Dan’s been married for years.

Facebook knows this.
He told them. His profile says “married.”
He even has a whole album of wedding photos to prove it.

And yet—every week, like clockwork—he gets served ads for local wedding photographers.

Now don’t get us wrong. The ads are lovely.
Beautiful images. Great headlines. A clear call to action.
Exactly the kind of ad we’d usually celebrate.

Except… it’s being shown to completely the wrong person.

Dan is not the audience.
And someone, somewhere, is paying to get that ad in front of him.

What’s the Big Deal?

You might be thinking: “It’s just one impression. Not a huge deal.”

But multiply that by:

• 10,000 irrelevant people in the wrong audience
  
• A few hundred wasted clicks
  
• Ads running every day for weeks
  

… and suddenly you’ve got a Facebook ads campaign burning through budget—without a single real lead to show for it.

The worst part?

It could’ve been avoided with one small setting change.
A 2-second tweak: simply selecting just ‘Engaged” from the targeting options.
Done. Budget saved. Audience refined.

The Most Powerful Ads in the World Still Fail If They’re Shown to the Wrong People

We say this all the time:
It’s not just about what you say—it’s about who you say it to.

You could have:

• The most stunning creative
  
• The world’s best copy
  
• A dream offer your audience actually needs
  

But if that ad lands in front of someone who has zero relevance to your business?
They’re scrolling on by—and you’re paying for it.

And worse, it can start to feel like Facebook ads don’t work—when really, it’s the targeting that’s broken, not the platform.

Why Targeting Is Everything in Facebook Advertising

Facebook and Instagram give you some incredible targeting tools.
You can dial in:

• Age
  
• Gender
  
• Marital status
  
• Location (down to the postcode)
  
• Life events (like just engaged or just moved)
  
• Interests, behaviours, and so much more
  

But the truth is: most people don’t know how to use them properly.

That’s where strategy comes in.
That’s where experience matters.
And that’s where we come in.

How to Avoid Wasting Money on the Wrong People

At Impactful Marketing, we’ve managed over £5 million in ad spend and we’ve seen how easy it is to burn through budget when your targeting is even slightly off.

That’s why we always start with questions like:

Who are we really trying to reach?
What stage of the buying journey are they in?
What exclusions need to be in place to protect your spend?
How can we maximise every penny by showing your ad to the people most likely to take action?

Because great ads start with great targeting—and the difference it makes is huge.

Need a hand with your Facebook Ads? Here’s some options:

Done For You – Discover how we can take over all of your Facebook Ads hands-free.

Done With You – Explore the ways we can work alongside you and your marketing team.

Free Video Training – Instant access Facebook Ads training.

Free Resources – Handy guides and downloadables.

Blogs – More blog posts like this with real stories of strategy and success.