How to Effectively Run Paid Social Ads for the Aesthetics Industry

As a Social Media Manager you have to be ready to adapt to any industry and client that you come across. At Embryo, we do SEO, PPC, Social Media and Content for a wide variety of clients – ranging from recruitment to kitchens to property. One of the more complex clients to run social adverts for are those in the aesthetics industry. 

The Difficulties

The aesthetics industry is not only an extremely competitive industry to advertise in, but also restricted hugely by Facebook’s Advertising Policies. Key aesthetic marketing tactics, such as before-and-afters and videos showing the procedures in depth, are all strictly prohibited by Facebook. Their ad policy states: 

“Ads must not contain “before-and-after” images or images that contain unexpected or unlikely results. Ad content must not imply or attempt to generate negative self-perception in order to promote diet, weight loss or other health-related products.”

On top of this, if you’re trying to promote any intimate treatments, you’re even more limited in the type of vocabulary you can use. Facebook uses their prohibition of ‘profanity’ quite liberally, so even trying to explain the area that you use the treatment for, will get your ad disapproved. Trying to allude to the intimate benefits of a treatment will also get your ad disapproved, under their ‘adult content’ restrictions. (This can also include any ‘images focused on individual body parts, such as abs, buttocks or chests, even if not explicitly sexual in nature’ – I recently had an ad disapproved for focusing on the head)

If you’re trying to promote Botox, the word ‘botox’ itself will get your ad disapproved, as will a landing page that contains references to it. 

These are just a few examples of Facebook’s restrictions – the list could go on! The top and bottom of it? You need to take a whole complete new approach to aesthetics marketing on social media. 

Top tips:

• Focus on the experience and professionalism of your clinic, not the benefits of your treatment 
• Get creative with your vocab – e.g. anti-wrinkle injections instead of Botox
• Keep your advert vague, but still spark curiosity 
• Make use of testimonials and reviews as opposed to before-and-afters
• Keep in mind the marketing funnel – it can take multiple touchpoints to convert an impression into an enquiry
• Trust your Social Media Marketing agency – you may want to be extremely explicit and to the point with your adverts, but this is definitely not the way to approach aesthetics advert campaigns on social media