How to Make Money Managing Facebook Ads for Local Small Businesses

Saving money on make money managing facebook does not have to be complicated. We rounded up the essentials so you can spend less and skip the guesswork.

Key Takeaways

• How to Make Money Managing Facebook Ads for Local Small Businesses Tens of millions of businesses in the United States need marketing help b...
• From fresh "leads" to boosted revenue, see why running Facebook Ads for small businesses can be a lucrative side hustle.
• Written by Jen Smith Last Updated: April 1, 2025 Reviewed by Jana Lynch Home Side Hustles Some of the links on DollarSprout point to product...

How to Make Money Managing Facebook Ads for Local Small Businesses

Tens of millions of businesses in the United States need marketing help but can't afford someone full time. From fresh "leads" to boosted revenue, see why running Facebook Ads for small businesses can be a lucrative side hustle.

Written by Jen Smith Last Updated: April 1, 2025 Reviewed by Jana Lynch

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There’s this amazing coffee shop in my city just off the beaten path. If you weren’t looking for it, you’d never find it. But somehow it always has just enough people inside to keep the place feeling lively without being crowded.

That’s not an accident.

I see its Facebook ads all the time. It’s like the company knows I love it there so it seeks me out to let me know about its specials and events.

And it does.

Facebook ads allow local businesses to advertise to shoppers, fans, and neighbors in unique and targeted ways to encourage them to become repeat shoppers. But not all small businesses take advantage of Facebook ads, making this a excellent side hustle for you.

Why Managing Facebook Ads is a Good Side Hustle

Since Facebook ads are still a relatively new way to advertise, it’s not that difficult to get paid to post ads on Facebook for local businesses. You don’t need a specialized degree, it’s not a huge time commitment, and you can even use some of the social media skills and knowledge you already have to give your services an edge over the competition.

Josh Eberly of 717 Home Buyers said that he started offering Facebook ads as a service after using it for himself to generate leads.

“I have now been able to offer the same service to other investors who have had excellent success generating off-market property leads for affordable on Facebook,” he explains. “These leads have been as affordable as $5 on the platform, much lower than a direct mail or lead from Adwords.”

Even without specialized expertise, there are plenty of businesses with the budget to pay you $1,000 to $2,000 per month to manage Facebook ads for them. You just have to know which niches to target and how to find them.

Related: 5 Realistic Ways to Make Money on Facebook

What is Facebook Ad Management?

Facebook ad management means just that , managing Facebook ad campaigns for clients. A Facebook ad manager creates and executes a Facebook ad strategy that attracts new shoppers, leads, and traffic that they want for their business.

The ad manager listens to a client’s goals and creates graphics, ad copy, target audiences, and tests campaigns to try to meet those objectives at the lowest cost per conversion possible. They might also create images, sales copy, and oversee the advertising budget.

Related: 16 Low-Cost Online Business Ideas You Can Start Today

How to Get Started Managing Facebook Ads for Local Businesses

There are over 30 million small businesses in the US, making up 99.9% of all businesses in America.[1] That means ample opportunity for someone looking to start a side business helping people grow their businesses.

Source: Fundera

Before you dive headfirst into managing ads or even taking a Facebook ads course, you should understand what goes into creating a Facebook ad management side hustle. There are several components you’ll need to learn and details you’ll have perfect so you get the right clients at the right prices.

1. Learn the basics of running a Facebook ad campaign.

First, you need to be familiar with the Facebook Ads Manager and the terms used in it. However, if you find it too overwhelming or confusing to understand on your own, you should consider taking a Facebook ads course rather than going at it alone.

The FB Side Hustle course, created by Bobby Hoyt and Mike Yanda teaches you everything you need to know in nine modules about creating ads, finding clients, and convincing those clients to sign contracts with you for consistent income.

Objective Campaign objective types can be chosen to fit the needs of the business you’re running ads for.

The objective is the type of ad you’re running. It’s key to pick the right one because the ad is optimized based on your choice. An ad whose objective is “Engagement” will be shown to people who have a history of liking and commenting on posts, while a “Traffic” ad is shown to people more likely to click links.

Knowing the ultimate goal for your ad and selecting your objective based on it will get your client (and you) a bigger return at a lower cost.

Target audience Facebook offers robust targeting options allowing advertisers the ability to effectively reach their target audience. 

You’ll need to determine your intended audience, and you have the option of creating different types of audiences. For instance, Custom or Lookalike audiences allow a business to target past shoppers or people who have similar interests to past shoppers.

Local businesses typically use demographic or location targeting, and you can also narrow down your audience based on interests, behaviors, and more. Every time you make a change, Facebook will show you your potential reach to help you determine whether your audience is too broad, too narrow, or just right for your objective.

Ad placement Advertisers aren’t just limited to the Facebook News Feed. Choose from any Facebook-owned property when finding your target audience.

Placement of your ads isn’t limited to Facebook. You can use the ad on Instagram, Messenger, and Facebook’s Audience Network. But not all ads work well on all platforms.

Knowing what works best on each and customizing images and messages for the different platforms can be key to get the return on investment (ROI) your client is looking for.

Budget Facebook allows for flexible ad budget options. Advertisers can choose the budget and bid cost that fits their needs.

You’ll also need to know how ad budgets work and which one is best for your client and their campaign. You can choose a lifetime budget or a daily budget, and you can set your ads to run indefinitely or be scheduled to start and end on certain dates.

The nuances around managing Facebook ads can make them seem intimidating, but they also keep people away from running them professionally. If you take the time to learn the ins and outs of Facebook ads, you have the opportunity to create a reliable side income.

2. Learn how to design an effective ad.

You’ve probably seen hundreds of Facebook ads, but can you remember any that stand out? If you can, there was probably something unique about it. Maybe it had a colorful picture, a rare limited-time offer, or a funny line of text.

You’ll need to learn to craft your own effective ad visuals to get the highest return on your work and your client’s ad budget.

If this is starting to sound a little overwhelming, pause for a minute. You can find much of this information for free on the internet, or you can pay to take a Facebook ads course and get all this information in one place.

Free web-based design sites like Canva or Buffer can help you make high-quality ads with little investment. You might need to purchase photos or vector images, but these programs do have free ones. You can also check out a site like Shutterstock for high-quality stock photos.

Related: How to Become a Graphic Designer in 8 Simple Steps

3. Find local businesses.

There are several ways you can find local businesses that are a good fit for offering your services. Numerous people start with networking.

“I found numerous job leads through referrals, on LinkedIn, and in some freelancer and/or social media professional Facebook groups,” said Stephanie Riel, owner of RielDeal Marketing. “I’ve been able to help brands run up to 30 successful campaigns in unique markets across the United States.”

Don’t forget about in-person networking. You might also want to consider asking friends who own local businesses or joining your local chamber of commerce to find clients.

Remember that not all local

Final Thoughts

The bottom line: a little research on make money managing facebook goes a long way. Compare your options, watch for seasonal offers, and never pay full price when a better deal is one click away.

Originally published at dollarsprout.com.