When is Google Ads a better choice than Facebook Ads?

Choosing between advertising on Google vs Facebook? There are pros and cons to both, learn more about the benefits of Google Ads below. 

It’s simple to boost a post on Facebook to advertise your business to a larger group of people but easy isn’t always the most effective. ​

While Facebook Ads can be relatively easy to set up, Google Ads can be overwhelming to business owners unfamiliar with the platform and there can be more uncertainty around what it is they’re paying for or getting Google Ads mixed up with similar but different services such as SEO.

Many businesses boosting their Facebook posts would be better off setting up Google Ads as their service is something people are more likely to be seeking out via a Google search more so than Facebook.

See below more information on some of the key advertising advantages Google has over Facebook…

High search intent

When people are searching on Google they’re in research mode, which is a great time to get in front of them.

Usually they’ve already made the decision to make a purchase and are exploring their options of which business to buy from. Google Ads help your website show above your competitors so that they find you first.

If you know your industry, product or service is in high demand and lots of people will be searching for their options on Google then Google Ads is the best place to advertise to make the most of this search demand.

Website focus

While Facebook has many different ad goals to choose from, Google Ads generally only has one and that is to get people to click your ad to visit your website.

Because you only pay per click, Google Ads can be cost effective as you’re only paying when people are visiting your website.

You can also set up your Google Search campaign so that different ads take people to different parts of your website depending on what keyword they are searching for.

Competition

Google Ads can be highly competitive which has it pros and cons.

If your competitors are running Google Ads but you are not then you’re likely losing potential customers as people researching your product or service are likely visiting your competitors website before your business ever crosses their mind. 

Running Google Ads means you’re only competing with other businesses targeting the same keywords. Whereas on Facebook your ads are competing for attention alongside every other post, ad and feature on the social media channel.

The disadvantage of this is that the more competitive Google ads are the higher the cost-per-click is which can make advertising here quite expensive. It can even be hard for new campaigns to generate any clicks if their budget isn’t high enough.
​
Simply searching for your keywords in Google can give you an idea of how many advertisers there are. The only way to truly gauge how competitive Google Ads are for your industry is to test out a campaign for yourself. If your ads are showing often enough, you’ll have access to auction insights data directly comparing your share of ad placements relative to your competitors.

Want to learn more?
If you’d like a causal chat about digital marketing and what platforms would work best for your business and goals feel free to reach out to me.

---

Other blogs you might find helpful: 

Should your business be running Google Ads?

Google Ads: What to expect when paying for Search Ads

​Understanding Google Ads, SEO, and how to get found on Google