Beauty multinational Procter & Gamble has stated it is to scale back its targeted advertising on Facebook as it focuses more closely on wide and diverse advertising campaigns.

P&G, the largest advertiser in the world, has suggested that Facebook offers limited effectiveness in terms of targeted marketing and that, for large companies such as itself, a wider marketing strategy is more successful.

Despite Facebook having 1.7 billion users and offering targeted campaigns based on user demographics, shopping habits and life events, P&G has suggested that one product may only reach 5,000 people, and it would take those 5,000 users to be extremely profitable to justify the advert.

Speaking in an interview, P&G’s chief marketing officer said, “We targeted too much and we went too narrow. And now we’re looking at: What is the best way to get the most reach but also the right precision?”

Indeed, breaking the current craze of social media advertising, P&G is said to be moving away from this trend and towards traditional TV campaigns.