Lead generation ads

How lead generation ads work

Lead generation ads open a short form inside Facebook or Instagram, already filled with the person's name, email and phone number from their profile. They tap, check, submit, and never leave the app. That convenience is why lead ads usually bring more inquiries at a lower cost than sending people to a website. It is also why so many of those inquiries go nowhere: when submitting takes two taps, people submit without much thought.

So the job isn't just to get leads. It's to get leads who are expecting your call and are worth calling.

Five settings that raise lead quality

1. Higher intent form type. Meta offers a form variant with a review step before submitting. Fewer leads, better ones.
2. One or two real questions. "What do you need help with?" with a few options, or "When are you planning to start?" A question that costs five seconds filters out accidental taps.
3. A specific offer. "Get a free quote" is weak. "Get a written estimate for your kitchen within 48 hours" tells people what happens next.
4. A thank-you screen with a next step. A phone number, a link to book, or a note that you'll call within an hour.
5. Feedback to Meta. When your CRM marks a lead as qualified or won, that status can go back to Meta through the Conversions API. Over time the algorithm learns to find more people like your buyers. More on this in the Meta Pixel and Conversions API setup.

Speed decides more than the ad

The difference between calling a lead back in five minutes and in five hours is often the difference between a booking and voicemail. That's why I treat delivery as part of the campaign. Leads go straight into your CRM or at least to a phone notification, and the person gets an automatic text or email confirming their request. If no one can answer at night or on weekends, a chatbot can handle first questions and book a time. The Leads under control package bundles CRM setup and a chatbot for $4,900.

Consent, texting and the TCPA

US rules around marketing texts and calls are strict. Under the TCPA and the FCC's rules, sending marketing texts or making autodialed marketing calls generally requires prior express written consent, and business texting goes through 10DLC registration with the carriers. In practice I add an optional consent checkbox with plain wording to forms where you plan to send promotions, and keep a record of it. Replying to the request someone just made is different from adding them to a promo list. I'm not a lawyer, so have yours review the wording; my article on SMS marketing and the TCPA covers the basics.

Lead ads in regulated categories

Lenders, insurance agents, staffing agencies and real estate agents usually fall under Meta's Special Ad Categories in the US. Lead ads still work there, but targeting by age, gender and zip code isn't available, so the offer and the form questions have to do more of the filtering. I plan for that before the first ad is written.

What you can expect

Within the first week you'll usually see leads arrive. The first month is about finding the offer and form that bring qualified leads at a cost that fits your margins. After that, management is about keeping that cost steady while the budget grows. You get a report every two weeks with both numbers: cost per lead and cost per qualified lead. Ad budget recommendations start around $1,500 a month; fees are on the advertising pricing page.