Beginners Guide to Social Media Ads for Small Businesses in India

Social media ads have an average ROI of 53 i.e. for every 1 rupee you spend, you get 5 rupees (1). This is an exceptionally high return when you compare it to traditional newspaper or TV ads.

A newspaper ad could cost you about INR 15,000 - 20,000 for local editions but there is zero targeting. You don't even know how many people saw it and what kind of impact is had. Run social media ads using the same budget and you could reach thousands of people; not random people but your direct target audience filtered by age, gender, location, lifestyle, interest, and other factors.

Social media ads are no more an option for you. Instead, they are the most affordable way to reach your target audience. If you are new to them, this guide is for you. It covers all necessary basics to help you get started. No jargon, no complicated methods; we have made it pretty simple for you.

Let's start.

Why do you need social media ads?

You have a solid 5-star rating and excellent client reviews. You post on social media regularly. You add photos, videos, memes, and more. So why you need ads.

Organic reach is dropping day by day (2). Social media platforms are deliberately doing it by changing their algorithms so you end up running ads instead. Plus, there is a content saturation. You are not the only one posting frequently; your competitors are doing it too.

In short, social media platforms want you to run ads so they can earn too. This doesn't mean organic posts are useless. It simply means you need to do both.

Benefits of running social media ads for small businesses in India

You reach your exact people

The best thing about social media ads is they have a highly targeted reach. You aren't spreading them all out. Rather, you are targeting people in your city, age group, gender, lifestyle, spending budget, interest, behaviour, and other factors.

Your ads will reach only those who matter to you and that's why you will get a high return on investment. Controlled and targeted ads help small businesses get more customers without much guesswork.

It's more affordable than other forms of advertisements

Unlike other forms of marketing and advertisements, no budget is too small for social media ads.

• You can start from as low as 500 INR per day.
• You have full control over your spending.
• You can pause the campaign whenever you want.
• You can see how many people saw your ad, how many reacted to it, and how much each reaction cost you.

It's much more affordable and measurable than newspaper ads, hoardings, and pamphlets that simply rely on luck.

Pro tip - Use Reppoo to run social media ads on your own without paying a commission to an agency. Reppoo has inbuilt templates and automates several things so you can manage your campaigns more effectively within your budget.

You build a compounding online visibility and reputation

Being affordable, you can run social media ad campaigns frequently. Every campaign may not get you enough customers but they do leave an impression in the mind of your target audience. The more they see you, the more they start liking you. This compounding effect will eventually improve your online reputation and get you more business.

You can see what's working

The biggest problem with traditional advertising is you can't find out how many people saw your newspaper ad, hoarding, or pamphlet. You can't know which customer came through which channel.

Social media ads solve this issue. You get real-time data of each campaign. Some information you can see are -

• How many people saw your ads
• How many clicked on them
• How many reacted i.e. liked, commented, or shared
• How many contacted you
• How much each of these actions cost you

If you see your ads reaching the wrong people or not giving you enough ROI, you can fine-tune the parameters and spend money more wisely; something that small businesses must do.

You get faster visibility

Building a reputation takes years but thanks to the internet it has become much easier and faster. Post quality content consistently, reply to comments, and participate in discussions. People will start liking you.

Add ads to this and the process becomes much faster. People see your ads, check out your profile, see consistent quality posting, amazing ratings and customer interactions. They get impressed.

For new businesses, it's the fastest way to build online credibility.

Difference between boosting a post and running a proper ad campaign

If you are new to ads you might confuse ads with boosting a post. They sound the same but they aren't the same.

Boosting is an extremely simple version of advertising your post so it reaches more people. There is no targeting; you can't control who sees it. Plus, you can't set what outcome you want. It is easy and takes two minutes to set up.

Ads are built inside Meta ad manager. You need to customize them and set them up so they work exactly the way you want. You define your audience and select your objective. You track everything that happens to your ads.

If you want maximum ROI, you need to run a proper ad campaign.

How much does social media ads cost?

The cost depends on the platforms you use, what kind of reach you are looking for, general competitiveness in your industry, and a few other factors. You can start with a budget of as low as 500-1000 rupees per day. But, do not go below 200 rupees or else there will be fewer clicks and the social media platform's algorithm won't be able to optimize your ad properly.

Here are a few things you should know -

• Social media ads are quite cheaper in India than other countries.
• Simple Facebook and Instagram ads cost 0.50 to 2 rupees per person.
• YouTube ads cost 0.25 to 0.75 rupees per view but you will have to pay only when someone watches at least 30 seconds of your ads.
• The more competitive your industry is, the more will be the cost of your ads.
• Ads targeting a broader audience cost less but they give you poor quality results. The ones that have a very defined audience cost more but give you a higher ROI.
• Running ads for a day or two doesn't work. If you truly want results, run them for at least two weeks. That's the minimum time the platform's algorithm needs to filter and reach your exact target audience.

Note - This cost doesn't include agency fees. Social media ad agencies charge commission or monthly fees, which could be anywhere between 5,000 - 1,00,000 rupees depending on the type of agency you choose. If you want to save that agency fee use Reppoo. It is a user-friendly online reputation management software that lets you run ads easily even if you are a total beginner.

How to start social media ads?

There are plenty of YouTube videos to help you understand how to start running social media ads on your own. Watch them and use Reppoo to handle everything from it, especially if you are thinking of switching to multiple platforms and apps.

Here are a few tips that you should know -

• Before you begin, decide your intent. Do you want more calls, or more inquiries? Do you want to increase awareness? Frame your ad campaign to serve your intent.
• Target a very specific audience. Do not target the whole city or state. It will waste your budget and reduce the quality of results.
• Use real photos and videos wherever possible. Stock images leave a negative impression.
• Run ads for a week and check what's working for you. Adjust your strategy accordingly.
• Always have a response system ready to handle the interactions quickly. The faster you reply, the better impression you build. Reppoo can do this part.
• Do not run an ad campaign when you are too busy. It needs your time and commitment.

Frequently asked questions on social media ads for small businesses in India

Which social media platforms give best results?

In India, Instagram and Facebook work best for B2C businesses. E-commerce stores and B2B businesses can use YouTube as well. LinkedIn is highly popular for B2B marketing.

How much budget should I start with?

You can start with as low as 200 rupees per day but we recommend at least 500 rupees to get decent results.

Do I need an agency to run social media ads?

No most Indian businesses do not usually require an agency.

2-3 years ago running social media ads needed technical knowledge but today they have become pretty simple. Plus, there are plenty of free tutorials to help you understand the process. And then, there is Reppoo to automate them. Use it to create catchy ad campaigns, select your target audience, select budget, and campaign duration. It will automatically run the campaigns, respond to comments, and alert you about every response you get.

How can I measure the success of my social media ad campaigns?

Don't focus on likes, impressions, and followers; they aren't the right parameters to measure success rate. Find out the cost per result. It should be low. Your click-through rate and conversion rate should be high.

Wrap up

Social media ads are the fastest, easiest, and affordable way to promote your business in India. Set clear objectives, select a highly-targeted audience, and use Reppoo to automate the process. Analyse and improvise the campaigns every week and run it for at least 30 days. Have questions? Call us for a free consultation.