Captivate, Convince, Convert:
A Winning Formula for High-Performance Social Media Ads

Discover our winning strategy: the Captivate-Convince-Convert framework for creating high-impact social media ads.

These days, it’s difficult for businesses to find success on social media.

Unless you have a loyal community online, you’re likely only reaching a handful of people with each post. It’s no wonder why businesses turn to advertising to expand their reach and boost leads and sales quickly.

And yet, advertising is no silver bullet. Most campaigns generate lackluster results, leaving marketers disillusioned and questioning why they bother with social media at all.

It prompts a question we hear all too often – “do social media ads really work?”

The short answer: Yes! But making them work takes work. Read on to discover our winning strategy: the Captivate-Convince-Convert framework for creating high-impact social media ads.

We live in what’s called an “attention economy,” and social media makes this painfully clear. As marketers, we tend to think that people are paying as much attention to our ads as we are. But the reality, according to a study by Yahoo and OMD Worldwide, is that Gen Z’s attention span for ads is just one second.

As you let that reality sink in, the first step of our framework becomes obvious. We need to captivate attention with our ads, or nothing else matters. So how do you stop users mid-scroll and earn those crucial extra seconds of attention?

The first step is to focus on your visuals. Research shows that we process images a staggering 60,000 times faster than text. Our own experience confirms it – changing ad text doesn’t affect performance much, but swapping images and videos can have a real impact. And with platforms like Facebook and Instagram truncating ad text down to just a few words, the visual elements matter more than ever.

How to Captivate Users on Social Media

Use recognizable images

Choose images that resonate with your target audience and instantly convey the message of your ad. Whether it’s striking visuals or familiar faces, use anything that piques their curiosity or makes your ad feel relevant to them.

Incorporate compelling text overlays

Fortunately, Facebook no longer penalizes or rejects ads containing text in the image. Now, you can incorporate engaging text overlays to enrich your visual content. Overlays should be clear, complement the imagery (without detracting from it), and highlight key points or offers to entice users to learn more.

Feature sales or promotions

Create a sense of urgency by showcasing limited time offers, discounts, or promotions. The exclusivity and time sensitivity encourages potential customers to pay attention. FOMO is real!

Measuring Success at the Captivate Stage

How do you know if you’re successfully captivating attention on social media? Here are some of the key Meta Ads metrics we use to measure attention:

Estimated ad recall lift

For campaigns optimized for ad recall lift, Meta surveys your audience to estimate how many people would remember seeing your ad if asked within two days. Select advertisers can also access Meta’s Brand Lift Studies which help understand the impact of Meta Ads on brand awareness.

Video hook rate or “thumbstop” rate

This custom metric divides the number of 3-second video views by the total number of ad impressions. It shows how well the beginning of your video convinces users to continue watching.

Click-through rate (CTR)

While not strictly a measure of attention, CTR metrics offer a good indication of how often users interact with your ads. Pay attention to what Meta calls “Click-through rate (All)”, which measures any interaction with your ad, as opposed to “Link click-through rate”, which only measures link clicks. Generally, a CTR (All) above 3-4% is a good sign that your audience is paying attention.

Once you’ve captured attention, the next step involves connecting with your audience and leaving a lasting impression. In this stage, it’s important that your ads resonate with people, even if only at a subconscious level.

Before deciding on your ad concepts, set an intention for what you want your audience to take away from your ad. Examples include:

• “This company knows their stuff”
• “They can help me solve a problem”
• “I trust this company to deliver on their promises”

Next, design your ads to evoke these perceptions. Take for example our social media advertising strategy for a local automotive dealership. Each month, we launch new ads featuring happy customers who recently picked up their new vehicles. These ads serve as tangible proof that the dealership sells cars, delivers them promptly, and leaves customers satisfied.

Given the local nature of the campaign, the audience may occasionally spot familiar faces or witness the customers themselves engaging with the ads, amplifying the reach and impact. We love this method because it feels authentic and makes your brand recognizable, generating long-term results without the traditional “used car salesman” tactics.

How to be Convincing on Social Media

“This company knows their stuff”

Position your brand as an industry leader by sharing valuable insights and expertise. Whether it’s through informative content or thought leadership pieces, demonstrate your company’s depth of knowledge and experience.

“They can help me solve a problem”

Address common pain points or challenges faced by your target audience and offer viable, cost-effective solutions. By showcasing how your product or service can address their needs, you establish credibility and build trust.

“I trust this company to deliver on their promises”

Incorporate testimonials, reviews, or endorsements to instill confidence in your brand. If your company has a 98% satisfaction rating, don’t be afraid to say it! User-generated content serves as social proof and reassures potential customers of your brand’s reliability and authenticity.

To cement these perceptions for long-term impact, create multiple ads or campaigns that support the same key message.

Measuring Success at the Convince Stage

When revenue is on the line, it’s important to validate your assumptions with real audience input. Here are a few methods we recommend for measuring audience response to your ads:

Reactions

Analyze the quantity and sentiment of reactions on your ad. Ads that really resonate should have at least a few likes, shares or other positive reactions.

Comments

A critical part of social media listening, monitoring comments is a quick and easy way to gauge sentiment towards your brand and your ads. Ad comments are public, so make sure to “hide” or promptly respond to any negative ones.

Feedback surveys

If you’re already monitoring ad comments and want to gather deeper insights, consider launching an online survey. You can run surveys on your website, via email, or even as part of an ad campaign. 

The ultimate goal of any social media campaign is to drive business results. The conversion stage is where the magic happens and engagement starts turning into revenue.

If you’ve done everything right so far, your audience should be primed and ready to take one of your desired actions – whether it’s making a purchase, booking a consultation, or simply signing up for your newsletter.

How to Turn Social Media Engagement into Conversions

At this point, your top priority should be making the next step as easy and frictionless as possible. Consider these tips to convert more users into leads and sales:

Custom landing pages

If your website doesn’t have appropriate pages to send paid traffic, you may want to create a custom landing page specific to the campaign. This helps to keep messaging consistent from the ad to landing page, streamlining the user experience and increasing conversion rates.

Calls-to-action (CTAs)

Sometimes users need a little nudge! Resist the urge to offer freedom for users to explore – your ads and landing pages should be very clear on what action you want them to take. Calls-to-action should be simple, clear, and consistent, such as “Get a Quote”, “Book Now” or “Shop Now”.

Remarketing

Remarketing involves targeting an audience of recent visitors to your website in the hopes that they’ll return and take a desired action. This strategy can be useful for long and complex buying journeys – such as in B2B – where it’s not always reasonable to expect users to convert right away.

Measuring Success at the Convert Stage

Conversion rate (CVR)

Conversion rate tells you what percentage of users completed the desired action after clicking your ad. A low conversion rate usually indicates friction somewhere in the conversion process. While conversion rates vary depending on the industry, you should start rethinking your strategy if your conversion rate is below 1%.

Return on ad spend (ROAS)

In e-commerce, ROAS measures the revenue generated by your ads divided by the total advertising spend. Return on investment (ROI) is a more comprehensive measurement that takes into account the additional costs of creative development, media buying and campaign management.

Cost per acquisition (CPA)

In lead generation, CPA measures the average cost of acquiring a lead or customer. How you define an “acquisition” depends on your business – for example, app marketers might use cost per install (CPI) as a key performance indicator. Like ROAS, CPA considers the profitability of your campaigns, not just the volume of results.

With all of this in mind, it’s clear that effective social media advertising demands more than just ad dollars. It takes time and expertise to deeply understand your audience, create compelling ads, and fine-tune campaigns to meet their full potential.

If this is out of your wheelhouse, give us a call! It’s our business to help companies like yours unlock the full potential of social media advertising.