It’s important to optimize your video ads for both sound-on and sound-off viewing, as many users watch videos without sound. Consider using captions or text overlays to convey your message and engage viewers.

Carousel Ads

Carousel ads are a popular Facebook Ad format that allows businesses to showcase multiple images or videos within a single ad unit. With the ability to showcase up to ten different cards in one ad, carousel ads are a versatile and engaging way to tell a visual story and promote a range of products or services.

Facebook carousel ads

Make use of Carousel Ads to showcase multiple images, videos or calls-to-action all in one ad

Features:

  • Ability to showcase up to 10 images or videos within a single ad unit
  • Each card can have its own headline, description, and call-to-action button
  • Can be displayed on both mobile and desktop devices
  • Offers a range of placements, including feeds, stories, and audience network

Best Practices:

  • Tell a Visual Story: Use the carousel format to tell a visual story or showcase a range of products or services. Use high-quality images or videos that are visually appealing and relevant to your brand or message.
  • Use Clear and Compelling Copy: While visuals are the main focus of carousel ads, it’s still important to use clear and compelling copy to convey your message. Use concise and persuasive copy that aligns with the visual content and encourages users to take action.
  • Choose a Strong Call-to-Action: Each card within the carousel can have its own call-to-action button, so make sure to choose a strong and relevant CTA that encourages users to take action. Consider the specific goal of your ad campaign and choose a CTA that aligns with that objective.
  • Consider the Order of Your Cards: The order in which you display your cards can impact the effectiveness of your ad. Consider the flow of your visual story or the hierarchy of your product offerings and arrange your cards accordingly.

Placement Options:

  • Facebook Feed
  • Facebook Right Column
  • Facebook Instant Articles
  • Facebook Marketplace
  • Instagram Stories
  • Instagram Feed
  • Messenger Inbox
  • Audience Network Native Banner and Interstitial

Design specs:

  • Minimum/maximum number of cards: 2 – 10
  • Image file type: jpg or png
  • Image maximum file size: 30MB
  • Recommended resolution: at least 1080 x 1080px

Collection Ads

Facebook collection ads

Create a seamless shopping experience with multiple items by collection ads

Collection ads allow businesses to showcase a collection of products within a single ad. This ad format is only available on mobile devices. Collection ads can be optimized for different objectives, such as driving traffic or sales.

Facebook offers three different Collection ad templates to choose from, each with its own unique features and benefits. Here’s a breakdown of the different templates and when to use them:

  • Instant Storefront: This template is ideal for businesses with a large product catalog and a variety of product groupings. It features a grid layout for easy browsing and allows for the dynamic organization of products based on user behavior.
  • Instant Lookbook: Use this template when you want to showcase your products in action or create a digital version of a print catalog. It’s also great for telling a brand story while still promoting product sales.
  • Instant Storytelling: This template is designed to offer an engaging way for users to explore your business and learn more about your brand. It’s a great option for businesses with visually interesting content, such as images or videos that tell a story.

Features:

  • Collection ads include a cover image or video that leads to an Instant Experience page (formerly known as Canvas), which is a full-screen landing page that loads quickly and is designed to keep users engaged.
  • Displays up to 50 products, each with its own image, description, and a call-to-action button.

Best Practices:

  • Keep the cover image or video eye-catching and relevant to the products being displayed.
  • Use high-quality product images that showcase the product’s features and benefits.
  • Include a clear and concise product description for each item.
  • Use a strong call-to-action that encourages users to take action, such as “Shop Now” or “Learn More.”
  • Use the Instant Experience page to provide additional information and context about your products, such as customer reviews, product videos, or user-generated content.

Placement:

  • Facebook Feeds
  • Instagram Feeds

Design Specs:

When creating collection ads for Facebook, it’s important to adhere to the platform’s design specifications to ensure that your ad appears correctly and is optimized for the placement where it will appear. Here are some key design specs to keep in mind:

  • Cover Image or Video: The recommended image size for the cover image is 1200 x 628 pixels, while the recommended video ratio is 1:1 (square). The video length should be between 15-120 seconds.
  • Product Images: Each product image should be in the recommended size of 600 x 600 pixels, with a minimum width of 254 pixels.
  • Image Format: JPG, PNG.
  • Video format: MP4, MOV.
  • Text Overlay: less than 20% of the image.

Instant Experience Ads

Instant Experience (formerly known as Canvas) is a full-screen mobile experience that allows businesses to create immersive, interactive ads that load quickly and engage users. Here’s a breakdown of its features, best practices, placement options, and design specs:

Features:

  • Instant Experience is designed for mobile devices and is optimized for quick load times and a seamless user experience.
  • It offers a full-screen, immersive experience that allows businesses to showcase their products, tell their brand story, and engage with their target audience.
  • Instant Experience can include a variety of content types, such as images, videos, carousels, and call-to-action buttons, all within the same ad unit.

Best practices:

  • Keep the content simple and visually appealing. Use high-quality images and videos that clearly showcase the product or service.
  • Use concise, attention-grabbing headlines and descriptive text to provide context and entice users to interact with the ad.
  • Use call-to-action buttons to guide users toward the desired action, such as making a purchase or visiting a website.

Placement options:

  • Instagram feed
  • Facebook feed

Design specs:

  • The recommended image size for Instant Experience is 1,080 x 1,920 pixels, with a file size limit of 30MB.
  • Videos should be in landscape or square format, with a minimum resolution of 720p and a maximum length of 240 minutes.

Facebook Instant Experience Ads

Take advantage of Facebook’s many placement options to reach more customers

Lead generation

Lead Generation is a Facebook ad format designed to help businesses collect user information, such as email addresses and phone numbers, directly from the ad. Here’s a breakdown of its features, best practices, placement options, and design specs:

Features:

Lead Generation ads are designed to streamline the lead generation process by allowing users to submit their information directly within the ad, without having to leave Facebook.

The ad form can be customized to collect specific information, such as name, email address, phone number, and more.

Once a user submits their information, the business can follow up with them directly, either through email or phone.

Best practices:

  • Keep the form simple and easy to fill out. Only ask for the necessary information and avoid asking for too much personal information.
  • Use an attention-grabbing headline and descriptive text to explain the benefits of submitting the form.
  • Provide a clear and concise call-to-action that encourages users to submit the form.

Design specs:

The ad should include an eye-catching image or video that is relevant to the product or service being offered.

The form should be easy to fill out and should only ask for necessary information.

The call-to-action button should be prominent and clearly state the action the user is taking, such as “Submit” or “Download.”

Overall, Lead Generation ads are a powerful tool for businesses looking to collect user information and generate leads directly from Facebook. By following best practices and customizing the ad form to collect specific information, businesses can create effective lead-generation campaigns that deliver results.

Tips for Facebook Ad Marketers

Facebook Ads are a powerful tool for businesses of all sizes to reach their target audience and achieve their marketing goals. However, with so many different ad formats and options available, it can be overwhelming for marketers to create effective Facebook Ad campaigns. Here are some tips to help you make the most of your Facebook Ads format:

Choose the right Facebook Ad Format

When it comes to creating successful Facebook Ad campaigns, choosing the right ad format is crucial. Each ad format has its own unique specifications and best practices, so it’s important to choose the format that will best fit your marketing goals and target audience.

Consider factors like your campaign objective, ad placement, and the type of content you want to promote when selecting your ad format.

Use Eye-Catching Visuals

Visuals are an important aspect of any Facebook Ad campaign. With so much content competing for users’ attention, it’s important to make sure your ad stands out with eye-catching visuals. Use high-quality images or videos that are relevant to your message and will grab the viewer’s attention.

Keep Your Copy Concise

While visuals are important, the copy is also crucial for effective Facebook Ads. Keep your copy concise and to the point, using clear and simple language that conveys your message quickly. Avoid using too much industry jargon or complicated language that could confuse or turn off your audience.

Test Different Ad Formats

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different ad formats to see what works best for your business. A/B testing can help you determine which ad format is most effective at achieving your marketing goals.

Try testing different visuals, ad copy, and call-to-actions to see which combinations result in the highest engagement and conversions.

Facebook ad format testing

Test different aspects of your ads, including audience targeting, placement and creative elements, to optimize engagement, reach and ROI.

Target Your Audience

Facebook offers a range of targeting options to help businesses reach their ideal audience. Make use of these options to ensure that your ad is being shown to the right people. Consider factors like demographics, interests, behaviors, and location when targeting your audience.

Monitor and Adjust Your Campaign

Once your Facebook Ad campaign is up and running, it’s important to monitor its performance and make adjustments as needed. Keep an eye on metrics like engagement, click-through rate, and conversions to see how your campaign is performing. Use this data to make adjustments to your ad format, targeting, or messaging to improve the effectiveness of your campaign.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, using the right Facebook Ads format and implementing these tips can help businesses create successful campaigns that reach and engage their target audience. By leveraging the power of Facebook Ads, businesses can increase their brand awareness, drive traffic to their website, and ultimately, boost their sales and revenue.

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Ann Nguyen is a SEO specialist with over 4 years of experience in the dynamic realm of search engine optimization and digital content. Her extensive expertise spans various essential SEO strategies and techniques, including meticulous keyword research, effective on-page optimization, technical SEO proficiency, and strategic content optimization. With a comprehensive understanding of the ever-evolving digital landscape, Ann is committed to delivering exceptional results for businesses. Her unwavering dedication and extensive knowledge empower her to help clients thrive in the highly competitive online sphere.