Facebook ads for online course creators can be a game-changer and if you're reading this you’re probably curious to learn how! 

So, you spent months creating your perfect online course and now you’re left wondering “How do I get my course into the hands of thousands of eager students, faster?”

One sure way to amplify your social media efforts, build your audiences faster and get your courses into the hands of more students, is to start with some simple list building ads. 

You don’t even need to be a tech genius to start using Facebook and Instagram ads to turbocharge your list building efforts and reach thousands of potential students sooner.

After giving away our Facebook ads free course to over 10,000 students, we know for sure that anyone, with the right guidance, can start using Facebook and Instagram ads to build their audience faster!

Let's explore five easy ways you can get started with Facebook and Instagram ads to build large, warm audiences that beg you to buy your online course sooner.

Use Low Budget Ads To Reach More People And Find Your Target Audience Online

You will never feel ready to start paying for ads. You just have to start. 

But, you also don’t need to spend your life savings on ads to see great results from the start. 

As soon as you start creating consistent content on Facebook and Instagram, you can turn your best organic posts into Engagement Ads to help ‘boost' your engagement and get your amazing content in front of more people at a very low cost. 

• Use Engagement Ads to create more engagement on your social media accounts.
  
  
• Turn your best organic content into an Engagement Ad.
  
  
• Target large cold audiences to give the algorithm the best chance to find your ideal customer. 
  
  
• Spending just $1 per day on Engagement Ads will be better than not running ads at all.
  
  
• Use this strategy to test your message to market match and find the perfect messaging that connects with your ideal customer.
  

Create Compelling Images And Videos That Stop The Scroll

Facebook and Instagram ads are what we call “interruption marketing” which is a fancy way of saying your ad is created to interrupt your ideal customer as they are scrolling through their News Feed. 

For this reason, your ad creative should always speak very clearly to their deepest desires so that they stop scrolling and pay attention. 

When your ideal customers can ‘see’ themselves in your image or video enjoying the outcome that your course or lead magnet will get them, they are more likely to stop scrolling and read the copy. 

• Video ads usually create deeper connections and convert better than images, but test both to see what works for your audience.
  
  
• Limit text on your image to just the main benefit of your offer, plus a clear call to action if you have to.
  
  
• Use visual clues in your image that allow your ideal customers to ‘see’ themselves in the dream reality they envision they will be living, once they have the outcome you promise in your offer. 

Start Simple And Get Fancy Later (Or Never)

The biggest enemy of good Facebook and Instagram ads is complexity.

This is even truer today than it was pre-Apple’s iOS updates of 2022 that left the algorithm blind to the information that got fed back via the pixel. 

Start small, start simple and keep everything as consistent as possible for as long as possible. 

• List building is always your no. 1 priority when it comes to using Facebook and Instagram ads to build your online courses business.
  
  
• Forget about fancy retargeting until you know for sure that you’ll get a positive return on ad spend from your list building ads or your launch mechanism ads (Webinar, Challenge, or Video Series you’re using to convert your leads to sales).
  
  
• Retargeting ads are bells and whistles. Get the basics right then add the bells and whistles.
  

Use Video Testimonials As Ads

People love stories and we can’t help seeing ourselves in the stories other people tell. 

When you use video testimonials, you offer your ideal customer the chance to see someone else who is just like them, and hear their story of how they succeeded in creating exactly what your ideal customer wants. 

Your ideal customer is often concerned about their perceived shortcoming or limitations. They wonder if they can get the same results as some of your other students, who they falsely believe do not have similar limitations. 

When they see someone like themselves, with the same shortcomings and challenges, succeed – they build trust in you and in your ability to help them get results. 

• Record video testimonials from a wide range of students.
  
  
• Focus on what the typical objections your ideal customer has before buying from you. Tell the stories of people who overcame similar challenges and succeeded with your help in your video testimonials.
  
  
• Start running testimonial ads in the weeks leading up to your launch so that your audience can slowly see multiple success stories over time before they make their buying decision. 
  

Re-Use Old Facebook Ads For Online Course Social Proof

Course creators often ask me how often they should swap out the images and videos in their ads.

This is a legitimate question and it makes sense to swap out images and videos if you run an eCommerce business, where the journey between the first point of contact and the sale is much shorter than with an online course funnel. 

Once you have your best list building ads, launch mechanism ads, and sales ads launched, optimized and scaled – keep the creative exactly as it is for as long as you can, so that you can allow the social proof on the ads to continue to build. 

Doing this will increase the algorithm’s ability to optimize your ads each time you run the ads and your cost will dramatically decrease.

You’ll also see the benefits of having many people comment and share your ad which builds credibility for you and your brand. 

• Keep your ad creative the same as long as you can, unless you absolutely have to change it.
  
  
• Give the algorithm more and more data to learn from to find your best lead online.
  
  
• Build trust using the social proof from the comments, likes and shares on your ads. 
  

Knowing the secrets to using Facebook ads for online course launches, list and audience building, and to increase sales in a launch can be a complete game changer for your business.