The main types of Facebook ads are image, video, carousel and collection ads, along with Instant Experiences, lead ads, click-to-message ads and Advantage+ catalog ads. They run across Facebook, Instagram and other Meta placements such as Feeds, Stories and Reels, and each format suits a different goal.
Choosing a format is only half the decision. You also choose a campaign objective, and the offer you put in front of people matters more than either. This guide covers the current formats, which ones matter most for local businesses, examples, how to choose an offer, and a short glossary. It’s part of our Facebook ads management hub.
Ad Formats vs Campaign Objectives
An ad format is what the ad looks like. A campaign objective is what you’re asking Meta to get you, and it decides who Meta shows the ad to and what it optimizes for. Meta now groups campaigns into six objectives in Ads Manager, described in its guide to choosing an ad objective. These replaced the longer list of older objectives such as Brand awareness, Reach, Store traffic, Conversions and Catalog sales, which you’ll still see in older articles.
| Objective | What it optimizes for | Local business use |
|---|---|---|
| Awareness | Showing your ad to as many relevant people as possible | New location, brand recall in your service area |
| Traffic | Clicks to your website, app or profile | Sending people to a service or offer page |
| Engagement | Video views, post interactions, messages, calls | Video audiences for retargeting, starting conversations |
| Leads | Lead form submissions, messages, calls or website leads | Estimate requests, consultations, bookings |
| App promotion | App installs and actions | Rarely relevant for service businesses |
| Sales | Purchases or other conversions on your site, plus catalog sales | Online bookings or purchases tracked by the Meta Pixel |
The Main Types of Facebook Ads
Meta’s Ads Guide lists the current formats and their specs for each placement. Here’s what each one is for.
1. Image ads
A single photo or graphic with text and a button. Image ads are quick to make and easy to test, so they’re a good starting point. Use real photos of your team, trucks or finished work rather than generic stock images.
2. Video ads
Video ads play in Feeds, Stories, Reels and other placements. They’re useful for explaining a service, showing a job from start to finish, or introducing the owner. Keep them short, put the point in the first few seconds, and add captions because many people watch with the sound off. Video has a second benefit: you can build engagement audiences from people who watched a set portion of your video and retarget them later, which is often cheaper than retargeting website visitors on low-traffic sites.
3. Carousel ads
A carousel shows two to ten images or videos that people swipe through, each with its own headline and link. Use it to show several services, a step-by-step process, or a series of before-and-after photos.
4. Collection ads
Collection ads show a cover image or video with product images below it and open a full-screen Instant Experience when tapped. They’re built for mobile shopping, so they suit retail and furniture stores with a product catalog more than service businesses.
5. Instant Experience ads
An Instant Experience (formerly called Canvas) is a full-screen, mobile landing page that opens inside Facebook or Instagram after someone taps your ad. It loads quickly and can combine images, video, carousels and buttons. It can work well for showcasing a project gallery or a senior living community tour.
6. Lead ads
Lead ads open an instant form inside Facebook or Instagram, with fields that can be prefilled from the person’s profile. Because nobody has to load your website, they’re often the simplest way for a local business to collect estimate requests. Ask a qualifying question or two so the leads are worth calling. Our guide to Facebook lead ads for local businesses covers setup and follow-up.
7. Click-to-message ads (Messenger, Instagram Direct and WhatsApp)
Click-to-message ads open a conversation with your business in Messenger, Instagram Direct or WhatsApp. They suit businesses where people have a quick question before booking, such as “do you service my area?” or “can you come this week?” Only run them if someone can reply quickly; saved replies and automated greetings help, but a slow reply wastes the click.
8. Stories and Reels placements
Stories and Reels aren’t separate ad types; they’re placements where image and video ads appear full-screen in a vertical 9:16 format. With Advantage+ placements, Meta spreads your ads across Feeds, Stories, Reels and other placements automatically. Supply vertical versions of your creative so the ads look native in Stories and Reels instead of being cropped.
9. Advantage+ catalog ads
Advantage+ catalog ads (formerly dynamic ads) automatically show products from your catalog to people based on what they viewed on your site. They need a product catalog and the Meta Pixel. They fit retail and e-commerce businesses; most service businesses won’t need them.
10. Boosted posts
Boosting a post from your Page turns an existing post into an ad with simple targeting. It’s an easy way to give a strong post more reach, but it offers fewer options than a campaign built in Ads Manager, so use Ads Manager for lead generation.
Which Types of Facebook Ads Matter Most for Local Businesses
For most local businesses, three formats do the heavy lifting: lead ads to collect requests, video ads to explain and build retargeting audiences, and image or carousel ads to retarget website visitors. Here’s a starting point by business type:
| Business type | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Home trades (windows, doors, garage doors, insulation, pools) | Lead ads, before-and-after carousels, short job videos | Visual results and estimate requests |
| Dental and medical practices | Video introducing the practice, lead ads for appointment requests | Trust matters; check Meta’s health data rules first |
| Law firms and financial advisors | Video and lead ads with a qualifying question | Longer decisions; financial products ads need a special ad category |
| Senior living | Video tours, Instant Experiences, lead ads for tour requests | Families want to see the community before visiting |
| Furniture and retail stores | Carousel, collection and Advantage+ catalog ads | Showing products people can buy |
Whatever the format, retargeting usually earns its keep. Our guide to Facebook retargeting explains how to set it up.
Examples of Facebook Ads for Local Service Businesses
- A garage door company runs a 15-second Reels video of a same-day spring replacement, with a lead ad form asking for ZIP code and preferred day
- A window installer uses a carousel of five before-and-after projects, each card linking to the matching service page
- A dental practice runs a short video of the dentist explaining what happens at a first visit, retargeted to website visitors from the last 30 days
- A pool service company runs an image ad in early spring offering pool opening appointments, sent to its customer list
- A law firm runs a click-to-message ad inviting people to ask whether their situation qualifies for a consultation
These are illustrations of how the formats fit together, not results from specific campaigns.
Choosing an Ad Offer
The offer is what you give people for acting now, and it often decides whether an ad works. People scroll past ads in a second or two, so a vague “call us today” rarely stands out. Before picking an offer, work out two numbers for your own business:
- What you can afford to pay for a new customer: your target cost per acquisition, based on your margins and past ad results
- What a customer is worth over time: their lifetime value, including repeat work, maintenance and referrals
If customers come back for years, you can afford to spend more to win the first job. If most jobs are one-time, the offer and the cost per lead need to work on the first sale.
Then pick an offer that’s specific and easy to understand, for example a free in-home estimate, a free inspection with a repair, priority scheduling, or a seasonal tune-up. If an offer has a real value, say what it’s worth in plain terms. Match the offer to the audience: people who don’t know you need a low-commitment first step, while retargeting audiences can see a direct “book now” message. Test at least two offers, ideally one at a time or in separate ad sets, and judge them on cost per qualified lead, not clicks.
Facebook Ads Glossary
- Ads Manager: Meta’s tool for creating, managing and reporting on ads
- Campaign, ad set, ad: the three levels of a Meta campaign; the campaign holds the objective, the ad set holds the audience, budget, schedule and placements, and the ad holds the creative
- Objective: the result you ask Meta to optimize for
- Placement: where an ad appears, such as Facebook Feed, Instagram Stories or Reels
- Advantage+ placements: Meta’s setting that spreads ads across placements automatically
- Custom audience: people you already know, from your website, customer list or engagement
- Lookalike audience: new people who share traits with a custom audience
- Meta Pixel and Conversions API: the browser and server tools that send website events to Meta
- Impressions: how many times your ad was shown
- Frequency: the average number of times each person saw your ad
- CPM: cost per 1,000 impressions
- CPC: average cost per link click
- CTR: the share of impressions that led to a click
- ThruPlay: a video play to completion, or for at least 15 seconds on longer videos
- Ad relevance diagnostics: quality, engagement rate and conversion rate rankings, which replaced the old relevance score
For cost factors behind these metrics, see our guide to Facebook ads cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main types of Facebook ads?
The main formats are image, video, carousel and collection ads, plus Instant Experiences, lead ads, click-to-message ads and Advantage+ catalog ads. Stories and Reels are placements where image and video ads appear full-screen.
What type of Facebook ad is best for a local business?
Lead ads are often the simplest way to collect estimate and appointment requests. Pair them with short video ads to explain your service and build audiences, and image or carousel ads to retarget website visitors.
What is the difference between a Facebook ad format and an objective?
The format is how the ad looks, such as a video or carousel. The objective is what Meta optimizes for, such as Leads or Sales, and it decides who sees the ad.
Are Facebook ads also shown on Instagram?
Yes. Ads created in Ads Manager can run on Facebook, Instagram and Meta’s other placements, and Advantage+ placements spreads them automatically.
Can Facebook ads start a conversation with customers?
Yes. Click-to-message ads open a conversation with your business in Messenger, Instagram Direct or WhatsApp when someone taps the ad. Run them only if someone can reply quickly.
Get Help Choosing the Right Facebook Ads
Local Blitz has run paid ads for local businesses since 2009, from offices in San Diego and Indianapolis. We’ll help you pick the formats and offer that fit your business, set up tracking, and report on calls, leads and cost per lead. Ad spend is paid directly to Meta and our management fee is separate, with month-to-month plans and no cookie-cutter packages. Learn about our Facebook ads management and Instagram ads management, or book a free strategy call.
Is AI recommending your business?
We will ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI about your business and show you what they say. It is free.
Want More Customers From Search?
Book a free strategy call, or call San Diego (858) 225-6877 or Indianapolis (317) 672-1156.