Ad marketing is a paid advertising method businesses like yours use to reach their target audiences. It has skyrocketed in popularity over the last year or so, and today, almost all businesses are doing ad marketing in some form.
The ads you create to get people to interact with your business should be memorable and (hopefully) influence people to make a specific decision.
Sometimes that decision is to purchase a product or service. Or, you may want to use ads to get potential customers to contact you and ask questions.
Most of your potential customers are online, which makes online ad marketing a good investment as long as it’s done right.
Let’s talk about the two types of online ad marketing - PPC advertising and social media advertising.
What is Search Engine PPC Advertising?
PPC advertising refers to the ads you see when searching for something on Google or Bing. You’ll see a search result with the word “Ad” next to it.
In the past, most people would skip those and focus their attention lower on the organic search results. But that’s not the case today.
More than 45% of clicks go to the top 3 ad positions on those search engine results.
PPC is a great way to get valuable leads because the people who click those ads are ready to purchase something.
To set up a PPC ad, you need to know your keywords, and it helps to know what your long-tail keywords are too. That will help you get even more traffic.
Once you have your keywords, all you need to do is write the text for your ad, set your budget amount, and begin your PPC ad campaign.
What is Social Media Advertising?
You’re probably familiar with social media advertising too. If you’re a Facebook user, a simple scroll through your timeline will show you many sponsored posts.
Those posts are set up to blend in with your timeline seamlessly. They’re targeted to show up for the people most likely to click on them.
That part is tricky as a business because you have to be sure your ads are set to go out to the right audience.
Social media advertising can be done on virtually any network you choose. Some of the top ones are:
The best part about social media advertising (besides being extremely effective and lucrative for businesses) is that it’s less expensive than search engine PPC.
How to be Successful with Ad Marketing
If ad marketing sounds like a great way to get the word out about your business, here are some tips that can help you as you consider your first campaign.
Tip #1: Define Your Target Audience
This is the first tip for a reason - it’s the most important.
Unless you run targeted ads, you won’t see the profits you would see otherwise. There’s no sense in investing money in ad marketing unless you know exactly who your ads will reach.
If your business focuses on children’s clothing, car seats, and toys, your ads should target parents and grandparents. If your business sells insurance, your ads should target other business owners, homeowners, and people who own cars and boats.
Tip #2: Set Your Budget
Your budget is up to you, but keep in mind that spending less will likely give you fewer results. If you’re working with someone to make sure you get your ad marketing right, talk with them about what you can afford.
Budgeting is a critical part of any advertising campaign because if you’re running online ads, the ads stop once the money runs out.
Tip #3: Consider Retargeting Ads
You probably get annoyed when people visit your website without taking any action. I get it. But when you invest in retargeting ads, those short visits can become profitable later.
Retargeting ads will put your brand in front of that individual again because they target people who didn’t convert to customers the first time.
Tip #4: Focus Your Ads on Your Customer’s Needs
One of the biggest mistakes businesses make with ad marketing is focusing on what the business can do rather than what the customer needs.
That bears repeating...
One of the biggest mistakes businesses make with ad marketing is focusing on what the business can do rather than what the customer needs.
Customers will click on your ad if you touch on their pain points and engage them. Let me give you an example.
Let’s say you want to advertise your newest product - a flea collar for dogs. You have a few different options for your ad.
You could run an ad featuring a picture of the flea collar with text about the all-natural ingredients that make it so great.
Or...
You could create a video of several dogs scratching and obviously uncomfortable because the fleas just won’t leave them alone. At the end of the video, happy non-scratching dogs are sporting their new flea collars, and all is well again.
The first ad might appeal to some customers looking for more natural solutions for fleas. But the second one makes people think about how their dogs are suffering, and it hits on their emotional pain, which causes them to take action and try your product.
Want to Try Ad Marketing? Contact Us!
If you’ve been thinking about trying ad marketing, we can help!
Colwell Creative Content, Inc. offers all types of digital ad marketing, including:
Facebook ads
TikTok ads
Twitter ads
Digital display ads
LinkedIn ads
YouTube ads
We can even do billboard ads in your community!
Your competitors have already started their ad marketing campaigns. Don’t let your business get passed over as a result. Contact us today, and Let’s Grow Your Business Together!