Facebook and Google are two of the biggest companies in the world, and both offer ad platforms that can help your small business reach new customers. But which should you use? This is a question I get all the time from clients here at Hello Social, which is why we put this article together. Here's what you need to know to decide between PPC ads vs Facebook Ads.
The quick answer your looking for...
Google Ads can be faster to get started with and have a wider potential reach than Facebook Ads, but Facebook Ads can offer more specific targeting with its pixel and potentially much more powerful tracking insights than Google Ads. Despite these differentiators, it shouldn't be Facebook or Google, it should be Facebook AND Google Ads.
Let's start with Facebook Ads, how do they work?
If you're just getting started with Facebook Ads, you need to first put in a little work to get your business page in order. You need to look at how strong your business' Facebook page is. Are you posting frequently? Are you getting good engagement with your fans and followers? If the Facebook page is weak, you need to get some love there, or else Facebook is going to think that you're fake news trying to spam people.
There are also some basic technical things that need to happen so that you're actually advertising correctly, and not just wasting your money.
The most important thing to do is install your pixel, which is easy if you're on Wix, WordPress, Shopify (any of the major platforms). It's pretty much turnkey at this point. Also, make sure you set up the standard pixel events like Complete Registration and View Content. This will let you set objectives when building your ad targeting.
Facebook Page Post Ads - These are basic ads that appear on your page as well as in people's feeds when they're browsing Facebook or Instagram. They can include a text post, photo/video post, carousel (a series of images), link or call-to-action button. You can also target these by location, age range and gender (or exclude those who don't fit within those parameters). Facebook claims that this type of ad has an average clickthrough rate (CTR) of 0.9%.
Sponsored Stories - The most popular option is Sponsored Stories because it allows businesses with limited budgets to reach new audiences at scale without having any prior knowledge about what they want from the company's products or services beyond what they see in their newsfeeds every day; however there are other options available depending on what kind of campaign you want run! For example: Page Post Boosts allow users who have already Liked Your Page before hand access additional exposure through paid promotion options within their network versus actual friends/family connections only whereas Promoted Posts let advertisers target specific demographics based off past interactions within these segments over time which may include job titles etcetera...
Long story short — Facebook is not a plug—and—play ads option. There's a lot of prep work to do.
PPC Ads - How do they work?
Formally known as Pay Per Click (PPC) ads are placed on search engine results pages, whereas Facebook Ads are placed on Facebook's website and in apps. PPC ads are paid for when someone clicks on your ad, while you pay for Facebook Ads based on how many people see your ad and what they do after seeing it (like click through or make a purchase).
How much do Google Ads cost?
To answer this in short. It can vary. There is no real definitive number because you can escalate and change your budget depending on your campaign goals
There are also some tools that can help you get to a close estimate for your brand and industry.
Keyword Planner, a tool that lives inside the Google Ads platform, will give you some insight into the average cost per click (CPC) you can expect based on the keywords you plan to target in your ads. It's easy to use; simply put your core keywords in and get some feedback and see what Google has to say.
You can also use KeyWords Everywhere, which is a Chrome extension. Once you've installed it, the extension will show you real time keyword data whenever you do a google search. It's incredible!
With our clients we always suggest pre-planning and pre budgeting so for example, we planned a max CPC of £5, hoping for £2 CPC. If you find you're not getting anywhere and it's costing you £10 per click, we'd stop, go back and re-work the strategy and keywords.
Is Facebook cheaper than Google Ads?
The price of running a campaign on Facebook is much the same as Google, the cost can vary and results can vary depending on your budget.
I always recommend to start small and test and measure before increasing. There are some general rules of thumbs but ultimately you have to look at your companies metrics.
With that said, generally Facebook is cheaper than Google. Your CPC should be anywhere from £1 to £3 for Facebook, if it's over £3 you're doing something wrong. That is a general truth for us.
But that's just a cost per click, that's not a cost per acquisition, impression or conversion. Facebook roughly charges between £8-£9 per 1000 people reached.
For example, you could see the CPA for leads could be £50 to £100, it's just entirely different based on industry (this is a handy guide from WordStream if you’re looking for details for a specific industry).
Which one should I use for my small business?
The answer to this question will depend on your business and what you're trying to accomplish. If you have a limited budget, then PPC might be better for you because it's more cost-effective than Facebook Ads. Looking at the market holistically and the way the industry continues to adapt and change, all devices, all the availability, everyones going online to make their decisions, learning and absorbing content. I think that it is crazy to pigeon hole yourself into a corner with one platform.
However, if your goal is brand awareness and generating leads, then Facebook Ads might be the better option since they allow advertisers more control over targeting their audience.
If your campaign is time sensitive (i.e., launching a new product or service) then PPC may be more appropriate due to its rapid turnaround time compared with Facebook Ads which take longer because of approval processes and moderation requirements from third parties like Google or Bing Ads who host their ad platforms respectively.*
I think the way Google and Facebook hand off to each other and complement each other is incredible.
When we talk to clients about this, there's this big a—ha moment, and it's a visual.
There's a conversion path in Google Analytics that literally shows touch points, from feels to buys. And I say, “let me just show you your current conversion path” — and sometimes it can be 15 or 16 touch points in a user's journey to make that purchase. Their minds are blown because they think it's only one or two touch points.
It's always a more complex journey than you think. It's Facebook Ads and Google Ads that got them to make the purchase or book the call. If it was me and we had to start again with marketing Hello Social, I would go heavier with Facebook first, with really bottom of the funnel because of how powerful that pixel is and create lookalike audiences that match the data I've got.
There are pros and cons to both platforms, so it depends on what your business needs.
There are pros and cons to both platforms, so it depends on what your business needs.
PPC is a great way to get started with paid advertising, but it can be expensive. It's also helpful for testing out new marketing campaigns before you invest more money in Facebook Ads.
However, if you want to reach new customers quickly and easily then Facebook Ads might be better for you.
Facebook Ads are more complicated than PPC ads because they require more time and attention from people who have the skills needed to create effective ads that drive conversions (like signing up for an email list). However if done correctly this type of ad can help bring in thousands of dollars per month without breaking the bank!
Final thoughts,
We hope this article has helped you decide which type of ad platform is best for your small business. If you're still not sure, we recommend trying both, TEST & MEASURE everything and see which one works better.
It may take some time to get used to each platform's interface and features, but once you do--and learn what works best for your customers--you'll be able to make informed decisions about where they spend their money next time around!
If you need an external third party to have a look at either your Facebook Ads or Google ad account and offer some complimentary advice then get in touch, we'd be happy to help.
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