Facebook updated its self-serve ad tool today to allow businesses to target their ads by a precise topic instead of a broad one.

Before today, when an advertiser would create an ad through Facebook, the topic choices were limited to very big categories such as Parenting, Gardening and Pets. Now there is a link to switch over to Precise Interest Targeting.

This allows you to type in a topic that will target your customer. A number of options will appear and when you choose one, similar topics will be suggested as well.

Suggested topics with the pound sign in front of them cover those who have Liked official, unofficial, and related pages for that subject. This helps your brand get exposure to all those who may have an interest but haven’t necessarily Liked the official page for that topic.

Experiment with different topic variations until you find the ones that work for you. As always, the self-serve ad tool will update with potential reach based on your entries.

This new functionality is also available through the ad API tools for businesses that run multiple creative.

[Source: Inside Facebook, Image credit: TheMarque]