Facebook Ads and Google Ads are the two largest PPC platforms available. Google Ads uses the vast Google Display Network to show ads on YouTube, mobile apps, and more, while Facebook Ads are shown to the millions of people who use the social media platform daily.
But which is the best option? This is THE question and it requires a detailed look at what each platform provides, what type of customers they appeal to, and how they compare with each other in terms of ROI and suitability – we discuss all of this below!
– Recidulous audience potential: The Google Display Network is composed of over 35 million websites and apps. A Google Ads agency knows that type of potential reach is difficult to ignore and this is a large reason why Google Ads is so popular – everyone uses Google!
– Quality not expenditure: Google Ads offers everyone a level playing field whether you are an enterprise business or a solo entrepreneur. The emphasis is on the quality of your ads – not how much money you throw at them, so anyone can thrive using this PPC platform if they make the effort.
– Versatile ad formats: Google offers a wide range of ad formats such as display ads, YouTube ads, and mobile ads. Furthermore, you can format these ads in a number of different sizes and layouts – the customization is simply amazing.
– Greater conversions: Google Ads is perfect for targeting “switched on” customers – those who are already in the process of looking for something. Due to this process and the targeting available with tools like Google Customer Match, it often results in greater and more meaningful conversions.
– PPC cost: Google Ads is the more expensive option and this isn’t arguable. There is also a heap of competition due to the scope of the platform and how many people use it.
– Frustrating customer support: Google Ads can sometimes fall short of customer support – particularly for the ad approval process. AI algorithms are used to determine ad suitability and this has led to instances where a company’s ads have been incorrectly rejected.
– Steeper learning curve: There is a lot of learning involved in creating successful Google Ads compared to Facebook and it isn’t something you can master overnight. This is where a Google Ads agency can help.
Did you know that approximately 2.93 billion people use Facebook each month? That is the type of potential exposure your adverts can gain and it is a large reason why many businesses use Facebook Ads.
Facebook Ads offer more creativity and visual elements compared to Google Ads but you are typically trying to engage customers who are just general browsing through the social media platform with no firm goal. This differs from Google Ads as this PPC platform is targeted more at “switched-on” searchers – those who are actively looking for something or to make a purchase.
– Granular targeting: Facebook Ads are known to be more granular and really allow you to tailor the ads to suit people’s interests, beliefs, hobbies, and browsing habits which are limited with Google Ads. It gives you personalization on a whole new level which contributes to the higher ROI.
– Predominantly visual ads: Facebook Ads are mainly visual and there is no minimum text requirement (it used to be 20% but this was scrapped). As a result, Facebook Ads are generally considered to be more visually appealing compared to the mainly text-orientated Google Ads.
– High ROI: Facebook Ads can generate a pretty good ROI when done right and they often outperform Google Ads on a cost-per-click basis and other metrics. From a purely business point of view, if you have the right target customers, Facebook is the top option.
– Tough setup: Facebook Ads sadly aren’t easy to set up and it does require a lot of work just to be eligible for Ad placements. This includes being active on Facebook and engaging with your customers, and a solid audience score of 1000+ to use the lookalike audience feature. Google essentially has no setup requirements.
– Limited demographics: A drawback of Facebook is that it has a greater appeal to a smaller age range – typically the 24-34 age bracket. In contrast, Google is pretty much universal and cross-generational and there is no definitive age range that uses Google more.
– Meta trust: The reputation of Facebook and Meta has taken numerous hits over the years and unfortunately some people don’t trust the company. Things like misreporting metrics, and unscrupulous data collection make some people cautious about using the social media platform and engaging with any ads on it.
You will hate this answer, but there is no defacto winner. We cannot definitively say that Google Ads is better than Facebook Ads or vice versa. Which PPC platform is more beneficial depends on your individual business situation, target audience, and goals.
Google Ads can be seen to be the better option for getting results from customers who are ready to make a purchasing decision, whereas Facebook Ads excel at piquing the interest of a general audience.
In many instances, it can be beneficial to run both Google Ads and Facebook Ads and many businesses to make an ROI on both platforms. The key is to find what works for your business.
One of the first things you should learn about Google Ads is the different types of ads you can create and how they work.
We suggest learning about Responsive Search Ads before any others as it appears that Google is pushing the use of AI and certain ad types may eventually be phased out in favor of RSA ads.
Below, we explain what RSA ads are, how they are generated, and their pros and cons so you can see if they are suitable for your business’s PPC campaign.
The first step in generating an RSA Google Ad is to make the ad copy variations. You can enter up to 15 different Ad headlines and 4 different Ad descriptions. These should all have the same underlying theme and purpose, but you can vary the word order, words used, and keyword placement for example.
Google then uses complex AI algorithms to select up to 3 headlines and 2 descriptions at once to generate the best version of the Ad. The different text order can result in the creation of multiple ad variations which is great for testing.
Aside from selecting the ad copy, the AI also tests the combinations to see which should yield the best results based on the wealth of data it has stored. It will then select the best ad versions and prioritize these for placement and bidding.
Google Responsive Search Ads can be hugely beneficial when used correctly and they have many positives. A PPC management marketing agency will be able to help you generate the copy variations to create effective RSAs but you need to understand their pros and cons too:
Pros
– Brilliant content variety: Did you know that if you enter the full 4 descriptions and 15 headlines that they can be sorted into over 40,000 unique variations? That’s a hell of a lot of ad potential! To put it short, Google RSAs offer amazing variety and the sheer volume of permutations allows you to do extensive testing to find what works and what doesn’t without having to completely re-design that ads from scratch each time.
– Excellent optimization: Google AI does most of the work for you and because it is analyzing its own statistics and metrics you get better-optimized ads for your target customers. A business simply wouldn’t be able to do what the AI does in the same amount of time for as little a cost.
– Quicker process: The creation process for RSAs is undoubtedly quicker and it only takes a few minutes to create the ads. The slowest part is writing the different headlines and descriptions. You can enter as few as 3 headings and descriptions which shortens the time even more, but we do recommend using more permutations to get the most out of the AI selection process. The more you can give the AI, the better end results you should see.
Cons
– Less overall control: Because the headlines and descriptions are automatically generated using AI, you do not have full control. Depending on your business, customers, and products, this could be a drawback and you may need to use a different ad type that is better suited for your business.
– Similarity to the competition: The fact that you don’t get to see the final version of the ad can be disconcerting and the end result can be quite similar to your competitor’s ads. This may mean that your ads do not stand out. You can tackle this and regain some control with the headlines and descriptions you use. They must be creative, unique, and engaging, and then Google AI has more to work with to produce ads that stand out.
With the pros and cons in mind and a firm understanding of what RSAs have to offer you need to know how to create them. As mentioned, RSAs are the default ad type but you still have to manually create them using the following steps:
1. Select “Ads & Extensions” from the left menu of your Google Ads account.
2. Click on the plus button and select “Responsive Search Ad”.
3. Enter the final URL and display path.
4. Enter the headlines and descriptions.
5. Save the new Ad.
As you can see this is a really simple process and the technical side of it is quite easy – Google does most of the work for you. The difficult part is writing the headline and description variations. You can pin descriptions and headlines if you want them to be in every ad variation and this is useful if you need legal terms in your ads for example.
Learn How to Use RSAs Now for Future-ProofingIt is clear that Google will continue to use AI to improve Google Ads and give you more personalization and better targeting for your Ads. This is all fine and only beneficial for us, but it means that you have to stay up to date with the latest Ad types and make sure you understand how to get the best results.
RSAs are the default ad type, but you should really look at how to create effective heading and text variations and remember that the text variations must be able to stand on their own and be used with any combination of text and descriptions.
Google Ads is proven to be one of the most effective PPC (pay-per-click) solutions and millions of businesses use this platform worldwide. It has many benefits including the fact that you only pay for results, and the vast network of websites and apps that your ads are displayed on.
But how do you make successful Google Ads campaigns? There are many different components that make the perfect ad including written copy, your bidding strategies, but perhaps most important – keywords.
Choosing the right keywords greatly boosts the effectiveness of your ad campaigns but many people and businesses struggle with this. To help, we use our SEO knowledge and look at how to choose keywords for Google Ads.
Let’s give the floor to Google to give a simple answer, “Keywords are words or phrases that are used to match your ads with the terms that people are searching for”.
Pretty simple right? That was a quote from Google and it explains them perfectly. Let’s say you want to find a gardener to tidy up your garden before the winter? You search on Google for “gardening services in X” with X being your location.
Google will display search results and Google Ads that use those keywords.
Keywords help get your adverts noticed by the people who actually want to use your services or buy your products – they link buyer with seller. The better you can utilize keywords in your Google Ads, the better ranking they will have and the higher chance they have of showing when people search for those phrases.
You can see the usefulness of these phrases but how do you find the best keywords for Google Ads? To give you a head start, we discuss six simple techniques below.
The simplest starting point for keyword search for Google adwords words is to dissect your business, products, and services, and what you want the advert to achieve. What does your business do? What industry are you part of? Do you sell to a specific country or region? What is your target customer demographic? What products and services do you sell?
Asking these basic questions oftentimes gives you a list of readymade keywords for your Google Ads.
After you have brainstormed your business and products or services, it’s now time to look at your customers and think about their journey. What are they likely to search for? What questions will they ask when they use Google? What is the purpose of their search?
Understanding your customer and how they approach searching will give you excellent insight and allow you to find suitable keywords.
Short term = Higher search volume keywords with just one or two words that are less specific.
Long tail = lower search volume keywords with three or more words that offer more specificity.
These are the two broad keyword categories and it’s important to consider both. Short term keywords are more difficult to compete for but they offer a much higher search volume. In contrast, long tail keywords might not be searched for as much, but they can yield higher conversion rates and often aren’t competed for as much.
Many businesses utilize competitor keywords so that they can offer a viable alternative to their main competition. This can be an effective strategy but it has to be used with caution as you don’t want to bite off more than you can chew and get into a bidding battle with other businesses.
Competitor keywords are basically keywords that include your competitors business name that they may try and rank for. For example, Mercedes could use competitor keywords like “BMW cars”, or “BMW electric cars” to show their Mercedes cars as a potential alternative.
Aside from keywords that you expect customers to search for to find your adverts, there are also keywords that you DON’T want association with. Say hello to negative keywords.
Negative keywords can be used for a Google Ad and you can specify words you don’t want your ads to appear for when searched. For example, let’s say that you rent out luxury holiday apartments. Due to the nature of your business and the expense of your product, it could be a great idea to use negative keywords like “affordable”, “budget”, and “cheap”.
Think about it – are people searching for affordable apartments likely going to want to stay in your luxury properties? No. So, using negative keywords cuts them out and allows you to get more effective results. It also allows you to control your PPC budget more effectively.
While using your own business knowledge and customer data is a great way to find Google adwords words, there are some incredible tools available too. Some of the most popular tools and platforms include:
Google Keyword Planner is a great starting point as it’s part of the Google network, is free to use, and can be used in-conjunction with your Google Ads platform and Google Analytics.
Other paid tools like Semrush, Moz, and Ahrefs can get great results too and give you a wealth of keyword research data that you simply wouldn’t be able to find otherwise. Once you have done the basic keyword research, to really find the best keywords for Google Ads, tools like this are invaluable.
Without keyword research your Google Ads campaigns will not be as effective – no matter how well the copy is written.
A highly specialized PPC marketing agency can help with keyword research as they have detailed insight of tools like Google Keyword Planner, but also features like negative keywords, retargeting, and competitor keywords.
One of the first questions we are often asked about SEO (aside from how much it costs!), is how quickly we expect to see results.
Unfortunately, people outside of the SEO industry believe that the moment they optimize their web content and use keywords, that their website will immediately show up on search engines.
Sadly this isn’t the case and we dispel these misconceptions below and explain how SEO works, and when you can expect to see results.
There are many factors that affect your SEO and how quickly you can expect to see results and it’s important to understand them so you can set your expectations accordingly:
Google hates slow page loading speeds and this can have a negative impact on your SEO results. You can use various tools like PageSpeed Insights to show where you could improve loading times.
General content quality is hugely important and this relates to the accuracy of your written copy, images, and other media. Essentially your content should be readable, engaging, and relevant to your business.
Page reliability relates to your authority, trustworthiness, relevance, and the influence Google perceives that you have. The higher your reliability, the quicker you may see SEO results.
Images contribute to SEO and can be useful for adding keywords to Alt tags (this is a piece of descriptive alternative text shown if the user cannot see or display images).
Keywords are obviously incredibly important in SEO and if you only use short-term keywords that are harder to rank for it could take longer to see results as opposed to using less-competitive long-tail keywords.
If you have lots of competitors with excellent websites and optimized content it could take longer for your SEO results to show.
Older websites often get SEO results quicker as they already have an established series of backlinks and web presence that Google can utilize.
It’s no good implementing SEO and having no way to check if what you are doing is actually any good! Luckily, there is a plethora of excellent tools and plugins available that show you if you are on the right track and these include:
WordPress has some excellent plugins like YOAST SEO and Rank Math that show you if your web pages are optimized properly. Other analytical tools like Google Analytics have a broader scope and allow you to see important website metrics like traffic, bounce rates, and CTR which are all good SEO indicators.
Using keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner also helps show if the keywords you are using in your SEO campaigns are working and how difficult they are to rank for. All of this information you gather helps paint a picture of the quality of your SEO and can help estimate how quickly you can expect to see results.
Statistics and business insight show that you can typically expect to see SEO results in 4-12 months after implementation. You have to remember that this is just an average and your business could experience something completely different. There are many factors that affect SEO so while one business could see results in as little as a month, another might not see results until 12 months due to increased competition or the fact they have a newer website.
The key is to trust your SEO expert in the UK and make a commitment for the long term. You have to be willing to make that initial investment and allow for the fact that you won’t make an immediate return.
Don’t get discouraged by the fact that it can take 4-12 months to see serious SEO results. May things in business are not instant but the investment is still worth it. SEO is one such case and once you start to see the results, you will be glad that you made the push to optimize your content and make SEO part of your marketing strategy.
Decoding the science of online advertising can seem like an intricate task, primarily due to the fact that Google does tend to update its policies regularly throughout the year. When it comes to PPC advertising, many businesses struggle around the question, “How many ads should be implemented per ad group?” This fundamental decision holds considerable sway over the success and efficacy of an advertising campaign – and we’re going to help you work through this question in the following blog – so let’s take a look!
To start, it’s pivotal to comprehend the structure of an online advertising campaign. Think of it as a tree, with the campaign as the trunk, ad groups as the branches, and the ads themselves as the leaves. Each ‘leaf’, or ad, within an ‘ad group’, targets a specific set of keywords relevant to your product or service. The careful coordination and organization of these components significantly impact the return on investment (ROI) from your advertising campaign.
least three ads per ad group. This leads us to the question: why is creating three or more search ads per ad group a best practice?
The magic number three is backed by a strategic rationale, and it has been observed that the presence of at least three ads in an ad group optimizes performance through better ad rotation. Ad rotation refers to how frequently different ads are shown in relation to each other within a particular ad group. When you have three or more ads, Google’s machine learning algorithms can accurately analyze performance data, auto-optimize the ad delivery, and ensure that the most effective ads are shown more often.
It’s important to remember, however, that adding more ads to an ad group is not about mere multiplication; it’s about diversification. Each ad should provide a unique angle, a different value proposition, or a varied call-to-action to cater to the diverse interests of your target audience. This approach maximizes the chances of hitting the right chord with potential customers.
An important aspect to also note is that the number of ads per ad group also impacts your control over testing and optimisation. When considering how many ads should be in an ad group, marketers need to strike a balance between variety and manageability. While it’s important to have a diverse range of ads to cater to different segments of your target audience, having too many ads can dilute impressions and make it harder to gather statistically significant data for each ad. This could, in turn, hinder your ability to evaluate and improve ad performance.
Optimizing your ad strategy is a continuous process that requires careful planning and data-driven decision-making. Here are five key steps to enhance your approach:
A successful ad strategy begins with a comprehensive understanding of your target audience. Who are they? What are their pain points? What motivates them? The answers to these questions can shape the creation of effective ad copies and selection of keywords, aligning them with the interests and behaviors of your prospective customers.
Once you have a grasp on your audience, turn your attention towards creating compelling ad copy. Your ads should captivate viewers, clearly convey the unique selling points of your product or service, and encourage them to take action. A well-crafted ad copy is essential for improving click-through rates and driving conversions.
A/B testing, or split testing, is a powerful marketing tool to determine what resonates best with your audience. This involves creating multiple versions of your ads with slight variations, such as different headlines or call-to-action phrases. Over time, you’ll gather data about which versions are performing better, allowing you to refine your ads and maximize their effectiveness.
Make use of automation tools and machine learning technologies available on platforms like Google Ads. These can help optimize your ad rotation, bid strategy, and audience targeting, taking the guesswork out of ad strategy optimization and freeing up your time to focus on other areas of your business.
Stay proactive in reviewing and updating your ad strategy. Market trends and customer behaviors continually evolve, and your ad strategy needs to keep pace. Regularly check the performance metrics of your ads, and don’t be afraid to experiment and make changes based on the data you collect.
For businesses looking to maximize their online advertising efforts, hiring a Google ad agency can be a strategic advantage. An agency can provide expertise in creating and managing effective ad campaigns, freeing you from the complex nuances of Google Ads. Ad agencies typically have a deep understanding of how the Google Ads platform works, including its latest features and algorithm changes. They can also help you create compelling ad copies, select appropriate keywords, organize your campaigns into logical and effective ad groups, and optimize your bidding strategy.
Beyond just creating and managing your ads, an agency can offer top-of-the-range ecommerce PPC marketing services, while also providing valuable insights into your campaign’s performance, leveraging their experience and analytical tools. They can perform comprehensive data analysis and offer recommendations for improving your ads, based on performance trends and industry best practices.
In addition, an experienced ad agency can provide end-to-end services, including landing page optimisation, conversion tracking, and ROI analysis. These services can help you align your Google Ads strategy with your broader marketing goals, ensuring that your online advertising efforts contribute effectively to your business’s success.
Ultimately, an optimal ad strategy is not static; it’s a fluid construct that continually evolves based on changing market trends, consumer behavior, and business goals. It also encompasses a good understanding of the target audience, strategic use of keywords, the quality of ad content, and efficient A/B testing for success. The role of a Google Ad agency can be instrumental in this respect, as they bring expertise and experience to the table, guiding businesses to maximize their ad campaign’s ROI.
When it comes to global commerce, knowledge is the currency of power, and strategic decisions must be informed, precise, and impactful. In no arena is this more true than in Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, where your decisions can directly influence your brand’s visibility, customer acquisition, and ultimately, your bottom line. The essence of strategy in this space is not merely understanding the game, but comprehending the moves and motivations of those we share the board with: enter the realm of PPC competitor analysis.
In the following guide, we’re going to take a look at why PPC competitive analysis is important, explain how it can improve your own campaigns, and give you some tips and tricks to help you learn from your commercial rivals. Let;’ take a look!
So, why is competitor analysis for PPC important? Because in the high-stakes game of online advertising, understanding your competition’s modus operandi can be the difference between languishing in obscurity and reigning supreme in the digital marketplace.
A competitive PPC analysis illuminates the strategies, keywords, and bids employed by your competitors; by peering into their playbook, you gain the foresight to anticipate their moves, identify gaps in the market, and seize opportunities to outmaneuver them. This is not simply an exercise in curiosity but a strategic initiative that can significantly elevate your PPC campaigns’ performance and efficiency.
The data obtained through competitor PPC analysis isn’t simply a dossier of your rivals’ moves; it’s a treasure trove of insights that can be leveraged to refine your PPC campaigns. Discovering the keywords your competitors bid on can unveil profitable opportunities you may have overlooked; analyzing their ad copy can inspire creative ideas to differentiate your ads and enhance their appeal; scrutinizing their landing pages can reveal effective conversion strategies that can be adopted or improved upon.
Even their bidding strategies, whether aggressive or conservative, can guide your decisions on how to allocate your budget for maximum impact. With these insights, you can tailor your campaigns to outperform your competitors, achieve a higher click-through rate, reduce cost-per-click, and ultimately increase return on investment.
Several cutting-edge tools can streamline the competitor analysis process and provide actionable insights for your business. For example, Google Ads Auction Insights is a powerful tool that reveals who competes with you at the auction level, while SEMRush and SpyFu offer a wealth of information about your competitors’ PPC keywords, ad copy, and even their estimated budget. Tools such as SEMRush, Adthena, and The Search Monitor also provide a historical overview of competitors’ PPC strategies, helping you understand their strategic evolution and anticipate future moves.
You can also go one step further and hire an ecommerce PPC marketing agency – these agencies will usually have all these tools (and more) at their fingertips, and will be able to comb through the data more efficiently and strategically.
Key metrics to consider during PPC competitor analysis In the pursuit of comprehensive PPC competitor analysis, the compass of your strategic navigation lies in several key metrics: these numbers will be able to tell a story about your competitors’ performance and provide a benchmark for your own campaigns. Here’s what you need to look out for:
Impression share is the percentage of impressions your ads receive compared to the total number they could get. By analyzing your competitors’ impression share, you can estimate their visibility and reach.
Google Ads uses Quality Score to determine how relevant and useful your ad is to a user, based primarily on your ad’s CTR, keyword relevance, and landing page quality. Comparing your Quality Score with your competitors’ can provide insight into the effectiveness of your ads and keywords.
CTR is the ratio of users who click on your ad to the number of total users who view it, and a high CTR indicates compelling ad copy and effective keywords.
CPC is the amount you pay for each click on your ad. Comparing your CPC with your competitors’ can help determine if you’re overspending or underspending on your bids.
As you likely already know, the all-important conversion rate reflects the percentage of users who complete a desired action after clicking on your ad; a higher conversion rate indicates a successful combination of keyword strategy, ad copy, and landing page design, so inspect how your competitors’ websites perform.
A PPC competitor analysis is only useful if carried out efficiently – here are our top tips from getting the most out of your research:
While it might seem counterproductive, don’t just focus on your most apparent competitors: smaller businesses, new entrants, or even companies from adjacent industries might be targeting the same keywords as you.
PPC competitor analysis isn’t a one-time activity; the digital marketing landscape is dynamic, and your competitors’ strategies may change over time. Regularly monitor your competitors to stay ahead of the curve and learn from their strategies.
While it’s beneficial to learn from your competitors’ successful strategies, it’s crucial to maintain your unique selling proposition, as well as your brand’s own authenticity. Differentiation is key in the crowded digital marketplace, and you don’t want to dilute your image or brand identity – especially as PPC trends (and market trends as a whole) can be fleeting.
While metrics provide a wealth of information, don’t forget to consider qualitative factors such as the tone of ad copy, brand image, and customer sentiment.
Use your competitor analysis insights to test new strategies, but don’t forget to test these strategies exhaustively. Learn from the results and adapt your approach accordingly – this iterative process is key to continuously improving your PPC performance.
Overall, PPC competitor analysis is not just a strategic imperative; it’s a golden opportunity to transform your PPC campaigns’ performance. So arm yourself with knowledge, sharpen your strategies, and prepare to conquer the digital marketplace.
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