When most people think of Facebook, they think of updating their status, keeping up with their friends and business associates, or about how it is a total waste of time.

But there is an upside to Facebook if you are looking for new ways to expose your business to your target market using pay-per-click marketing strategies … for example, Facebook Ads.

Facebook Ads display on the right side of your Facebook page under “Sponsored”. These are ads that people pay for every time someone clicks on their ad. You can also pay for impressions, but I wouldn’t recommend that.

The great thing about Facebook Ads is it allows you to target a very specific market without spending a lot of money. You control how your ads are displayed, how much money you spend, and who will see the ads.

To create a Facebook Ad, login to your Facebook account, then hover your mouse over the Apps area in the left column. “More” will appear. Click on this and it will bring up a list that includes “Ads”.

Once you click on Ads, you will see a button on the next page – “Create An Ad”. Click on this and you will be presented with a screen that allows you to enter the parameters for your Ad.

There will be three sections. Section 1 is where you enter your ad text, upload a graphic, etc.

Section 2 contains demographic information. If the demographics are not displayed, click on “Show Advanced Targeting Options”. Fill in the info, then move on to the next section.

Section 3 contains Campaigns, Pricing, and Scheduling. This is where you set your budget, schedule your ad, and enter the price you are willing to pay per click. You want to be extra careful here. There are two things you want to make sure you do.

Number 1- set your daily budget to keep from overspending on your ad. You can blow a large budget if you are not careful here.

Number 2 – check the Pay Per Click box. Then type in the maximum bid you are willing to pay for the ad to run.

That’s it. Very simple to do, but it takes work to monitor, test, and get results from your ad.

Do not send people who click on your ad to the Home page of your website. Make sure you are sending people who click on the ad to a landing page with great copy that gets them to take action.

For example, your product page, a landing page with a signup form to download an ebook, or a page that gets them to join your mailing list. Anything that prompts them to take action will work. This makes it easier to measure your results and will help you grow your list of potential clients.