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Social media ad campaign plan template: objective, audiences, ads and results

A social media ad campaign plan sets out what a paid campaign is for, who it targets, how much it spends, which ads you'll test and how you'll judge it. This one is filled in for a fictional pottery studio running a two-week Meta campaign for January taster classes, with a results tracker. Download the filled example or the blank CSV, free with no signup.

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Download

In Google Sheets: File, Import, Upload, then pick the CSV.

What's inside

  • A campaign plan: goal, objective, offer, dates, total budget, landing page, tracking and how you'll judge success
  • An ad sets sheet: audience, location, placements, daily budget, dates and objective for each
  • An ad variations sheet: hook, visual, primary text, headline and button for each ad you'll test
  • A results tracker: spend, impressions, link clicks, click-through rate, cost per click, bookings and cost per booking
  • A filled example for Larkspur Pottery, a fictional studio (every figure is made up), and a blank CSV of each sheet

How to use it

  1. Write the business goal first, such as filling 24 taster class places, then choose the objective that matches it.
  2. Meta Ads Manager offers six objectives: Awareness, Traffic, Engagement, Leads, App promotion and Sales. Pick the one closest to the action you want people to take.
  3. Set a total budget you can afford to lose while you learn, and split it across ad sets.
  4. Test one thing at a time, such as the hook or the visual, so you know what made the difference.
  5. Tag every link so bookings can be traced to the ad that brought them.
  6. Check results every few days, but give each ad enough time to collect results before you judge it.
  7. Judge the campaign on cost per booking, not on likes.

Preview: Campaign plan

A filled example for a made-up small business, first 8 of 11 rows.

FieldPlanNote
CampaignJanuary taster classesExample studio, made up for this template
Business goalFill 24 taster class places in January4 classes of 6
Objective (Meta Ads Manager)Traffic, to the class booking pageThe example studio's choice
OfferTwo-hour taster class, £45, all materials and firing includedSame price as always; no discount
DatesMon 4 Jan to Sun 17 Jan 202714 days
Total budget£210Example figure
PlatformsInstagram and Facebook
Landing pageTaster class booking pageChecked on a phone

Preview: Ad sets

A filled example for a made-up small business.

Ad setAudienceLocationPlacementsDaily budgetDatesObjective
1. Local adultsAdults 25 to 65 with interests in crafts, pottery and days outWithin 25 km of the studioInstagram and Facebook feeds and Stories£12Mon 4 to Sun 17 JanTraffic
2. People who know usPeople who engaged with our Instagram or Facebook in the last 90 daysWithin 25 kmInstagram and Facebook feeds and Stories£3Mon 4 to Sun 17 JanTraffic

Preview: Ad variations

A filled example for a made-up small business.

AdAd setWhat we're testingHookVisualPrimary textHeadlineButton
A1Hands-on videoYour first bowl, made by you, in two hours.15-second vertical video of hands on the wheelNo experience needed. A two-hour taster class with all materials and firing included. Your bowl is ready to collect two weeks later.Pottery taster class, £45Book now
B1Finished pieces photoYour first bowl, made by you, in two hours.Photo of a table of finished student bowlsSame as APottery taster class, £45Book now
C2Reminder for people who know usJanuary classes are open.Photo of a past class laughing round the table (with permission)You've seen the bowls; now make one. Four taster classes in January, six places each.January taster classesBook now

Preview: Results

A filled example for a made-up small business.

AdSpendImpressionsLink clicksClick-through rateCost per clickBookings (tagged link or form answer)Cost per bookingKeep or stop
A£84.009,8001401.43%£0.606£14.00Keep: video beat the photo (example)
B£84.0010,400960.92%£0.883£28.00Stop: over our £20 limit
C£42.003,100702.26%£0.605£8.40Keep: people who know us book cheaply
Total£210.0023,3003061.31%£0.6914£15.00Under our £20 limit; 10 places left to fill
NoteAll figures are made up for this example

Tips

  • Larkspur Pottery, its prices and every figure in the example are made up. The budget and the £20 limit are the example studio's own choices, not a recommendation.
  • Meta's help page on choosing an ad objective, checked on 15 October 2026, lists six objectives in Ads Manager: Awareness, Traffic, Engagement, Leads, App promotion and Sales.
  • Click-through rate is link clicks divided by impressions, cost per click is spend divided by link clicks, and cost per booking is spend divided by bookings. The results sheet uses these formulas.
  • Boosting a post is a quick way to test an idea. A planned campaign in Ads Manager gives you more control over objective, audience and placements.
  • Count bookings with tagged links and a 'how did you hear about us?' question. Platform figures alone can miss bookings made later or on another device.
  • Zolyp, which makes this template, doesn't buy or manage ads. It plans, writes and publishes your organic posts, which keeps your accounts active while ads run. Plans with AI-written posts start at $29 a month.

Common questions

What should a social media ad campaign plan include?

The business goal, the platform's objective, the offer, dates, total budget, audiences, placements, the ads you'll test, the landing page, how you'll track results and the number that means success, such as a cost per booking.

Which Meta ad objective should I choose?

The one closest to the action you want: Awareness to be seen, Traffic for visits to a page, Engagement for interactions or messages, Leads for sign-ups, App promotion for installs and Sales for purchases. Meta's help page explains each one.

How much should a small business spend on social media ads?

There's no right figure. Start with an amount you can afford to spend on learning, set a cost per result you can live with, and only increase the budget for ads that stay under it.

Are the figures in the example real?

No. The pottery studio and every figure are made up. The calculated columns are worked out correctly from the made-up numbers.

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