22 Facebook Ads Predictions for 2022

It's a new year, a new day & buoy are we feelin' goood!

1. Facebook new model for tracking conversions

Facebook will continue to update its tracking model to rely more on predicting conversions.

After the recent privacy updates from Apple to its OS, Facebook in 2022 will continue to build on its Conversion Modelling approach.

Modeling uses aggregated data from different sources to account for conversions Facebook is unable to count directly.

2. The rise of TikTok as an ads platform

After announcing its ad platform in 2021, Tiktok will emerge as a serious contender for your Social Media Advertising dollars in 2022

After achieving over 2 billion downloads worldwide, Tiktok, the genesis of internet trends will emerge as a solid contender to Facebook & Google for social media advertising Long-form content makes a comeback

3. Average minimum budget changes

Facebook’s minimum budget of USD25/day per ad set is expected to increase in 2022.

With rising advertising costs due to new advertisers & measurement issues requiring a higher amount of conversions to reach an optimal level, we see a requirement for higher spending in the coming year.

We expect Facebook to roll out a higher minimum daily budget to accounts gradually this year.

4. Paid Social Is Indispensable

Getting in front of people without paying gets even more difficult in 2022.

With organic reach at all-time lows & new content creators popping up from everywhere, paying for reaching new & even existing audiences becomes inevitable

With simple press & play options like ‘Boost Post’ on both Facebook & Instagram, Automated Ads & the comprehensive Ads Manager dashboard, businesses will have plenty of options for the Pay to Play model.

5. Hybrid Reporting approach

After the Apple iOS debacle, privacy concerns & the lack of a full-proof tracking system, businesses will have to rely on multiple sources to understand the impact of their marketing spend on their bottom line.

Businesses will have to work with not just the data reported by Facebook, but also look at stats from tools like Google Analytics placed on their website

6. eCommerce on Instagram

The push by Instagram to be the numero-uno destination for e-commerce will continue in 2022.

With many shopping features like product tags, shops & even live selling, Instagram will give businesses even more tools to expand their offering.

Customers will have a jolly time as well with these new-low friction tools that enable a more personalised & reliable medium of commerce.

7. AR/VR Linkage

With covid becoming a reality of the current & the future, augmented & virtual reality will play a key role in defining customer journeys in 2022.

Shoppers will have a new way of shopping online by trying the products within the comfort of their own homes.

Metaverse is coming & it’s going to change things forever!

8. Video comes out as the clear winner

Video is already the leading form of creative for organic & paid content.

With the advent of TikTok, Instagram Reels & Youtube Shorts, the message is clear - the tech giants wants you - the creator to push out more video content.

And it makes sense too. A video keeps the user longer on their platform than an image does.

9. User-generated Content Will Continue to Be Popular

Audiences today crave authenticity in online content.

Polished high-value productions might be on the rise, but raw content without any fancy editing still takes the cake when it comes to really connecting with the audience

Relatable content spoken with authority & authenticity will triumph all content in 2022.

10. Increased reliance on Facebook algorithm

With increased machine learning capabilities and the petabytes of data Facebook has on their users, having faith in the Facebook algorithm to show our ads to the right person at the right time becomes inevitable.

All one needs to do is give it the right input!

11. Longer ad update cycles

Facebook recently told advertisers to wait for up to 72 hours as that’s how it now takes them to report conversions.

This means advertisers & businesses need to wait longer before judging a campaign’s performance & making changes.

Grab that extra cup of patience y’all!

12. Vertical video content will become the norm

Vertical ads take the most real estate on a user’s screen and their growth has skyrocketed with the invention of stories, Tiktok videos, reels & now Youtube shorts.

Expect businesses tailoring their videos from the production stage to be vertically oriented in 2022.

Cutting out landscape videos into vertical videos won’t work this year!

13. Consumers wise up to ads

With increased awareness around the reality of ads being shown on social media platforms, consumers have become warier about the ads they see.

They know a product shown on an e-commerce site is likely to be available on AliExpress or Amazon at a lower price and occasionally at faster shipping speeds.

Personalisation & adding value to the product that sellers on other marketplaces don’t would be a key driver in generating consistent revenue for businesses in 2022.

14. Crypto space sees further relaxation

Last year Facebook eased its policy on ads related to crypto & other financial products.

Expect to see a more relaxed policy & easier ad approvals on crypto, NFT & similar projects in 2022.

And who knows we might just see a complete removal soon!

15. Influencers become a critical part of the campaign

Storytelling is a key part of the marketing process.

What you say is important, but who says it is even more important.

Influencers fit right in the scheme of things.

Expect micro-influencers to be regular fixtures in advertising campaigns even for small businesses in 2022.

16. Costs continue to rise

Fair to say, this is the easiest one to predict.

With new advertisers, rising inflation & the times we live in, costs across Facebook & Instagram, and other social media platforms will see a significant surge in costs.

Unlike previous years, the lack of consumer demand could lead to a higher bump than witnessed over the last decade.

17. MMO/MLM offers get replaced by Crypto

The classic internet scams gets replaced by sophisticated crypto projects in 2022.

Where Make Money Opportunity/Multi-level Marketing offered to make people millionaires within months, crypto projects offer the same riches overnight.

One thing is for sure, people will continue to fall for this in 2022.

18. First-party data becomes the foundation

First-party data like website analytics whether it’s Google Analytics or Shopify statistics for e-commerce owners becomes the cornerstone for measuring the effectiveness of their ad spend.

Since Apple announced iOS14, tracking conversions has become increasingly difficult.

A combination of first-party & third-party tools is the way forward in 2022.

19. Privacy-first future

In spite of the hullabaloo around Apple’s restriction on allowing Facebook & other 3rd party tools from tracking its users due to privacy concerns. We are progressing towards a privacy-first future.

This has been acknowledged by Facebook as well.

That said, we do expect better tracking & measurement solutions in 2022. But nothing like we had previously. Well at least, not in the very near future.

20. More automation

Creation, monitoring & optimisation of ads would see more automation built into them in 2022.

With so many moving parts, humans are too slow to make changes on the fly.

AI, the buzzword of the last decade will make it presence felt more profoundly on the Facebook ads platform, especially on the client’s side of things.

21. Less is more

Gone are the days when putting out 100s of ads was the recommended way of setting up a campaign or scaling it.

In 2022 and beyond we’ll see fewer ads being put up that take most of the data.

These limited ads will then be optimised & scaled.

22. Funnel of 2022

In traditional marketing, people moved across the funnel sequentially.

Today, with so many external triggers, users can skip a majority of these sequential steps and jump straight into the last one or start from middle of the funnel. Or even go back to 1st step after almost reaching the final.

There’s a funnel. But there’s not a funnel!

Bonus Predictions

23. Personalised ads

People will continue to expect personalisation & customisation in their experiences interacting with brands.

In the Facebook context, this means showing ads with copy & creatives tailored individually for every person.

Thank god Facebook has tools that will help us in that regard.

24. Dropshipping/E-Commerce gets bigger, harder

Dropshipping is not dead. Will never be.

However, it gets tougher as consumer awareness grows and they demand faster shipping & better personalised products.

E-commerce gets bigger in 2022…and harder.

25. Digital Advertising continues to grow

There’s no stopping the spending by businesses through the digital channel.

As more and more people stay & work from home, businesses will rely on channels like Facebook, Instagram & TikTok to reach customers that they reached via traditional marketing channels.

The world’s changing, so are we & so should you.

2022 will be even crazier than 2021. Buckle up!

Here’s wishing everyone reading this a very prosperous & growth-filled new year from everybody at 0-Penny Headquarters.