There exist two methods of expanding your business online: organic and paid.
The practice of organic marketing involves utilizing organic social media, organic search (SEO), and organic word of mouth. Although this strategy can yield positive results, it operates at a slow pace. Building up your social media following and establishing authority on search engines via organic methods can require several months or even years.
In contrast, paid advertising, which is also known as performance marketing, is a rapid method. It allows your business to swiftly appear at the top of search results pages and be visible to your target audience on social media, possibly starting from tomorrow. This attribute makes it an influential tool in a constantly challenging environment where organic visibility is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve.
In order to be successful in paid advertising, it is necessary to have both technical and strategic expertise, as well as a sufficient amount of funds. By acquiring a basic understanding of how paid advertising functions, you will be able to make more informed decisions about paid advertising for your business.
What is paid advertising
Paid advertising, which can refer to various forms of advertising including TV and radio, is a marketing strategy where businesses pay to exhibit their ads to a specific audience. Despite its roots predating the internet, the term nowadays generally pertains to internet-based ads on search, social, and display networks.
The majority of paid ad platforms operate on an auction system, wherein the advertiser determines their desired budget and sets a targeted bid per action to attain a specific outcome.
The most frequent bids are computed based on a per-click approach. When using pay-per-click advertising, also known as PPC ads, you are charged for every click on your ad, but you can alternatively opt to bid per impression or per conversion.
The placement and duration of your ads on your target audience’s searches, social media feeds, or web banner ads are determined by your PPC bid and total ad budget. Those who bid higher will receive priority placements.
How PPC Advertising Works
Most platforms that provide paid advertising services utilize algorithms to conduct live auctions. These algorithms determine the placement of ads on an online slot. The criteria for placement typically involve a combination of bid amount and ad quality, though they may differ across platforms. However, these criteria are not always transparently disclosed by platforms, and there are numerous additional variables to take into account.
Ads can take different forms like text, images, videos, and more. Nowadays, several platforms provide the option to prioritize ads that are succeeding according to your objectives. By taking into account a vast amount of signals that humans cannot handle, their algorithms determine which ads to promote, making the process more efficient.
There are two main categories that most targeting options fall into, despite the wide range of choices available.
- Search ads – triggered by someone actively searching for specific keywords; the ads usually show on a Search Engine Results Page (SERP) and answer a specific question.
- Display ads – triggered by someone fitting specific targeting criteria such as demographics or interests; the ads usually show when someone is browsing the web or an app and can be regarded as disruptive.
Depending on the platform you use, these two categories can occasionally be combined. However, if possible, we suggest assessing their performance individually. This is because search ads generally outperform display ads as they are less intrusive.
How to create a paid advertising campaign
No matter if you are spending $10 or $10,000, the process of creating a paid advertising campaign involves the same four steps.
1. Define your target audience
When starting paid advertising campaigns, the first step is to define your target audience. By doing this, you can make informed decisions regarding the appropriate platforms and targeting options to utilize. Consider where your target customers obtain their information and what subjects interest them. This knowledge will guide your selection of advertising platforms when developing your budget plan for the campaigns.
2. Develop your creative
The choices made by your audience will guide the creative that you create. If you are concentrating on search campaigns, it will be necessary for you to write copy that clearly demonstrates that you have the specific item that the searcher is seeking.
If you are running social or display campaigns, you should aim to create visually captivating creative content that instantly captures the user’s attention and highlights the benefits of your offering. It is important to have different versions of ads for testing and gaining insights, regardless of the audience you target.
3. Configure your tracking
It is crucial to set up tools on your website before launching to have a clear understanding of the success of paid campaigns on every advertising platform.
Each digital advertising platform has its own tracking code that you need to add to your site. However, Shopify has pre-made connections with popular advertising platforms like Meta, Google, and Pinterest. All you need to do is link your accounts, eliminating the need for you to manually add code to your site. If you’re using a different content management system or ad platform, you may need assistance from a web developer.
Each advertising platform offers numerous metrics to analyze your success. The choice of metrics for your paid advertising will vary based on your goals and business model; however, the most prevalent ones include purchases, clicks, and impressions.
4. Launch and iterate
After inputting your target audience information, creative, and budget into your ad platform, you can proceed with launching your campaign. Paid ads provide extensive data, allowing you to quickly determine the effectiveness of your ads within a few days. To enhance your campaign, it is advisable to regularly review your ad campaigns at least once a week.
How to develop our paid advertising strategy
Before starting your PPC advertising campaigns, it is crucial to have a well-thought-out strategy in place to avoid wasting money.
Identify your goals
In the realm of marketing, it is imperative to establish goals prior to commencing any actions. It is crucial to identify the target audience you wish to reach, specify your desired accomplishments, and determine the intended actions for this audience. Ultimately, the end result should be clearly defined.
When considering various objectives and target audiences, it is necessary to tailor the campaign and advertisement types, as well as the platforms used. Typically, the platforms mentioned are beneficial in aligning particular campaigns with desired goals. Therefore, the customary approach entails commencing the campaign by establishing a goal and selecting the corresponding options provided by the platforms.
Goals can be classified according to the stages of the buyer’s journey as individuals will require varying things based on their current stage.
Awareness refers to the stage when individuals are in the process of conducting research and recognizing their problem or need, although their knowledge on the matter may still be limited. The objective associated with this phase is to expand the reach and inform a larger audience about your products or services.
The measure of this is typically determined by the number of people who saw your ads (impressions) and the number of people who expressed interest and clicked on them (clicks), along with engagement metrics such as the number of people who liked a post or watched a video related to your ad.
Consideration is the stage at which an individual has clearly defined their problem or need and is now contemplating the available options to address or satisfy it. To assess this, one may still examine the number of clicks on their website, along with the actions taken by visitors. Did they complete a form to obtain a guide or explore other pages for further information?
Decision refers to the point at which someone establishes their approach to solving a problem or meeting a need, and then seeks out the appropriate organization for this purpose. Typically, this is assessed by determining whether they have made contact or made a purchase.
Know your audience
While it is beneficial to be aware of your goal, it is even more advantageous to be aware of your target audience. Conducting research to comprehend the characteristics of your potential customers is advisable.
To maintain the same meaning, the text can be rephrased as follows: 1. By creating personas, you can define your ideal customer as semi-fictional characters. 2. These personas should encompass a deep understanding of who they are, along with their challenges and pain points. 3. Having this insight will help identify the factors that trigger them to purchase products or services similar to yours.
To create effective ads, it is crucial to have knowledge about your audience. This knowledge will aid in determining suitable advertising platforms and ones to avoid. Furthermore, it will enable you to select optimal targeting choices to reach your audience, facilitating the creation of compelling ads that will resonate with them.
Calculate your budget
Once you have determined your objective and identified your target audience, it is important to determine your spending capacity. You may already have a designated budget, but it is crucial to determine where exactly the expenditures should be allocated. It is acknowledged that most businesses operate under financial constraints and therefore, it is essential to maximize the budget to ensure optimal returns.
The most common error made by businesses is dividing their budget too thinly across platforms or campaigns, resulting in limited outcomes and no positive results.
To maximize performance, it is advisable to concentrate on one platform or type of targeting rather than attempting multiple strategies simultaneously. By doing so, you can fully invest your efforts and, if the outcomes prove unsatisfactory, you can proceed to the next approach. Marketing involves experimenting and learning from both successes and failures.
There exist numerous tools that can provide estimates for Cost per Click (CPC) and search volumes, allowing you to calculate the potential advertising expenses on particular terms.
When setting up your campaign and selecting targeting options, advertising platforms may occasionally provide a rough indication of the budget required. Although these estimations are often imprecise, it is important to take note of them as they can provide a general idea of what you can anticipate. Yet, the precise cost will only become apparent once you commence your advertising efforts.
