We live in the digital age. Online advertising has become imperative for businesses considering the amount of time people are spending ‘plugged in’ on their phones, tablets and computers.
So how can your business take advantage of this ‘plugged in’ world? There are many different outlets for online advertising, including social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube), web search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing), and even on popular websites (direct or through Google Display Network). The possibilities are virtually endless, but there are major factors to consider when choosing where to allocate your online advertising dollars.
3 Driving Factors in Successful Online Advertising
Target Audience
For B2C clients, we typically recommend social media channels as a great means of advertising. It has the sophistication to place your ad directly in front of consumers in your ideal audience via targeting by age, gender, demographic, personal interests and more. It also advertises to them when they are at home or on break and more likely to be making a purchasing decision. A fun, vibrant ad on a newsfeed or animated GIF will certainly draw the attention you are looking for!
For B2B clients, social media channels like LinkedIn can be a good opportunity since users are typically business people, though the ad space is small and quite limited on content. The audience targeting capabilities are similar to Facebook but with more emphasis on job title and seniority level.
For both B2B and B2C clients, Google Search ads can be another effective way to hit a targeted group – but in an even further specialized fashion. Not only can you target by demographic of where a person is searching from, but you can select exactly what terms they are using to search and hit them with text ads relevant to what they are looking for. The downside is these ads are only text and no graphics. That’s where display ads come in. You can create beautiful, attention-grabbing ads to promote your message across many popular websites – and even follow users around the web who have visited your website via retargeting display ads. B2B has proven to be a bit more challenging than B2C in these arenas.
Budget
How you choose to market online will also depend on your budget. If you have a small budget, it is wise to choose one or two outlets instead of many so the performance of your ads is optimal. Larger budgets give you the opportunity to create reach-and-frequency on a larger scale across several platforms – which can lead to increased ad performance and conversions.
End Goal
The purpose of your ad campaign will also drive your decision making process. Are you trying to generate brand awareness or sell product from an e-com site? Creating a goal for your campaign(s) will help you make educated decisions on what channel is most appropriate for your ad placement.
For example, certain tactics like display ads can be a cheap option for garnering impressions and clicks (great exposure), but they may not get you the sales conversions you are looking for. Search ads are typically much more expensive, but can also prove to be more effective when it comes to the consumer’s purchasing decision.
The digital age is here and it’s not going anywhere. It’s time for your business to utilize online advertising to it’s fullest potential.
