Social Media Ads vs. PPC Search Engine Ads

Advertising on the internet is a great way to reach a bundle of audience that you would not have otherwise. Paid search and social media ads have become popular over the years and are now great tools for any business’ search marketing efforts. Many small-scale to large companies are taking advantage of them. Few people think of them as opposites or competitors. Actually, they are separate entities that do different things. So, which one is better and which one should you use? Find out in this article.

PPC (Pay per Click) or Paid Search: 

Before you start any Google (or Bing) ads, it is important to have a landing page optimized for conversions. Don’t point your ad to your homepage, it should point to a page that has a buy now button or leads a prospect to contact you quickly. It works on the principle of Return on Investment (ROI). So if the website is optimized for it, you get better conversions.

Google (or Bing) ads have an excellent keywordplanner tool also. This tool gives you guidance on keyword. You just have to type in keywords related to your products or services and it will show you the search volume and for each keyword. These tools can also be used to guide SEO content as well. These tools will also tell you how much you will pay for a click.

When you run PPC campaigns, you have to bid on the specific keywords of your choice and when a user searches for said keyword, your ads will be displayed on Google. If a user clicks on your ad, you are charged for the ad. Google have a wide range of formats for the PPC ads on the search network. There are features that you can use to make your ads more attractive, like ad extensions, reviews, shopping ads, targeting, and more.

Social Media Ads: 

Social Media Ads are similar to PPC ads but there are some differences too. When you run a social media ad campaign, you pay for each ad no matter user interacts with it or not. However, social media platform like Facebook provides an unbeatable number of viewers and so it offers visibility like no other campaign. Although it is more expensive, it is more visual and engages audience on a more personal level. Social platforms like Facebook has over 1.5 billion monthly users approximately equal to one fifth of world’s population and so it targets a large number of customers.

Another beautiful thing about running a social media ad campaign is that if offers detailed demographics than PPC ads. This means you get a continuous visibility targeted at the right set of audience. For example, a pet daycare can share a video of one of their customer with a pet. This video will target the daycare’s demographic market and it may get innumerable shares on the social media platform.  

Which is better PPC or Social Media Ads?

The difference between the two is evident. It’s hard to effectively tell which one is better over other. Both are very powerful advertising platforms. To reach the advertising goals of the company, both must be utilized while maintaining the budget. If you can only afford one ad campaign, it is advisable to test both the platforms and check which one proves better in terms of ROI. Businesses looking for brand building and more visibility can run ad campaign on social media platforms. While businesses like e-commerce can take PPC or Google ads campaign improve sales.

Conclusion: 

There is no competition between PPC and Social Media Ads as both have their uniqueness in terms of marketing and advertising. It depends on your business and budget to take the path. Although for maximum advantage it is necessary to run both, still analyzing or testing the two is advisable.

Please comment your thoughts and opinions in the comment section.