Paid Advertising Guide: PPC vs Paid Social Ads

You have to spend money to make money. This adage is as old as time and still rings true in the digital age. Two pillars of paid advertising in the 2020s are pay-per-click (PPC ads) and paid social ads – similar yet disparate forms of online promotion. But how do they differ and what impact could they have on your business? 

This blog will explore these methods and how to make the most of them so you can maximise the efficacy of your marketing spend.

What are PPC ads?

PPC, otherwise known as paid search advertising is a marketing method that involves paying for content to appear at the top of search engines like Google or Bing. Companies pay for their position in the top three of a search engine results page (SERP), then pay small fees for every click that your content gets. 

Pros: 

• When optimised with SEO, these ads can target highly specific audiences
• Local Ads offer geotargeting to better connect with people in your area
• PPC ads are flexible for budgetary requirements
• Lots of data and analytics offered to review ad performance

Cons:

• PPC can be highly competitive, with high-value keywords generating bidding wars
• There’s no multimedia viral potential for purely text-based ads
• Some browsers might be a little bit suspicious of paid ads over organic results

What are paid social ads?

Paid social ads are pieces of social media content promoted to feeds for a fee. All of the major social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok offer paid ad options. They can take the form of text, video or pictures, while also employing either pay-per-click or pay-per-conversion models. 

Pros: 

• Paid social ads can be very effective, especially when targeted at the right audience
• The targeting on social media can be super specific to age, gender and more
• The formats allow for creativity, with engaging, viral-ready content potential
• It’s a very affordable, budget-flexible way to market your business

Cons:

• Paid social media is a highly competitive space, especially with on-trend businesses
• Social ads need to be approved, which can take up to 24 hours and isn’t guaranteed
• Regular algorithm updates mean social ads require constant observation

Which paid advertising approach is right for my business? 

So in the battle of paid vs paid, which is right for you? Well, it all depends on your business. For more service-based, administrative businesses you might benefit from focusing more on PPC ads. On the other hand, physical products and applications benefit from the visual potential of paid social ads. With that being said, a combination approach can work for businesses of all kinds – it just depends on how you approach it. 

If you’re eager to learn more about either of these paid advertising methods, get in touch with us today. We can set your business on the right path to success. For more insights into digital marketing, visit our blog.