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How to Target Facebook Users Based on the Car They Drive

Jon Loomer

[AUDIO VERSION: I also recorded an audio version of this blog post. Click below to listen. Let me know if this is something you find helpful!]

If you’ve been reading the past couple of weeks, you’re starting to realize just how powerful Facebook ad targeting is, even if you aren’t targeting users already closely connected to you.

Make sure you read these two posts for background:

Today we’re going to focus on a specific category found within behavioral targeting: Automotive.

[Tweet “You can target Facebook users based on the car they drive, how much it costs and more. Here’s how…”]

The Basics

As mentioned above, this is found within behavior targeting. Whether you’re creating an ad within Power Editor or the ad create tool, click “Browse” within Behaviors.

That will give you the following categories:

Click on the Automotive category.

You will then be given the following sub-categories:

Let’s start digging into what you can find here!

Motorcycle

When you click the Motorcycle sub-category, you’ll get two options:

When you click “Owners” sub-category, you’ll be able to target Facebook users based on the type of motorcycle that they drive. You’ll get the following options:

Click on the Purchased sub-category, and you can target based on how recently they bought that motorcycle, and whether it was new or used:

New Vehicle Buyers

The next two options are for new vehicle buyers:

If you click the “New Vehicle Buyers (Near Market)” option, you’ll be allowed to target people who will be considering a new vehicle purchase within the next 365 days, by style:

If you click the “New Vehicle Buyers (In Market)” option, you’ll be allowed to target people who will be considering a new vehicle purchase within the next 180 days, broken into three categories:

If you select “Make,” you’ll be given 33 options that include:

If you select “Model,” you’ll get 50 options that include:

Click on “Style,” and you’ll get the same options as listed above when this option is selected for “Near Market.”

Owners

Click on the “Owners” sub-category, and you’ll get the following options:

Aftermarket

Within the “Aftermarket” subcategory, you’ll be able to target people who are likely to buy auto parts, services or accessories:

Make

Within the “Make” subcategory, you can target people based on the make of the car in their household. There are 40 to choose from, including:

Purchased

Click on “Purchased” and you’ll be able to target users based on how recently they purchased their current vehicle. Options include:

Style

The “Style” sub-category will allow you to target Facebook users based on the style of vehicle they own. This was discussed earlier, and includes things like:

Vehicle Age

Targeting users by age of vehicle in their household could be a way to reach those likely to be in the market to buy. Options include:

Vehicle Price

Finally, you can target users based on vehicle price. This could be a good indicator of disposable income:

Purchase Type

Within the “Purchase Type” sub-category, you can target users who are likely to buy or lease a car based on the following characteristics:

Reminder: “In Market” means that users are likely to perform that action within the next 180 days, and “Near Market” is the next 365 days.

Used Vehicle Buyers (In Market)

Finally, you can target users who are likely to buy a used vehicle within the next 180 days. You can refine your targeting buy Make and Style. Both were already discussed above.

Where Does Facebook Get This Data?

All of this information comes from Partner Categories. Facebook partners with data mining companies (in this case Datalogix) that collect data based on purchases, applications and surveys completed and send it to Facebook for ad targeting purposes.

It will undoubtedly sound creepy to some that you can target based on some of this information. But if you get past the creepiness, this data can be used to generate incredibly relevant — and useful — advertising.

For the purpose of the automotive targeting, Facebook explains the source of almost all of this information as follows:

Multi-sourced, U.S. consumer household information that draws from geographic, demographic and area-level vehicle characteristics. Validated using actual vehicle registration data.

Is it accurate? Test to find out!

As always, advertisers have no access to the names associated with this data. For more on how this data is used, make sure you read this message from Facebook.

How Can Advertisers Use This Data?

Here are a few examples of how advertisers can use this information…

Auto Dealership: You can target users based on whether they own a new or used car, by make and model, and you can make sure that you’re only reaching those who are likely to currently be in the market for a new car. Lots of possibilities!

Mortgage and Loan Company: What are your current rates? Target people in the market for a car, making adjustments based on likely amount a customer may put down.

Auto Insurance Company: Target users based on the specific make and model of car they own, complete with typical rates for that car.

Lifestyle: For brands with big ticket items that may only appeal to the wealthy, target those with expensive cars! On the flip side, you may have a product or service that appeals to a demographic on the other end of the spectrum.

Your Turn

Have you started using this information in your targeting? What have you done, or what ideas do you have?

Let me know in the comments below!

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