When it comes to Facebook marketing for boat dealers, it’s easy to feel like a fish out of water. 

To increase brand awareness, lead generation, and eventually, boat sales, attracting the right audience with the right message is key. But how do you reel in the right people? 

Whether you’re a boat-marketing beginner or have been steering the digital marketing ship for your business for years, here are five Facebook ad targeting tips for boat marketers.

Pay Attention to the Buyer’s Journey

Following the buyer’s journey is our first tip for a reason — it’s where you should begin before even running Facebook ads for your boat dealership!

Don’t overcomplicate the chart above. Before running Facebook ads, all you need to do is to consider where your audience is in their buyer’s journey. 

• Awareness: Is a shopper in the very beginning stages of their boat-buying journey? They are likely in the “Awareness” stage. 
• Consideration: As shoppers begin to do more boat research, perhaps they’ve come across your website (hopefully because of some strong search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) work!) They are considering the options, and therefore fall into the “Consideration” phase of the buying journey. 
• Decision: When a shopper has done enough research to the point of feeling confident of taking the next step, they are in the “Decision” stage. This could involve filling out a form on your website or setting up an appointment with your sales team to see their boat of interest. 

Someone in the Awareness stage likely shouldn’t be seeing the same Facebook ad as someone in the Decision stage of the buyer’s journey. This is where your ad targeting becomes so important!

Understand Your Detailed Targeting Options

Although boat marketers are somewhat limited to demographic and interest targeting options due to Facebook’s Special Ad Category for Credit criteria, there are still ways to find qualified leads through Facebook advertising. (Note: Due to a settlement agreement between Meta and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, SAAs will no longer be available to use after 2022.)

While Facebook may not currently have sailboat, speedboat or fishing boat targeting options, many other similar interests are available to use in your Facebook advertising.

Even though some of the targeting options above aren’t directly correlated with people in the market for a boat, you’ll likely attract some people who will be interested in what your dealership is selling or the service you’re offering. 

Utilize CRM Targeting

Marine Facebook ad targeting should always be intentional, and sometimes it can be tough to rely only on “interest” information. 

You don’t want to “wear out” your core audience by using the same targeting every month. That’s why we advocate for incorporating your current leads and past purchasers from your customer relationship management system (CRM) into your ad targeting playbook. 

The contacts in your CRM make up some of the most valuable data you have access to! Nurture current leads through their boat-buying journey by encouraging them to take another look at their boat of interest and to contact the dealership. 

Or, try showing past purchasers of five years or later some of your newer boat models, while encouraging them to see what their current boat is worth. 

Your CRM is chock-full of valuable data, so don’t sleep on including these people in your Facebook ad targeting!

How to Connect Facebook Lead Ads to Your Dealership’s CRM

Exclude Unnecessary Clicks

Once a person purchases a boat from your business, there really isn’t a reason for them to be viewing your Facebook ads in the immediate future (until they’re ready to buy again).  

Thankfully, you’re able to exclude recent purchasers from viewing your ads (and accidentally clicking on them, costing you money) when you upload your recent boat sales lists into Facebook Offline Events. 

This will prevent paying for unnecessary clicks and allow you to focus your money where it really counts — on new leads and customers.

Prove ROI of Your Automotive Facebook Ads with Offline Events

Steer Your Facebook Advertising Ship in the Right Direction

Navigating the waters of Facebook advertising for your boat dealership can be choppy at times, but if you keep these targeting tips in mind, you’ll be that much closer to smooth sailing. 

Looking for more Facebook advertising tips? Our Facebook Ads eBook includes Facebook hacks that benefit those working in nearly any industry. 

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