Top 4 Paid Advertising Alternatives to Google Search Ads
The key to running a successful business is to get your product or service to the right people at the right time in the right place. To do that, you need to find the right marketing strategies. For fast and consistent results, people often flock to Google Search Ads to get their business ranked among the top search results.
It’s a great and affordable tactic, allowing your name to be seen by the right people on topics relevant to your business. But it isn’t always that easy. Sometimes Google Search Ads don’t cut it. There are times when your audience isn’t quite right for search ads, or maybe you just want to add another tactic to your marketing mix to grow your customer base and your bottom line.
Why Choose a Different Strategy Over Google Search Ads?
Google Search Ads can be a great way to reach potential customers, but sometimes it isn’t the best option for your company or your specific marketing strategy.
Between your audience, your budget and your specific goals, Google Search Ads might not be the right choice – or even the only chance you should go with.
The top reasons to consider a different approach include:
- Cost efficiency
- Audience targeting
- Platform-specific benefits
- Content marketing
- Specific use cases
- Diversification of marketing efforts
1. Cost efficiency
Switching to another platform might be cheaper. Platforms like Microsoft Advertising have less competition, leading to a lower cost-per-click. If these smaller platforms are still relevant to your audience, it’s an efficient way to work with a smaller budget without seeing a drop in conversions.
2. Audience targeting
Google Search Ads does offer detailed targeting features, but it isn’t always the best choice if you have a specific audience you want to reach. Platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram offer highly specific demographic targeting options, allowing you to reach a more precise audience with your marketing dollars.
Additionally, depending on your target audience, social media platforms may be used more regularly and convert better. For example, a younger target audience might mean it’s better to advertise on Instagram, but if your service caters to other businesses, LinkedIn is where you want to be.
3. Platform-specific benefits
Not all advertising platforms are built the same. As you take in the benefits each platform offers, you’ll want to consider what you’re selling. Some platforms are better for visual products, other platforms are better for streamlining purchases during online shopping sessions and there are some tailored to hit consumers when they’re researching different brands.
As part of this, you’ll want to consider how the platform allows people to interact and engage. This includes if people can comment and respond and the format itself that the ad appears in.
4. Content marketing
This revolves around where you want your ads to be placed. Content marketing has become a favored strategy in recent years, meaning it’s often beneficial to take a more subtle approach to paid advertising. You want to use a platform that allows your ads to appear beside organic content.
You should consider not only that but also the goal of your advertising. For example, if your strategy includes more educational content, you want a platform that aligns with those goals.
5. Specific use cases
If you’re advertising a sale or an event, you might want to switch up the platform you’re marketing on. Additionally, other platforms are better if you’re playing on certain trends or widespread events – like the Olympics. If you have ads capturing on these things, social media platforms are a better place to advertise then Google Search Ads.
6. Diversification of marketing efforts
Possibly the biggest reason to use a different platform is to diversify your marketing efforts. Whether for a different campaign with a different audience or to get more eyes on the same campaign, using another platform in conjunction with your Google Search Ads is huge for your marketing efforts.
Relying solely on Google Ads can be risky. Diversifying your advertising efforts across multiple platforms can reduce dependency on a single traffic source and leads. Additionally, using a combination of platforms allows you to reach different segments of your target audience who may prefer different channels.
Alternatives to Google Search Ads
Once you’ve reviewed your goals and target audience and decided to take a different approach, it’s time to consider your options. It’s essential to pick the right platform to get your message across the way you want and to the right people. And that comes down to the advertising platform you use.
The primary alternatives are:
- Microsoft Advertising
- Facebook Ads
- LinkedIn Ads
- Other Ad Types Through Google
- Youtube
- Display
- Shopping
1. Microsoft Advertising
Microsoft Advertising, formerly known as Bing Ads, are similar to traditional Google Search Ads but are served on the Bing search engine. They offer many of the same targeting features as well as display and shopping ad capabilities seen in Google Ads.
Utilizing this platform is a cost-effective alternative to Google Ads as it’s usually cheaper on a Cost-Per-Click basis and can easily integrate with LinkedIn. Using it in conjunction with Google Ads can also be a great way to extend your reach, hitting people on both search engines.
2. Facebook Ads
Facebook Ads are advertisements that appear on Facebook as sponsored or featured. These ads are great for companies targeting demographics that frequently use the platform. Facebook Ads also make it easy to advertise on Instagram due to a connected platform.
These ads are typically highly visual, utilizing images, video and carousels, and can be even be seen on stories. These ads can also be highly targeted, reaching specifically defined audiences. This can make a huge difference in ad success.
This is a great choice for companies focused on generating brand awareness.
3. LinkedIn Ads
Similar to Facebook Ads, these are sponsored posts but for LinkedIn. Ads can also appear directly in people’s messages as Sponsored InMail or as text ads. As a professional social networking site, this is a great choice for companies targeting other businesses
You can take that targeting further with different features on LinkedIn, allowing you to target based on job title, industry, company size and more.
4. Other Google Ads Campaign Types
Google Ads isn’t just search ads. It also offers Display Ads, Shopping Ads and YouTube Ads. These different campaign types allow you to more easily integrate visuals in your ads and focus on brand awareness.
Display Ads use images to appear on the sides of websites and other key places alongside website content. With these campaigns, you can target specific people as well as appear on certain websites. This is a great way to re-engage with people who have visited your website in the past or show up on competitors' websites.
Shopping Ads are ideal for e-commerce websites as they allow you to push selected products to the top of Google and make it easy for people to find and make a purchase. In the days of online shopping, it’s key to make it as easy as possible.
When thinking of a YouTube Ads Campaign, think of the advertisements that play before and during a YouTube video. This advertising format has a huge audience as YouTube has over 2 billion monthly active users. More than that, these campaigns offer detailed targeting opportunities, room for highly engaging content and cost-effective options based on different format options (like skippable and non-skippable ads).
Selecting the Ideal Ad Campaign
For any marketing campaign, there isn’t typically one right answer for choosing how to advertise. It typically comes down to picking the right channel mix that allows you to get the most out of your money.
It may not always be straightforward to get the perfect advertising campaign up and running and may even take some trial and error. For help in this challenging – and sometimes confusing – process, contact the professionals at ThreeSixty to help you. We’ll be happy to meet with you and help identify the best options for your unique business.
