Lead Ads in Marketing Cloud lets you connect your Meta (Facebook) lead generation ads directly to your contact lists. When a contact submits a form through a connected Facebook lead ad, their details are automatically synced into the contact list or lists you specify, enabling seamless list growth from paid social campaigns.
The lead ads page provides a centralized view of all connected lead ad configurations, their associated Facebook pages, mapped contact lists, and current status. You can create new connections, edit existing ones, and activate or deactivate syncing directly from this interface.
Note: Marketing Cloud connects to lead ads that already exist in Meta Ads Manager. The ad itself is created and managed in Marketing Cloud, which manages the connection and controls which contact lists receive the submitted contacts.
Prerequisites
Before configuring a lead ad in Marketing Cloud, ensure the following conditions are met:
- Your Facebook account is connected to your Maropost Marketing Cloud account.
- At least one Facebook page is accessible under your connected Meta account.
- At least one lead ad has been created and published in Meta Ads Manager.
- At least one contact list exists in Marketing Cloud to receive incoming contacts.
How Contact Syncing Works
When a user submits a Facebook lead ad form, Marketing Cloud evaluates the submitted email address against existing contact records:
- If the email address does not exist in Marketing Cloud, a new contact record is created and subscribed to the mapped contact list or lists.
- If the email address already exists in Marketing Cloud, no duplicate contact record is created. The existing contact is subscribed to the mapped contact list or lists.
Note: Activation and deactivation of a lead ad connection are specific to Marketing Cloud only. This action does not affect the status of the lead ad on your Facebook account.
Navigating and Managing Lead Ads
The Lead Ads page lists all existing lead ad connections and provides access to create and manage them. You can also sort the list by Updated At, Created At, or Lead Ad Name in alphabetical order by clicking the respective column header.
- To access this feature, visit the navigation panel, click on Marketing > Acquisition, and select Lead Ads from the expanded menu.
- The lead ads index page displays previously created ads with the following information.
Lead Ad Name: The internal name assigned to the lead ad connection in Marketing Cloud.
Facebook Page: The Facebook page associated with the lead ad. The page name is a clickable link that opens the Facebook page in a new browser tab.
Contact Lists: The contact list or lists are mapped to receive contacts from the lead ad. If more than one list is assigned, a "+[number] more” link appears. Click the list name or the "+[number] more” link to view all associated lists in a pop-up.
Created At: The date and time the lead ad connection was created.
Updated At: The date and time the lead ad connection was last modified.
Status: Indicates whether the lead ad connection is Active or Inactive.
Action: The menu for managing the lead ad. It allows you to edit, activate, deactivate, or delete any lead ad connection from the Lead Ads list.
Viewing All Contact Lists for a Lead Ad
If a lead ad is mapped to more than one contact list, the Contact Lists column displays the first list name followed by a "+[number] more” link.
- Click the contact list name or the "+[number] more” link in the Contact Lists column.
- A pop-up window opens, showing all contact lists associated with that lead ad.
- Click any list name in the pop-up to navigate to that list's List Dashboard.
- To return to the Lead Ads list, use the navigation panel. To view the connected Facebook page, click its name in the Facebook Page column to open it in a new browser tab.
Creating a New Lead Ad
To connect a new Meta lead ad to one or more Marketing Cloud contact lists, create a new lead ad connection from the Lead Ads page.
- To create a new lead ad, navigate to Marketing > Acquisition > Lead Ads. From the lead ads index page, click on New Meta Lead Ad in the upper right corner.
- Enter a name in the Lead Ad Name field. This name is used internally in Marketing Cloud to reference the connection. Next, select the Facebook page that displays the lead ad from the Facebook Page dropdown. The picklist displays all Facebook pages connected to your Marketing Cloud account, sorted alphabetically by page name. The list auto-filters with each keystroke to help locate a specific page.
- Select the specific lead ad from the Facebook Lead Ad dropdown. This picklist only populates after a Facebook page has been selected. Available options are all Meta lead ads associated with the selected Facebook page, sorted alphabetically by lead ad name. The list auto-filters with each keystroke.
Note:The Facebook lead ad dropdown will remain empty until a Facebook page is selected. If no lead ads appear after selecting a page, confirm that active lead ads exist under that page in Meta Ads Manager. - Select one or more contact lists from the Contact List dropdown. This is a multi-select picklist of all contact lists in your Marketing Cloud account, sorted by “Updated At,” with the most recently updated list displayed first. The list auto-filters with each keystroke. At least one contact list must be selected. Click Save.
Important:The "Lead Ad" form cannot be saved if any required field, "Lead Ad Name," "Facebook Page," "Facebook Lead Ad," or "Contact List," has not been completed. Once saved, the browser returns to the "Lead Ads" index page.
Editing, Activating, Deactivating, and Deleting a Lead Ad
You can edit, activate, deactivate, or delete any lead ad connection from the Lead Ads list. Access the available actions by clicking the three-dot Action menu on the relevant row.
- To edit a lead ad, navigate to Marketing > Acquisition > Lead Ads. Locate the lead ad you want to update, click the Action menu (three-dot icon) on that row, and select Edit. Update the relevant fields, Lead Ad Name, Facebook Page, Facebook Lead Ad, or Contact Lists, then click Save.
Note:The same field requirements and picklist behaviors that apply when creating a new lead ad also apply when editing an existing one. The form cannot be saved if any required field is empty. - To activate an inactive lead ad and resume contact syncing, locate the inactive lead ad, click the Action menu on that row, and select Activate Lead Ad. The status updates to Active. New form submissions through the associated Facebook lead ad will sync contacts into the mapped contact lists.
- To deactivate an active lead ad and pause contact syncing, locate the lead ad you want to pause, click the Action menu on that row, and select Deactivate Lead Ad. The status updates to Inactive. No new contacts will be added to the mapped contact lists while the connection is inactive. The lead ad configuration is retained and can be reactivated at any time.
Note:Activating or deactivating a lead ad connection in Marketing Cloud does not change its ad status on your Facebook account. - To delete a lead ad and permanently remove its connection from Marketing Cloud, locate the lead ad you want to remove, click the Action menu on that row, and select Delete. Review the confirmation message in the Delete Lead Ad dialog, then click Delete to confirm, or Cancel to return without making changes.
Warning:Deleting a lead ad connection permanently removes it from Marketing Cloud and cannot be undone. Contacts that were previously synced from the lead ad remain in their mapped contact lists and are not deleted.
Lead Ad Status Reference
The table below describes each status value displayed in the lead ads list.
Status | Definition |
|---|
Active | The lead ad connection is enabled. New form submissions sync contacts into the mapped contact lists. |
Inactive | The lead ad connection is paused. No new contacts are synced until the connection is reactivated. |