The Best Ad Types for

Every Stage of the Funnel

Advertisers are most successful when they take a
full-funnel approach to marketing, rather than just
focusing on one stage of a customer’s journey to
purchase. The three main stages of the funnel—
awareness, consideration, and conversion—are
all distinct, playing an important role in driving
customers through to purchase.
At each stage of the funnel, there are different ad
formats and content types that are most successful,
together forming a full-funnel, successful social
advertising strategy. Read on for an overview of how
to target and measure at each stage of the funnel,
along with suggested ad formats for reaching your
customers before they know you, when they’re
thinking about you, and finally, when they’re ready
to buy.

CO N S I D E R A T I O N
Messaging for consideration
campaigns should be informative
and product-focused. All image and
video-based units should link to site
to allow for further research, and you
should utilize calls to action (CTAs)
to encourage traffic. Showcase your
product’s unique selling point to
encourage consideration against
competitors. Depending on brand
goals, your objective will typically be
traffic or webpage views.
AWARENESS
If your goal is to generate brand
awareness, prioritize content
that is immediately consumable
in-platform. There’s no need
to link out, as the focus of the
content is within the ad. A link
can be included, however, as a
secondary focus within the copy.
CONVERSION
Test price-point or promotion
messaging, include the key
benefits of the product, and
use strong CTAs to convert.
Conversion ads are the most
impactful when there is custom
messaging for new vs. returning
customers.

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AWARENESS

T A R GE TI NG KPIs MEAS UREMENT

Reach

Use broad targeting to provide

Frequency
scale. Rely on demographic
Brand Lift Studies
qualifiers, broad interests, and
CPM
third-party segments.

Ad Recall Metrics

Suggested ad formats for awareness campaigns:

Video Filters

Video is one of the most compelling formats on
social platforms, offering a rich user experience
that often outperforms still imagery. As you
test different video ratios, you’ll see that vertical
units invite higher dwell times and potentially
higher recall. Video viewers can also be used to
build retargeting pools for efforts lower down
the funnel.
Snapchat allows you to advertise on moments,
combining audience targeting with dayparting
to reach users. Geofilters and Audience Filters
are a strong option for driving awareness,
further amplified by the earned impressions
that come from users sharing filtered snaps
with their friends.

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AWARENESS (CONTINUED)
Live Video
Reach audiences in a new way with live video
through Facebook Live, Instagram Live, and Twitter
Periscope. Advertise your live content on Facebook
by promoting during and after the video is live. To
amplify live content on Twitter, feed video from
Periscope into your promoted ads.
Images
Very strong still image content can also be
used for mass reach and awareness. Image
carousels on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
have been seen to drive effective ad recall
across retail brands.
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Instagram Stories
The full-screen vertical format facilitates a
high level of recall. Test against in-feed video
units and optimize accordingly. Adaptly has
seen Instagram drive high ad recall, so it
should be a primary platform for your brand
awareness campaigns.
Canvas
Canvas allows for an immersive user
experience, and engaged users can be used
to build retargeting pools for efforts lower
down the funnel. Facebook offers “Get New
Customers” & “Showcase Your Business”
templates for use in Canvas.
CONSIDERATION

T A R GE TI NG KPIs MEAS UREMENT

Focus on interest, behavior, Video Metrics

and third-party segments
surrounding key passion
points and unique product
selling points.
Lift studies focused on
Engagement Per Format
consideration and intent
Traffic

Suggested ad formats for consideration campaigns:

Video or Image Link Long-Form Video Attachments

Use large, clickable images in the newsfeed to This unit lets advertisers combine a bite-sized
engage customers, build loyalty, and get teaser with a long-form narrative to drive
people to “Learn More” or “Watch More” on consideration. It’s available as a swipe-up with
your website. a “Watch” CTA.

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CONSIDERATION (CONTINUED)
Interactive Video
Facebook 360 video is a captivating way for
brands to share immersive stories, places, and
experiences. Users engage by turning their
device or dragging their finger to move around
within the video and explore every angle.
Website Card
Twitter website cards are link posts with large
real-estate for an image or video that drives
to site. The video website card enables you
to promote your website with video creative,
continuing the conversation on-site and
generating more qualified site visits.
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Video or Image Carousel
Focus on Carousel units to showcase a variety
of assets and to highlight diversity of product
offerings. These can include video, imagery,
or content cards. Performance varies, so we
recommend A/B testing multiple types of content.
Content that performs well within Carousels can
be deployed separately as a Link Ad.
Lead Ad
Consider utilizing a Lead Ad with a simplified
lead form to cement interest and allow for
future selling.
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CONSIDERATION (CONTINUED)

Web View Attachments Collection

You can utilize Web View Attachments to create
lead and offer ads, leveraging a pre-loaded,
vertical website accessible via swipe-up. Calls to
action include Sign Up, Shop Now, Watch, Get
Now, Play, etc.
Use Collections to feature products within
a category on mobile, encouraging users to
browse.

Canvas Event Ad

Allows users to actively browse multiple pieces
of content. This format should also contain links
offsite to encourage further research. Facebook
offers “Get New Customers” & “Showcase Your
Business” templates for Canvas.
Consider utilizing an Event Ad to promote
key events, with the option to re-target users
during a conversion phase.

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CONSIDERATION (CONTINUED)

Promoted Video Pins Promoted Pins

As the only moving content on the platform,
Promoted Video Pins capture attention and
standout in the feed.
Influence Pinners early in the purchase path,
when they’re most open to new brands and
products. As people start their search, they’re
in an open consideration mindset on Pinterest.
Use a mix of keyword and interest targeting to
promote your content within both the home
feed and search placements to drive net-new
customers.

Conversational Ad

Conversational Cards and Instant Unlock

Cards allow brands to start conversations with
customers and encourage discussions around
new products or services.

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CONVERSION

T A R GE TI NG KPIs MEAS UREMENT

Hone in your targeting on users Conversion Metrics

likely to convert. Focus on Conversion lift studies focused
custom audiences, retargeting, on incremental online sales
and lookalike modeling. ROAS (return on ad spend)

Suggested ad formats for conversion campaigns:

Video or Image Link Video or Image Carousel

As with the consideration phase, it is
recommended to A/B test both types of
content (video and image). CTAs like Shop Now,
Download, and Sign Up will help drive users to
conversion with top-performing creative.
Carousels are usually a top performer for
driving sales, and auto-optimizing cards can
provide insight into top performing assets.
Like in the consideration phase, the most
effective assets can be re-deployed as
standalone Link Ads.

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CONVERSION (CONTINUED)
Canvas
The “Sell Products” template gives information
about products or services and encourages
users to shop within the unit. This is a new ad
product, so it’s good for testing.
Collection
This visually immersive format can also drive
shopping on mobile directly.
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Dynamic Ads
Dynamic Ads appear as a version of a
Carousel Ad, used by brands who wish to
re-target onsite browsers / purchasers with
product catalogues.
Promoted Pins
61% of people who were aware of ads on
Pinterest said they’ve discovered new brands
or products from Promoted Pins, and half
of them made a purchase after seeing one.
People come to Pinterest with an open mind
and want to take action on the ideas they
discover, so Promoted Pins help you reach the
right audience at the right time.
CONVERSION (CONTINUED)

Lead App Installs

Lead Ads can also be appropriate for
conversion activity if the user who completes
the form is contacted directly by the brand or
re-marketed to on Facebook.
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Give users a seamless app install experience
using imagery or video across platforms. Ads
tie directly to the App Store or Google Play
to download, helping brands drive users to
conversion. Snapchat’s App Install Attachment
ads have direct response CTAs like Sign Up,
Show Now, Order Now, Buy Tickets, etc.

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