Wanna drive more traffic to your online store? Have you tried several marketing strategies but you feel they are not enough? Maybe it's time you consider investing some money in paid ads đž
Paid advertising can be one of the most effective ways to gain traffic (and sales), and it's a great way to connect with your target audience online, but only if you understand how it works.
In this article, you'll learn what paid advertising is, the different platforms you can use, and whether they are worth it. (#SpoilerAlert â ïžThey are just not for everybody!).
What is paid advertising?
Paid advertising is a digital marketing model in which companies bid to display ads to Internet users. The company that is willing to pay the most gets its ad displayed and pays for each click on its ad.
Paid ads are served on many platforms, such as Google search results, social media platforms, and other websites.
What are the benefits of paid advertising?
Paid advertising can help you reach new audiences, increase brand awareness and generate more leads. Most importantly, it helps you increase sales and customer loyalty.
Basically, running ads is a way to:
đ” Increase brand awareness: When potential customers see your ad, they may not necessarily be ready to buy from you yet. But this will help them remember you when theyâre looking for something you sell.
đą Reach a new audience: Paid ads are great for reaching people who do not yet know your business but might be interested in what you have to offer. You can also target specific audience segments based on certain interests, demographics, location, and many other factors.
đĄ Generate more leads and sales: Paid campaigns are one of the easiest ways to reach your target audience through a variety of channels and at different points in the customer journey.
What types of ads can you make?
There are many platforms where we can make ads, but for now, we will focus on the most important ones.
Search Ads
Search ads appear in the search results of search engines such as Google or Bing when users enter a search query. For example, if you search for "product personalizer" the top search results that appear are paid search ads:
To get the most out of search ads, target terms that have higher purchase intent, meaning users are more likely to convert.
Display Ads
Display ads appear on websites on the Internet. For example, if you visit your favorite blog or news site, you're likely to see ads for products and services that are probably related to your interests.
Unlike search ads, which are text only, display ads normally have images and appealing graphics to draw the public's attention:
Social Media Ads
Social media ads are paid ads on social media accounts such as Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, or Twitter. Social ads have a wide reach and can be highly targeted, making them one of the most effective types of paid ads.
Social media ads can appear in many places, including as sponsored posts, in feeds, in Instagram stories, and more.
The most widely used platform for this type of ad is Meta, which covers both Facebook and Instagram and allows you to drive traffic to your website, messaging, or Whatsapp.
Youtube Ads
Youtube deserves a special mention. With more than 2 billion monthly active users worldwide and 30 million daily active users, itâs the second most visited website in the world đ„
Video content is booming, today we live in a fast-paced world and users want to be entertained and informed quickly and easily.
Surely you've been a victim of these ads that interrupt the video you're watching. When you deal with this type of advertising, you need to make sure that it's interesting for the audience and not perceived as an interruption.
Email Sponsored Ads
Sponsored email advertising is paid advertising that appears in users' inboxes, without an email being sent đ©
Unlike email marketing, email ads can be delivered to users even if you don't have their email addresses.
5 Tips for an effective paid advertising strategy
Now that you know the different types of ads you can use, let's see some tips that will help you make the most of them, whatever channel you decide to use.
1. Taste the unknown đ€â
âFacebook and Instagram are still the best e-commerce advertising platforms, but they are becoming more saturated and expensive by the dayđ°
Look for newer, upcoming platforms where your ad spend can have a much bigger impact. Maybe you can accomplish much more on Pinterest or Reddit.
If you don't like the performance your ads are getting, don't settle. Get out of your comfort zone. Always test the latest advertising platform available and see if it is a viable advertising channel for your business.
2. Don't place all resources in one place â
If you focus all your advertising on one platform, you'll miss the opportunity to engage with customers across multiple platforms.
Most of the time, customers need to have a certain number of encounters with our brand and products before they decide to move on. If they only see you in one place, they won't remember you đ§ , and the competition might gain ground on another platform.
3. Create different campaigns for each part of the marketing funnel đą
Some brands create sporadic campaigns around specific holidays, events, or product launches and do not get the results they want. It's best to align your ad campaigns with your marketing funnel đ€
If you still haven't thought about how to build your funnel, let's see the main components in a simple way:
Top of the funnel (TOFU): These are people who are in the early discovery phase. They may be looking at products but NOT actively buying yet. Use educational campaigns that show your product but focus more on your story.
Middle of the funnel (MOFU): These are people who're actively shopping and comparing different products. Approach them with a comparison guide where you present the features of your product. Explain why you're better than the competition.
Bottom of the funnel (BOFU): These are the visitors with the highest intentions. They have already researched, observed, compared, and want to buy something. They might even be looking for your brand or have abandoned the checkout or shopping cart previously on your site.
4. Take a look at the data đ
You can learn a lot about your target audience by looking at the data provided by advertising platforms. Collect and analyze this data to learn about your audience's preferences and make the most of your ads. You may find that your audience is more likely to interact with a particular product, title, image, or even color.
Once you understand this information, you can direct your efforts (and budget) in the right direction. But be careful, the consumer is constantly changing. Analyzing the data is an everyday job.
5. Use lookalike audiences đ€Œ
A Lookalike Audience is an audience that is similar to an existing list of customers or leads. This type of audience offers an alternative way to reach the right users and generate more revenue.
There are several ways to create a similar audience. One way is to download your email segments and upload them as lists to Facebook. This way you can create a similar audience for your cart abandoners or existing customers.
Now you're ready to try your first paid ad campaigns or maybe you can improve your existing ones đ
The world of digital advertising is constantly changing and evolving. Always stay up to date and try new things to differentiate yourself and optimize your budget. The more you are willing to try new ways and innovate, the more likely you are to outperform your competitors đ
Start with a small daily budget to see how well your ads work, then test new copies, call-to-action buttons, and images to see which ads bring the most results for your business!
If you focus on your goals and start small, you will see the impact of paid ads much sooner than you think đž
Interested in learning more strategies to increase your sales? Check out this article!
Are you already running ads? Which platform has worked best for you? Feel free to let us know in the comments below! đ
ABOUT THE PUBLISHER
Customily Product Personalizer is the best solution to sell personalized products, both in the e-commerce and the print-on-demand market. With the widest range of personalization tools, free clipart designs, realistic live previews that increase conversions, and printing files that help you automate your printing business; Customily is the ally you need to boost your profit margins in a high-competitive market.
Visit our website to learn more about us.
Or try it for FREEÂ on Shopify.