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Where to Run Ads for Your Business

Every small business needs a great website, but no matter how great your website is, you won’t see the kind of results you want if no one visits it. One of the best ways to get traffic to your website is through digital ads, especially when you run them on the right channels.

Where to run ads for your small business

Search engines

More often than not, the search for a product, brand or local business starts on a search engine, like Google or Bing. People who are actively searching for keywords related to your business or services have a strong potential to be high-quality leads for your business. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising on search engines helps to ensure that you are visible in those searches.

Social media

These days, people are spending most of their online time on social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. And, more and more people are using social media to shop for products and find local businesses. Social media advertising allows you to connect with social media users in your area. Plus, it allows you to target the right audience with pinpoint accuracy.

Digital TV

People are cutting the cord and saying goodbye to traditional cable in droves. Digital TV is the future of at-home entertainment, and digital TV ads — also known as OTT (over the top) ads — help you get in front of the right viewers. Like social media ads, OTT ads can be highly targeted, and another bonus is that they aren’t skippable, so you get guaranteed views.

5 tips to increase ad performance

#1. Identify the right audience

No matter how much you fine-tune your message or how beautiful the design of your ad, not everyone will want or need what you have to offer. And, it’s a waste of your advertising dollars to try to win them over.

You’ll be much better off if you can identify the right audience — the specific group of people who are most likely to want or need what you’re offering. Once you identify the right audience, you can figure out what their pain points are and what kind of message they’ll connect with.

#2. Run ads where your audience spends their time

Not only will knowing who your audience is help you fine-tune your message to their wants and needs, but it will also help you zero in on exactly where you should be focusing your advertising efforts.

It’s a waste of time and money to advertise on channels your customer base isn’t using. After you identify your target audience, figure out where they spend their time online, and focus your efforts on those channels.

#3. Get your timing right

It’s important to send the right message and nail down the right ad design, but it’s just as important to get your timing right. You don’t want to waste money running an ad if your target audience isn’t on at the time, even if you run it on the right channel.

For instance, let’s say you sell butterfly clips, and your audience mostly consists of teenage girls and young women. You can’t expect an ad that runs during the school day to perform as well as an ad that runs right after school

#4. Stay top of mind with remarketing

Did you know that it takes an average of seven times for someone to see a marketing message before they’ll convert? People rarely convert the first time they see your ad or come across one of your social media posts.

Retargeting ads help you stay top of mind with people who have already responded positively to your ads — or have visited your website, clicked on an email or otherwise interacted with your brand — in the past.

#5. Monitor and maximize your performance

Even seemingly insignificant details, like using “contact us” as your CTA instead of “get your free quote,” can have a big impact on how well your ads convert. Closely monitoring the performance of your campaigns can help you identify weak points and strengthen them.

Run a/b — or split — tests of your ads to identify which versions perform best with your audience. This will help you maximize the performance of your ads, as well as your revenue.

Digital ads can be a great way to capture market share and drive leads to your small business website, but it’s important to run them on the right channels and follow best practices for success.

Launch and monitor multi-channel ad campaigns on the channels most popular with your customers with the Marketing 360® Ads app. Learn more and see our plans and pricing.