Facebook Ads and Google Ads: Which Platform Will Deliver Better Results?

In the digital world, advertising platforms like Facebook Ads and Google Ads have become essential for businesses to reach their target audience effectively. But when it comes to choosing between the two, it can be challenging to determine which one will deliver better results.  While Google Ads and Facebook Ads are often portrayed as rivals, businesses can benefit greatly from using both platforms together. By leveraging the unique strengths of each platform, businesses can achieve maximum visibility, increase leads and sales, and reach new customers. This can be achieved by adopting different advertising strategies that align with the functionality of each platform, resulting in remarkable returns on their advertising spend. Rather than seeing Google Ads and Facebook Ads as competitors, businesses should view them as complementary tools that can work together to achieve their advertising goals. In this article, we will compare Facebook Ads and Google Ads to help you make an informed decision for your advertising strategy.

Google Advertising: Paid Search

As the world’s largest and most widely used PPC advertising platform, Google Ads (formerly known as Google AdWords) has become synonymous with the term “paid search.” While other platforms such as Bing Ads operate in a similar manner, Google Ads’ dominance in the market makes it the go-to choice for many businesses. It offers a wide range of features, including the ability to target specific keywords, locations, and devices, making it a versatile platform for businesses of all sizes. Despite the popularity of other platforms, Google Ads remains the most widely recognized and widely used PPC platform in the world.

Paid search advertising involves targeting specific keywords and displaying text-based ads to users. With Google Ads, advertisers bid on keywords – specific words and phrases that are included in search queries entered by Google users – in the hopes of having their ads displayed alongside the search results for those queries. Advertisers are charged each time a user clicks on their ad, hence the name “pay-per-click advertising.” While the topic of PPC bidding and bid optimization can be complex, the basic idea is that businesses pay for the opportunity to connect with potential customers who are searching for specific keywords and terms related to their products or services. By effectively targeting these keywords, businesses can increase their chances of finding new customers and growing their online presence.

Facebook Advertising: Paid social

While advertising on Facebook and Google Ads both involve promoting businesses online, there are significant differences between the two platforms. Unlike Google Ads, which helps businesses find new customers through keyword targeting, Facebook Ads helps businesses connect with potential customers based on their interests and online behaviors. With Facebook’s advanced targeting options, advertisers can reach specific demographics, interests, behaviors, and more, making it easier to create highly personalized ads that resonate with potential customers. This approach is known as “paid social,” as it involves promoting products or services on social networks, as opposed to search engines. By utilizing paid social strategies, businesses can tap into the vast amount of user data available on social media platforms and reach new audiences in unique and creative ways.

The strengths & advantages of Google Ads

A level playing field

One common misconception among new PPC advertisers is that the size of their advertising budget determines their success in Google Ads. However, this is far from the truth. Google Ads prioritizes the quality and relevance of ads over the amount advertisers spend. Advertisers who create relevant, optimized, and high-quality ads are more likely to have a better user experience, which ultimately benefits Google as a search engine. As a result, Google Ads rewards relevance and quality over budget size. While certain keywords may have higher costs, such as those in the financial industry, bidding amounts will primarily depend on ad quality and relevance. Metrics such as click-through rate play a vital role in Google’s assessment of ad quality and appeal. This approach levels the playing field for all advertisers and emphasizes the importance of creating compelling, high-quality ads.

A wide range of ad formats

Google Ads has come a long way since its inception in 2000 with just 350 advertisers. Initially, Google served rudimentary text-based ads alongside search results. However, today, the platform offers a wide range of ad formats that businesses can utilize to achieve their marketing goals. From text-based ads and shopping ads to display ads and video ads, Google Ads provides a variety of options for businesses to reach their target audience. Each ad format comes with its own unique set of benefits and can be customized to suit the needs of different businesses. This versatility has made Google Ads a go-to platform for businesses of all sizes and industries looking to increase their online visibility and drive conversions.

Although Google Ads remains predominantly text-based, advertisers have access to a plethora of features that can make their ads more attractive to potential customers. Ad extensions, sitelinks, social proofing such as user reviews, location targeting, and Shopping ads are just a few of the available options that allow advertisers to customize their ads and increase their visibility. Google has also introduced ad formats designed specifically for certain types of businesses, such as hotels and vehicle manufacturers, which incorporate rich visual elements like high-resolution images and interactive maps. As Google continues to develop new ad formats and features, advertisers have even more opportunities to reach their target markets and drive new business. With so many options available, advertisers can find the perfect combination of features to make their goods or services stand out and drive conversions.

The strengths & advantages of Facebook ads

Although Facebook Ads is often considered the newer advertising platform compared to Google Ads, it has been refining and improving its advertising solution for several years. Today, Facebook Ads is a pioneer in the sphere of paid social and has become an essential component of many businesses’ digital marketing strategies. With advanced targeting capabilities and a wide range of ad formats, Facebook Ads offers businesses a versatile platform to reach specific audiences and drive conversions. From image and video ads to dynamic product ads and messenger ads, Facebook Ads provides a broad range of advertising options that can cater to the unique needs of businesses of all sizes.

Unparalleled audience granularity

One of the key advantages of advertising on Facebook is the unparalleled audience granularity offered by the platform. With over 1.55 billion monthly active users (and even more inactive or infrequently used accounts), Facebook has an enormous global audience. However, the true strength of Facebook’s audience lies in the platform’s advanced targeting options. Advertisers can target users based on demographics, interests, behaviors, and more, allowing for highly personalized and effective advertising campaigns. This level of targeting granularity is unmatched by any other platform and has made Facebook an essential tool for businesses looking to reach specific audiences and achieve maximum return on their advertising spend.

People use Facebook to share almost every aspect of their lives, from their personal milestones to their interests, beliefs, ideologies, and values. This presents a unique opportunity for advertisers to tailor their messaging to highly targeted audiences, making Facebook an incredibly powerful advertising platform.

One of the most innovative features of Facebook Ads is the ability to create “lookalike audiences.” Advertisers can upload customer data to Facebook, which then applies filters based on its own data and information provided by third-party data brokers to match users with similar interests and behaviors as the advertiser’s existing customers. This creates a new audience that shares many of the same characteristics as the advertiser’s current customer base, potentially doubling the reach of their advertisements.

For those new to paid social, the question of whether Facebook advertising works is a common one. The answer is a resounding yes, but the real value of Facebook Ads lies in its ability to bring advertisers closer to their ideal customers than ever before. Rather than treating Facebook as a giant billboard, advertisers should approach it as a highly targeted platform that can help them reach new audiences and drive business growth.

An inherently visual platform

One of the key strengths of Facebook Ads is its visual nature. Unlike text-based PPC ads, Facebook Ads allows businesses to create visually appealing ads that seamlessly blend in with users’ News Feeds. This provides advertisers with an opportunity to use the persuasive qualities of visual ads and convey aspirational messaging that resonates with potential customers. By incorporating eye-catching images, videos, and other visual content, businesses can create engaging ads that stand out in the cluttered online advertising landscape. Additionally, Facebook’s sophisticated ad targeting capabilities allow businesses to reach users based on their interests and behaviors, increasing the likelihood that ads will be seen by the right people. Overall, the visual nature of Facebook Ads provides businesses with a powerful tool to communicate their brand message and connect with potential customers.

Like Google, Facebook is always looking for ways to improve its advertising platform and user experience. Facebook has undergone several changes to its advertising policies, such as relaxing the 20% text rule for ad images. However, despite these changes, Facebook remains a highly visual platform, which is one of its primary strengths for advertisers. With the ability to use a variety of ad formats, including images, videos, carousel ads, and more, businesses can showcase their products or services in creative and visually appealing ways. This makes Facebook an ideal platform for businesses looking to create engaging and memorable advertising campaigns that resonate with their target audience.

Incredible ROI

One of the most compelling reasons to use Facebook Ads is the potential for incredible return on investment. With its advanced targeting options and versatile ad formats, businesses can create highly personalized ads that resonate with potential customers. Additionally, Facebook’s ad platform is highly cost-effective, allowing advertisers to reach a large audience with a limited budget. This means that businesses can get more bang for their buck, and stretch their advertising dollars further than they could on other platforms. In fact, many businesses and marketers are often surprised by the incredible ROI that Facebook Ads can offer, making it a highly attractive option for businesses looking to maximize the impact of their advertising spend.

Facebook Ads vs. Google Ads: Which One Delivers Better Results?

When it comes to choosing between Facebook Ads and Google Ads, the answer depends on your business goals and advertising strategy. If you are looking to reach a broader audience, build brand awareness, and engage with your target audience, Facebook Ads may be the better choice. However, if you want to target high-intent users who are actively searching for products or services like yours, Google Ads may deliver better results.

Both platforms have their unique advantages, and the best approach is to use a combination of Facebook Ads and Google Ads to achieve your advertising goals. You can also use Facebook Ads and Google Ads together to create a more comprehensive advertising strategy that targets users at different stages of the buying process.

In conclusion, Facebook Ads and Google Ads are both powerful advertising platforms that can deliver excellent results for your business. By understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each platform and aligning them with your business goals, you can create an effective advertising strategy that helps you reach your target audience and drive conversions.

If you’re looking to take advantage of the benefits of both paid search and paid social advertising, partnering with an experienced advertising agency can be a highly effective strategy with excellent ROI. Contact us today to learn more.