Men respond better to ads on Facebook and are less costly to reach, according to new research from Kenshoo Social and Resolution Media. Women may make up the majority of Facebook’s advertiser audience (58%), but men are more likely to see and click through ads.
How big is the gap? Males have click volume of 60% and impression volume of 58%, while females have only a 40% click volume and 42% impression volume.
On average, ads targeting men also cost less. The cost-per-thousand impressions were $0.16 for men vs. $0.20 for women, and cost-per-click spending was $0.51 male vs. $0.68 female. “Women represent the majority of Facebook users, but it’s cheaper to advertise to men,” said Alan Osetek, president of Resolution Media.
Advertisers spent almost $4 billion on Facebook last year (AdWeek). Resolution’s advertisers spent 53% of their Facebook advertising budgets reaching men. According to Osetek, “…ads targeting men performed better and thus warranted the increased investment. Men delivered better Exposure Rates and click through rates than women, increasing their value for marketers.”
The study – entitled “Social Media Insights: Men Are Cheap” – analyzed 65 billion Facebook ad impressions and 20 million ad clicks over a period of 12 months. The conclusion? Men are exposed to and click on more Facebook ads, and ads targeting men reaching a larger percentage of their unique audience.
“As social media continues to increase in popularity, it’s critical for brands to understand who represents their best consumers and how to best reach them with effective ads,” says Sivan Metzger, general manager of Kenshoo Social. Does your company use Facebook advertising? If so, does your brand target by gender on the social platform – and has it been effective?
