You’re probably already using Google AdWords to target customers who are searching for your type of product or service, but are you taking advantage of Facebook ads, as well? While they won’t replace your need for Google ads, they are a powerful marketing tool in their own rite. The cost per click is generally lower with Facebook compared to AdWords, allowing you to get more bang for your buck. Plus, Facebook ads are built for any budget. You can spend thousands of dollars a day or just one.
Facebook vs. Google
The important thing to understand about Facebook ads and Google AdWords is that they are apples to oranges when it comes to their intended purpose. Google is a paid search ad. Meaning, you’re targeting customers that are specifically searching for your product or service. So, if Jane is looking for a baby crib on sale, and you happen to have nursery furniture for 30% off, you and Jane are a match made in heaven. You just have to step into her field of vision so she can see you’re perfect for her. In this scenario, Google is the pair of binoculars that lets her skip over everybody offering sofas, dining room tables, and recliners so she can focus in on your baby furniture-filled hands.
Facebook, on the other hand, is a paid social ad. Instead of targeting customers who are using search terms to find a product or service, social media ads help users discover businesses based on their interests. Basically, paid social lets customers find you, even when they aren’t specifically looking for a product or service.
So, in the case of our nursery-planning friend, Jane, even though she might not be searching for that crib at the moment, Facebook knows she fits your target demographic in gender, age, and many other ways. Plus, she’s doing lots of things online that have told Facebook she’s interested in family planning and nursery furniture and baby names—making her the perfect potential customer to appreciate seeing your ad in her feed.
The Facebook Benefit
Another way to think of Facebook ads, and social ads in general, is that they are all about awareness. By marketing to Facebook users who fit your target demographic and have shown their interests line up with your product or service, you get the chance to bring awareness of your brand directly to your ideal customer, who may not have even previously known you existed.
Facebook ads can also earn you more “likes” and followers, drive more traffic to your site and blog posts, and encourage more engagement in general with your target audience.
Bang for Your Buck
As we said, you can advertise on Facebook for mere dollars. But since you can be sure that every person on Facebook who sees your ad is someone who you directly want to be influenced by your brand, you can see a big return on your investment! The important thing about your marketing budget, is that you’re making each dollar you spend work both harder and smarter. That’s where using a mix of search ads (Google) and social ads (Facebook) come in to play.
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