Lead Generation Success: The Two Types of Ads for 2024 (ACA and Medicare examples)

If you have ever been curious about lead generation ads, then this video is for you because we're gonna be diving into the 2 different types of lead generation ads, one of which you don't even need a website to have optimal results. I'm gonna show you some real examples of what lead generation ads look like, specifically in the Medicare and ACA space. I'm gonna show you the backend of the Ads Manager with some real results literally from last month here in 2024. And then we're gonna conclude by talking about the 5 biggest dos and don'ts when it comes to running lead generation ads. Let's start off by looking at some real lead generation results. So this right here is some screenshots from the backend of the Ads Manager from campaigns. And it shows you, you can see how many leads each campaign generated, what the average cost per lead was. And then on the far right, you can see the amount that was spent. Now, full disclosure, these are not from 2024, and these are the typical results that I show whenever I'm teaching insurance agents and entrepreneurs how to generate their own exclusive leads because I kind of feel like it shows a range of results and it also shows a range of ad spend. But if you asked me and you said, Shauna, I wanna see some results from right now, 2024, I'm gonna show those to you. So right now it's the beginning of February, so I decided to take a screenshot from the campaigns that I ran and one ad account in January of 2024. And these are my results. So you can see right here, we've got the dates. So I screenshotted this straight from the Ads Manager from the one month that these campaigns were running. You can see in the middle how many leads we generated. The average cost per lead was $1.26. And then you can see over there that in the month of January, we spent a little over $16,000. Now, the reason why I don't always show results like this is because then people have the expectation that if they immediately start running ads, that this is the results that they're going to get. And I hate to break it to you, but that's not what typically is going to happen. Sure, you could have what I call a unicorn account where it just takes off and you're able to generate leads like wildfire. But I'm gonna go back to my other screen just to show you. I typically show these types of results. Um, sometimes I even have $10 results in there because 'Cause that's a little bit more realistic whenever it comes to what you might be able to expect whenever you very first start running your own lead generation ads. All right, so let's get into what we're gonna be talking about today. First of all, let's define what is a lead. To me, the way that I define a lead is a person that has shown interest in your product or service. And has provided their contact information, usually in exchange for more information, resources, or offers. So you can run Facebook ads to get someone to message you or to click over to a contact page on your website or for a, a lot of different other reasons. But to me, they aren't truly a lead unless you get their contact information such as their phone number and their email address. So then you can use that information to warm them up and eventually convert them from being a lead into becoming a client. So let's talk about, there are 2 different types of lead generation ads that we're going to be talking about today. And we are talking specifically about Meta, AKA Facebook and Instagram. So we're gonna be talking about whenever an individual is scrolling through their newsfeed on Facebook or Instagram and they see the ad and click on it. But hey, by the way, if you're new around here, my name is Shauna and I teach insurance agents and other entrepreneurs how to generate their own exclusive leads. So if you're into that type of content and that would help make your business explode, then go ahead and click that subscribe button. It costs you nothing and it means a lot to us as content creators whenever you make the decision to click that subscribe button so that way we can keep putting out more free content that's going to help impact your business. So the first type of lead generation ad is a click-to-landing-page ad. So the individual sees the ad, they click on it, and they're gonna go to a landing page. And the second type of ad is a click-to-form. When they click on the ad, it's going to open up a form right there on Facebook or Instagram and keep the user on the platform. So let's dive into what these types of ads actually require. From you as the advertiser to have success. So again, the individual scrolling, they click on the ad and what they're going to be taken to is a landing page. So this is typically a page on your website, or maybe you're using some sort of landing page builder like ClickFunnels, or maybe your CRM already has a landing page in it. So the individual is going to land on that landing page and it's going to have some information at the top with maybe a CTA or a call to action. In other words, asking them to go ahead and submit their information in order to either get something or to schedule an appointment with you or something of that nature. When they click the submit button, they then are taken to a thank you page. They're taken to a page on your website or that's associated with your landing page builder that says, thank you so much. And then it normally will have like, here's the next steps. Go check your inbox for that freebie you signed up for, or we're gonna contact you, or you can schedule an appointment right now. Now, if you were setting up this type of ad where you are running it and having individuals click on it to go to a landing page, here's the things that you need in order to succeed in this. So first of all, you absolutely have to have a website or you have to be utilizing some sort of a landing page builder. Then you have to have a form that is on the page. So if I have the, my website is Social Waves Media, so I have a landing page. You go to it, which I have an example of a landing page that I'll have linked below for a free training. You click on that, that's a landing page. It's gonna have the information at the top. I'm gonna be asking you to give me your information to unlock a free training, and then there's gonna be a form on that page. That form is connected to my CRM or my autoresponder, uh, which is a fancy word for the software that has all of my different leads and contacts information. So then I can email all of them at one time. So you have to have that CRM set up. So whenever you fill in your information on my landing page, it automatically drops you into my CRM, and then you as the user are going to be redirected to a thank you page. Now, if I was running ads to that page, I would have to have the Meta Pixel installed. So the pixel is a tiny snippet of code. Actually, I guess the main pixel, it's a little bit longer, uh, that you get from Facebook and you put it in your webpage. Now it sounds a little bit more complicated than it actually is because there's many different plugins you can put on your website that will populate the pixel throughout your entire site. But when you have a pixel on your site, so when you click on that landing page link that I have below for that free training, when you click on it, it's going to communicate to Facebook that someone just clicked on that landing page. And it lets them know what's happening on my website. Then if I was running an ad to that landing page, Facebook would be able to populate the metrics that that specific ad could attribute to you clicking on the ad and getting over to the landing page. I hope that makes sense. Then we have over here on the thank you page, and you will need to have what is called a standard event. Now again, this sounds a little bit more technical than it actually needs to be, but I just want you to understand the difference between a landing page ad and then a form ad. So when you land on that landing page, I would add an extra little snippet of code to that landing page that says when someone ends up here, they're now a lead. So if I was running ads and you clicked on the landing page, I don't care about that action as much as I care about the people that get redirected to the thank you page because that means that I have their information. So it does take a little bit more tech knowledge, but it's not like super, super duper complicated. But if you want to run these types of ads, you do absolutely have to have a website or a landing page builder. You need to have a CRM. So you have to have that software that you're utilizing. Uh, maybe it's something through GoHighLevel like Agent CRM. Maybe you're using ActiveCampaign or Mailchimp or ConvertKit or some of these other different CRMs that are out there. You have to have that. So the form on your page is linked to it. You could of course have the individual message you in your inbox, but that's not going to be as impactful as you actually collecting their information and having it to email market with them. And you absolutely have to install the Meta Pixel across your website, and then you need to add the event that you want to have happen on that thank you page. All right, so all of that being said, it does take a little bit of tech savviness in order to run a successful click-to-landing-page lead generation ad. But I have good news for you because there is a tool that is literally called a lead generation ad, and it allows you to use a form that is right there on Facebook or Instagram. So I'm going to show you what is needed for that, and then of course I'm going to show you some examples. So let's take a look at what you need for a click-to-form. So the individual clicks on the ad, and it can look the exact same as a landing page view ad, right? They click on the ad and instead of going to a website, it's going to open up a form right there on Facebook or Instagram. And the form is going to have very similar information, but very, very device-friendly if they're on a mobile device or if they're on a desktop. That's going to give a little bit of information, give them the steps, and then you can collect their information the submit button, and then they're going to see a little bit of a thank you page, which I'll show you what that looks like. On the thank you page, you can also customize that and have the same thing, like go to your inbox to get your free download, or click here to schedule your appointment with me, or click here to call me, and so on. So the really cool thing is if you decide to run a click-to-form type ad, you do not need a website. You don't need a website at all. You just need your Facebook business page and of course your Instagram business page. You're going to use the form that's going to collect the leads. And then the cool thing is Facebook or Meta stores that contact information in what's called the Meta Lead Center. And in less than 2 minutes, you can hop on Facebook and you can download all of your leads. Or if you do have a CRM, you are able to connect that form with your CRM. So that way it instantly drops inside. And these days, many different CRMs automatically can integrate with a Facebook form, or you can use a third-party tool. It's called Zapier. I don't want to get too techie now, but that's going to actually take the information and drop it in for you. So you've got options. You don't have to have the CRM, but if you do, you can have that form drop that person's information right into your prospect list. And you absolutely don't need a pixel because it's automatically tracking. They're staying right there. And Facebook, whenever you run these types of ads, are able to automatically optimize for you to get leads and be able to track that information. So when we're talking about a click-to-form ad, you do not need a website. You have, you have the option of having a CRM, but it's not something that's absolutely necessary. Now I want to show you exactly what the workflow looks like if you set up this type of lead generation ad. Now I do have a course that is specifically for insurance agents. It's called Insurance Click to Close, and it teaches you the exact system to generate your own exclusive leads that prompts them to then self-schedule. And I'm basically going to show you exactly what I teach inside the course right here. So first of all, you set up what's called the campaign, right? So that's the back end of the Facebook business settings. Uh, you set all of that up and then you're going to be serving your target audience an ad. And this ad can either go to what's called a lead magnet, or you can push them to book a free consult. Now, a lead magnet, that's something that we can totally get into in another video. That would be you offering something like maybe a free guide on the 5 different health insurance changes that will impact you most this year, or the how to navigate enrolling in Medicare for the very first time. Maybe if you're running a T65 type of strategy ad. So you're asking if they want something like a free guide, or maybe it's a free webinar or something like that. Or the ad could be a direct call to action of asking them to book an appointment where you're saying it doesn't have to be confusing to enroll in Medicare. Or if you're running a final expense ad, it would be on the lines of you are able to take the burden completely off your family, and then you're pushing them to sign up to request a free consult with you. Um, then you can either choose if you want them to go to a landing page, so open up your website or open up a form. Now, when it comes to insurance click-to-close and the system that I teach insurance agents in the course, we focus specifically on utilizing the on-platform tool of opening up a form, and then when the user submits the form, they see a thank you page. So let's look at what that might look like as an individual that is actually scrolling through the Facebook newsfeed. So this guy over here on the left is an example of an ACA ad that you might have out there, and this one over here on the right is an example of a Medicare insurance ad that you might see. So if the individual sees the ad and they click on that learn more button, we take them to a form that is already there on Facebook. And all of this is customizable. So we have this little welcome, uh, that lets them know what's going to happen next. And then we can ask for any information that we want from them. I recommend just going for the bare minimum, which is their name, their email, and then their phone number. When the individual clicks the next button, this is the one link you need. It is a privacy policy, and you can set this up without a website in under 2 minutes. It's especially important if you're a Medicare insurance agent to have the right disclaimer on there so that way you're fully compliant and are able to reach out to your contacts via email or text in order to set up that initial phone call. Then you are going to see the thank you page, which you're also able to customize. And here we have click to call. It's saying Schedule a free consult. But if you wanted to, you could customize this and you could have a link to your website. You could have your scheduler link like we have here. You could ask them to call you, which I'm going to show, or they could download a resource because maybe you're deciding to grow your prospect list by offering a free guide. And once they enroll, they get that free guide, then they get to know, like, and trust you, and then you can warm them up from there. All right, so that is the flow that we teach. Now I wanna show you just an example of if you prompted someone to schedule an appointment, or if you're running a Medicare ad, I would push more to say that you should prompt them to call you now. So let me just show you what that looks like. So the individual has now submitted their information, they're already a lead. So you already have their information and are able to reach out to them. But this is just kind of like a little extra push, you might as well take advantage of having this call to action space here. So you could say, Go ahead and schedule your free consult. Now, when they click on it, you could have a link to your scheduler and let them go ahead and set that up. Or maybe you decide you want to have them call you now. And if they click on that button, it is going to pop up the phone number that you have linked in that ads form so that way they're able to call you. And then just to show you inside the course, we do teach the full system of connecting it to a CRM. But your leads do drop into what's called the Meta Lead Center, and they're sitting right there for you where you can hop in and download them in under 2 minutes. But if you wanted to, you could set it up where it's connected to your CRM and then warm them up with emails, text, and prompt them to schedule an appointment with you. So even if you're not tech savvy, you are able to actually master the skills to generate your own exclusive leads, and you can generate results like this. Now, something I like to say is people like to say to me before— I do have the 5 biggest dos and don'ts that I want to make sure that you leave with, but when people say to me Facebook ads don't work, this is what I have to say to them. So Facebook ads are a tool that is accessible to any business owner that starts a free business Facebook page. It's a tool like a paintbrush. Anyone can pick up a paintbrush and start using it. In fact, Facebook makes it extremely easy for you to publish an ad. They're always asking you, do you want to boost this? Do you want to run this as a lead ad? They give you just a couple of buttons you can click and boom, your content is out there. So it's a tool that anyone can pick up and use. But if you take the time to actually learn about it, you could create something like this where we can see she's creating an apple. I can see what it is. It's taking form. Like there's definitely some talent there. Or if you take the time to really master the tool and learn how to use that paintbrush, you could create something that looks like this. So here's the deal. In both cases, someone's using the same tool. It's a paintbrush. But when you take the time to learn how to optimally use Facebook ads, you're able to optimally and very methodically increase your results. And one of the reasons, as I just showed you, just here in January of 2024, spending over $16,000, we were generating leads for $1.20. I don't always show those because I know that when you first pick up the paintbrush, like if I said, here, we're gonna paint this today, you'd be like, oh, I can't do that yet. We've gotta start by actually painting the apple and learning how to use the tool, right? It's something that is absolutely possible, but You have to be committed to actually learning the keys to unlock that type of success. So I wanna leave you with the 5 biggest dos and don'ts if you are considering running your own ads. Okay? So first of all, don't manage your ads in the Meta Business Suite. So if you create a Facebook page and an Instagram page and you go to business.facebook.com, it gives you access to the Meta Business Suite and it unlocks quite a few different tools. You don't want to be managing your ads there. You actually want to create what's called a Business Manager account or your business settings, and you want to get actually inside the Ads Manager because it gives you access to many different metrics and it allows you to fully structure your campaign in the optimal way and choose your audience. Just realized that my dos and don'ts are in the wrong order, so let's go up to the top. So don't only have one ad creative. People think all the time, if I just run this one ad, or even if I'm running with one of my long-term clients, we never run just one ad. That is one of the biggest mistakes that you can make. Whenever you're running with one ad, it doesn't give you the ability to test different ad creatives and also allow Facebook to optimally choose which combination of your ad actually is going to perform the best. So that's why you always want to have at least a couple of different versions of your ads going out there. Or use something that is called dynamic ads where you allow Facebook to take multiple images, multiple different copy or the text that goes with it, and then kind of mix and match it. Do not skip on completing your profile and your pages. Instead, you do want to optimize your profile and pages. And what I mean by that is for 2 different reasons. One, if someone clicks on an ad or clicks over to your page, maybe it's not even from an ad, it's just an organic post that you've put out there. You wanna make sure that you have a professional looking storefront and they know who you are and what you're about. And 2, it is a vital part of teaching the Meta algorithm who your ideal audience is. The algorithm is crawling your page constantly to collect information on who you are so that way it can match you with individuals that are most likely to respond to what you're about. So sometimes when you're very first getting started and you're not getting a lot of traffic, You have to tell yourself you're just building a strong foundation to teach the algorithm who your ideal audience is and what you're about. Do not listen. Do not launch ads without using every single security feature available to you. There is something called 2-factor authentication, and this is something that before I even start teaching anything else inside my course, I am like, you have to have this set up. The hackers are out of control, and the moment that you get a business page, and especially when you start running any type of ads, no matter how big or small the account is, you are going to constantly be attacked by hackers trying to get access to your account. So you wanna make sure you utilize every single security feature possible. And the very last thing is do not expect instant optimal results. As I said, that's one of the reasons I don't always even show when I'm generating leads that are around a dollar, because people think if I just learn from you, then in the next month I'm going to be able to generate as many, as many $1.50 leads as I want. And that's just not something that is possible. If I started managing your account the first couple of months, we are not going to— probably I've had it happen, but probably we're not going to get optimal results from the very beginning. It takes some time. But what you can do is learn how to optimize your ads. There are specific metrics that will tell you exactly what changes you need to make to either your audience or your ad creative, and specifically which part of your ad creative. And as you continue to learn that, make optimizations, run ads, allow the algorithm to learn who your ideal audience is, it allows you to have long-term, very, very impactful and optimal results. I'm going to leave you with 3 things. So first of all, if you have a question, leave it in the comments. I absolutely love answering questions, and if it is a more complicated question, then I will probably just make a video about it to answer you. 2, if you are an insurance agent that is interested in learning more about meta advertising or more details about the system that I teach, I have a free training that you can unlock instant access to right now that is listed in the description. And third, if you learned anything, no matter how big or small, from this video, go ahead and hit that subscribe button. As I've said, it means a lot to us as content creators and it costs you nothing. I am committed to creating more free content that is going to impact your business this year. So I will see you in the next video.