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Ready for the New Facebook Ad Format?

In April, Facebook announced plans to overhaul the right-side column ads. Long-term concerns about engagement and visual quality led to these changes. Facebook is selectively rolling out the new right-side ads with a complete transition occurring August 1st. Here is what you need to know about the new format along with expected impact of the change.

The new ad format results in a number of changes:

Pictures will be 600×315 pixels, an increase from the current size of 100×72 pixels
Images will be the same proportion as newsfeed images, meaning you no longer must maintain two sets of creatives
Text will appear below the picture and adhere to the current character text limits
Facebook will show up to 3 ads at a time, down from the current 7 ads in the right-side column

These visual changes are expected to impact ad inventory and pricing. Competition should increase for these ad spots with CPM’s increasing in-line. We will have to wait and see the overall pricing effect.

The ads should also be more engaging, resulting in higher click rates. In initial testing, Facebook saw a 3x increase in engagement.

In the meantime—go ahead and prepare your creative for the new right-side ads. As the transition occurs, continue to monitor performance versus newsfeed ads. Previously there was a large difference in cost and engagement between the two ad types. We expect the new ad format to bring performance closer together.

This article was originally published by DigiShopGirl

Published: July 9, 2014
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Katya Constantine

Katya Constantine is a seasoned marketer with over 10 years of online marketing experience. She has developed a well-credentialed background in marketing for large online brands, having significantly increased online performance at several large web properties. Katya also has a deep background in email and multi-channel marketing. Most recently, she was at Expedia and Amazon, leading projects ranging from behavior-based programs to increasing customer acquisition and conversion with great success. Katya is the founder of DigiShopGirl Media. Currently, she advises several ventures with their online marketing. She also contributes to several blogs and publications and readers worldwide regularly read her blog, DigiShopGirl Media Blog. Follow Katya on Twitter: @digishopgirl