One of the most common questions our marketing pros get relates to where people should spend their online advertising budget: Google Ads or Facebook Ads?
Of course, if money was no object, you would have an inbound marketing strategy that seamlessly integrates both into your site content in perfect harmony.
But money is an object—and time matters, too—so you have to decide where to spend the majority of your marketing money. We get it. So we’ve gathered some examples of when each works best. Hopefully, you’ll be able to make an informed decision about whether Google Ads or Facebook Ads is better for your business.
Google Ads or Facebook Ads?
| Google Ads | Facebook Ads | |
| What’s the purpose of my campaign? | Generating leads, boosting sales | Promote an event, improve engagement, boost brand awareness |
| Have people been searching for me? | Yes. People are actively looking for my business/product. They’re considering buying, and about to make their decision. | No. People need to know my brand is out there, and I need to convince them to consider buying from me. |
| Do I have brand recognition? | Yes, when people see my ads come up against my competitor’s ads in Google Ads, I have a fighting chance. | No. If my ad was adjacent to my competitor’s ad, people wouldn’t have enough knowledge or trust of my brand to engage with me. |
| What’s my product or service like? | Tried and true, easy to describe and sell with a text-based ad campaign. | Brand new, novel, one-of-a-kind, visually appealing (pictures have helped me sell in the past) |
| What can I spend? | I’m ready to spend more to get a higher conversion rate (especially if Google Ads is the best call for me for a lot of other reasons). | I have less to spend right now. I just need to get my feet wet and get my brand out there. |
| How wide a net do I want to cast? | I want anyone who searches for keywords and phrases related to my product to be able to find me. | I want to be able to have lots of control over who I market to. I have a very specific target market in mind. |
Which is best for you?
As you can see, nobody is only going to advertise online one way over the life of their business. It comes down to what you’re advertising, for whom, and where they are on their buyer journey when they see a particular ad.
If your brand is just starting out, Facebook Ads are a great strategy. They’re an affordable way to get your message—and your brand—in front of tons of potential customers. And you can customize your ads as much or as little as you want along the way.
Ideally, once your brand gets more established, you can incorporate Google Ads into your inbound strategy. This way, you can be sure to find the people who are actively searching for you.
No matter how long your brand has been around, this same approach applies to new products, services, or initiatives you may introduce. Facebook ads will come in handy when the product is new to the market. Google Ads will be a great way to get your product straight to your audience. This approach works especially well when they know they can’t live without it.
When has advertising with Facebook and/or Google Ads helped your business? Share your success stories with us!
