The further development of geo-targeting options for Facebook Ads has already come a long way and is far from complete. From the simple selection of the country, city or street, many new functions have been added up to the current status. The targeting functions are becoming ever more extensive, making them almost impossible for beginners to keep track of. In this blog post, we provide a brief introduction and overview of the topic of ‘hyperlocal targeting’ in ad creation. This makes it possible to precisely define the location in order to display Facebook ads within a radius of less than one kilometre. Firstly, we explain what hyperlocal targeting on Facebook is and provide step-by-step instructions on how to set up hyperlocal targeting and how and for what it can be used.
What does hyperlocal targeting mean on Facebook?
Hyperlocal targeting is used in targeted adverts that are referred to as both ‘hyperlocal ads’ and ‘local awareness ads’. These are aimed at, but not limited to, mobile Facebook users. Hyperlocal targeting means that the ads are displayed to users who are within a limited radius (for example, 1km or less) and are ideal for restaurants, retail shops, cafes, trade fairs, universities, ski slopes and other areas or businesses where short-term promotions are advertised that are not worth travelling far for or even unlikely. The people reached in this way can then be used to create a hyperlocal target group that can be addressed directly for similar events/promotions at a later date.
How does hyperlocal targeting work on Facebook?
If the radius of 1 kilometre is still too large for the target project, hyperlocal targeting is used with Facebook Ads. It is possible to place pins around the target address, then reduce the radius around these pins to one kilometre and exclude the resulting areas from the targeting. This allows the targeting radius to be narrowed down even further.
At the beginning of the year, Facebook introduced a function called ‘Nearby friends’. This was originally designed to make it easier for users to find each other in public or crowded places. As this feature can determine the exact location of a user, this tool led to the implementation of accurate GPS data in the geographical targeting of Facebook Ads.
Many users have authorised Facebook to use their location and even desktop users can determine a location, usually an approximate one, via their IP address. Facebook uses this tracking to display adverts from companies in the immediate vicinity. This ad placement is not only highly relevant for the user due to the location, but can often also prove to be practical. An example: A Facebook user was shopping in the city in the morning. The user feels hungry or might be in the mood for a coffee. While using the Facebook app, an advert for a nearby restaurant or café appears. The user then decides that it’s time for a lunch break and visits the advertised restaurant.
Instructions for hyperlocal targeting in Facebook
First of all, the location is defined as usual in the ad group. However, an exact address or postcode is used in the ad group under ‘Search locations’, as the radius of the location targeting can be narrowed down to 1 km when selecting a specific address.
To set the hyperlocal targeting even more precisely, the pin option is selected to narrow down the radius on the map even further, as sometimes the target project is still too large at 1 km. With the help of pin targeting, pins can be placed on the map so that the originally selected radius is narrowed down further.
As soon as the pins (+1 km) are set within the radius of the area, it is important to ensure that the areas created by the pins are excluded from targeting by selecting the ‘Exclude’ function. This way, location targeting can be broken down to a few metres. After this step, the area in which the advert is actually displayed to users is shown in the blue circle.
Conclusion
Hyperlocal targeting is an interesting geo-targeting option for determining the target group to within a few metres. For example, during a trade fair, in ski resorts, on golf courses or at universities, an advert can be targeted precisely at users who are in the immediate vicinity. The users reached in this way can then be integrated into a target group for retargeting purposes.
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