When a company or organization starts running paid advertising, one of the first questions they usually have is “Which platform is best to advertise on, Google Ads or Facebook Ads?” The answer to this question ultimately depends on your goals as a business and how to best achieve those goals through an advertising campaign. Although both Google and Facebook provide excellent tools for advertisers, they each have their own unique ways of utilizing those tools effectively.
With Google Ads, users are motivated by their intent when searching on Google. In other words, when someone types something into the Google search bar, they have an intention to buy something (a product or service), or seek information about something (a solution). For example, if someone types “buy running shoes online” into Google, the person typing in that phrase likely knows exactly what type of item they want to purchase and have a strong intent to get that product. Due to this level of intent, Google Ads work very well for businesses that provide products or services that potential customers are actively looking for such as e-commerce sites, local businesses, software as a service (SaaS – companies that provide software that runs on the internet), and business-to-business (B2B). As a result of high intent, Google Ads campaigns generally produce higher conversion rates than Facebook Ads campaigns. Alternatively, Google Ads may have a higher cost per click (CPC) in some cases due to greater competition for ad space, which should also be considered when comparing CPC to Facebook Ads CPC.
Facebook Ads (and Instagram Ads) rely heavily on interest/behavioral-based targeting rather than intent targeting. Social media users are not actively looking for anything; they are scrolling through their feeds on a social media platform. Advertisers can target users via Facebook Ads by interests, behaviors, demographics and past interactions with their business. This allows for an ideal environment for introducing a brand to potential customers via visual-based storytelling, creating impulse purchases, and showcasing a brand’s products. Fashion, fitness, beauty, lifestyle, and mobile app brands have been particularly successful using Facebook Ads. While the CPC is generally lower with Facebook Ads, the conversion intent may not be as strong as with search ads.
Additionally, Google Ads can also be used effectively at the bottom stage of the purchase funnel (where customers are looking to purchase or inquire), while Facebook Ads are effective at the top and middle stages of the purchase funnel (introducing a brand to potential customers).Many successful businesses use Facebook Ads to warm up their audience and Google Ads to facilitate the sale. Additionally, the budget and creative materials used will differ between Google and Facebook. Google Ads are heavily reliant on the use of keywords, ad text and relevant landing pages; whereas, Facebook Ads are more focused on a strong visual presence, videos and messaging.
If a company has high-quality content and unique stories, it’s likely to be able to expand faster on Facebook than with Google Ads. However, if you provide solutions to specific customer pain points and do so in an effective way, using Google Ads could allow you to achieve a faster return on investment. Ultimately, there isn’t a single platform that is superior to the other platform. Google Ads work best for leveraging existing demand, while Facebook Ads work best for creating new demand. Most growing companies will benefit from taking advantage of both platforms to grow sustainably.