If you’re a service business owner trying Facebook ads for the first time, here’s the truth most people won’t tell you:
Facebook ads work for every service business.
What doesn’t work is unrealistic timelines, underfunded tests, and overcomplicated strategies.
I’ve worked with dozens of service businesses—local, regional, and multi-city—and the pattern is always the same. When ads “don’t work,” it’s almost never because of the platform. It’s because the business didn’t give the system enough time, enough data, or enough creative.
This guide is not theory. It’s exactly how I recommend beginners run Facebook ads when the goal is to launch your first live campaign and give it a real chance to succeed.
The biggest mistake beginners make is expecting results in a few days.
Facebook advertising is not a slot machine. It’s a data-driven optimization system. The platform needs time and volume to understand:
If you go into ads expecting immediate deals, you’ll quit too early—usually right before things start working.
For service businesses, I recommend:
That’s roughly $4,500 total for your “trial period.”
During these 3 months, you need to be okay with:
If you’re consistently talking to the right people, that’s a win. Once sales start coming, they tend to snowball. Learn more about How Much Facebook Ads cost in 2026
Most business owners shut campaigns off after 3–7 days. That’s not testing—that’s guessing.
Facebook needs time to exit the learning phase and understand who to serve your ads to. Short timelines kill good campaigns before they have a chance.
Trying 2 or 3 ads is not enough.
I recommend launching with 30–50 creatives if you want to give Facebook a fair test. These don’t need to be expensive or overproduced—just different:
Facebook optimizes creatives, not just targeting. If you don’t feed the system enough variety, you’re limiting performance from day one.
Spending $10–$20/day is not enough for Facebook to gather meaningful data.
At $50/day, Facebook can:
If you can’t commit to the budget, you’re not ready to run ads yet—and that’s okay. It’s better to wait than to half-test and conclude ads “don’t work.”
Beginners do not need complex funnels or advanced targeting. Simplicity wins early.
Let the algorithm do its job.
Target people who already know you:
That’s it.
Instead of guessing, use what already works.
Go to the Facebook Ads Library and look up:
Pick 20 ads that all look and feel different:
Model them (don’t copy), adapt them to your business, and add them to both ad sets.
This is where most beginners overthink.
You do not need:
The only setting you should touch is location.
Broad targeting allows Facebook to:
The most important part of the funnel is not the form—it’s what happens after.
You should call leads within 1 minute whenever possible.
Sales is a numbers game:
Ry’s & Shine is a local service business that was just getting started, doing around $3,000/month.
Instead of waiting until everything was “perfect,” they invested in Facebook ads early.
What made the biggest difference wasn’t a fancy strategy—it was execution:
Today, they’re consistently doing $15,000/month.
The ads didn’t magically close deals. Speed-to-lead and follow-up did.
If you want to see all the details of what we’ve done for Ry’s and Shine, you can do so here: Ry’s and Shine
A lower CPL doesn’t mean better performance.
Example:
Higher CPL can be far more profitable if lead quality is better.
Everything else is secondary.
Do not start ads if:
Ads amplify what already exists. They don’t fix broken offers or bad follow-up.
Facebook ads aren’t complicated—but they do require patience, volume, and commitment.
If you:
You give yourself a real chance to win.
If you want help setting this up properly, fill out the form and book a call with us to see how we can build a Facebook ads system that actually drives revenue for your service business.
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