Facebook Ads
Still the biggest paid channel in Ireland.
Facebook gets written off prematurely. It still reaches 84% of Irish adults monthly, skews older and more purchase-ready than Instagram, and remains the most cost-efficient platform for most direct response campaigns outside of Google Search.
Audience builder · live preview
Layered targeting
Audience size
1.4M
Specific
200k–600k
Balanced
1M–2M
Broad
2M+
Est. CPR
€4.80
Reach / €100
~21
How we structure audiences
Four audience layers, each with a different job.
Not a single stacked mega-audience, not pure broad. Distinct audience types per ad set, each learning its own lessons.
5M–10M
Broad
Discovery & scale
Minimal constraints beyond geo + age. Meta's algorithm given maximum latitude to find converters. Usually the highest-volume ad set, sometimes the lowest CPA with enough budget.
500K–2M
Interest
Thematic match
2–4 relevant interests combined. Less about "who is my customer" and more about "what does my customer do when they're not buying from me".
150K–500K
Lookalike
Probabilistic twin
Seeded from high-value customers or 30-day purchasers. 1–3% lookalike works best for most. 10% lookalikes behave like Broad — we skip them.
30K–150K
Retargeting
Intent recovery
Site visitors, video viewers, engagers. Lower CPA but caps out fast. Small budget, high ROAS. Always in the mix.
Where Facebook still wins
The 35–65 demographic is still here, and still converts.
Younger users shifted to TikTok and Instagram years ago. What's left on Facebook proper is a high-value demographic — homeowners, parents, professionals, established purchasing power. Under-utilised by most agencies.
Irish users by age · % daily active on Facebook
18–24
41%
Mostly on IG/TikTok instead
25–34
68%
Still dual-platform but drifting
35–44
82%
Peak Facebook users
45–54
85%
High purchase intent, strong engagement
55–64
76%
Growing segment year-over-year
65+
58%
Price-sensitive but loyal
Rough market estimates — actual percentages vary by region and cohort. Directional only.
The audit findings we see most
Six targeting mistakes that leak budget.
Stacking too many interests
Fix: Each interest layered on an ad set narrows it. 4+ interests = under 200K audience. Use 1-2 broad interest themes.
Exact-match lookalikes on small seeds
Fix: <1000 source = poor LAL quality. Either use broader seed, bigger LAL %, or skip and use interest audiences.
Excluding buyers from retargeting
Fix: Repeat buyers are the most valuable segment. Include them in their own ad set, not excluded sitewide.
Targeting too small a radius for local businesses
Fix: 5km radius sounds precise but often has insufficient volume. We usually recommend starting at 15–25km and letting Meta optimise within it.
Age bracket too narrow
Fix: Picking 28-34 because that's your ideal customer ignores that 24 and 42 year olds also buy. Start with 25-55 and let performance tell you.
Detailed targeting expansion on / off by default
Fix: Detailed targeting expansion forces Meta to ignore your interests. Sometimes we want that; more often we don't. Always a deliberate decision, not left on default.
Use cases
What Facebook specifically is excellent at.
Lead generation
Instant Forms work brilliantly for local services, home improvements, insurance, B2C consulting. Native form + CAPI = low-friction lead capture.
Local awareness
Local businesses (restaurants, gyms, salons) with catchment-radius targeting. Still unbeatable for low-cost local reach on established demographics.
Cold ecommerce (35+)
For audiences over 35, Facebook ecommerce CPAs consistently beat TikTok and often beat Instagram. Marketplace + catalogue ads layered.
Events & ticketing
Event RSVPs, concert tickets, conference registration. FB Events integration + reminder notifications drive strong conversion.
Community building
Facebook Groups are still dominant for niche communities. Ads driving group join → nurture → sale works in specific verticals.
B2B (specific sectors)
Not a replacement for LinkedIn, but for trades, construction, hospitality B2B sales — Facebook often outperforms on reach and cost.
Frequently asked
Facebook Ads questions.
For under-25s, mostly yes as a primary platform. They have Facebook accounts but rarely browse the feed. But Meta's ad system connects Facebook + Instagram + WhatsApp + Messenger — including FB placement typically costs nothing extra and adds reach to older cohorts that Instagram-only campaigns miss.
Related services
Works best alongside
Underestimated platform, over-delivered results.
Share your ad account and audience setup. We'll return a diagnostic that shows which audiences are leaking budget, which demographic skews you're missing, and the first three we'd test next.