Are Paid Ads Right for Your Business

Are Paid Ads Right for Your Business

You’ve launched your business and now it’s time to start selling or perhaps you’ve been launched for a while and it’s now time to finally increase those sales. The significance of advertising is undeniable, Ads are the lifeblood of business, they are the link between vendor and buyer. After all, who is likely to buy a product if they aren’t aware the product exists.

Table of Content 

Understanding Advertising

The Cost of Advertising

Challenges facing Advertisers

Given these Challenges, Who and What Can Help?

How Often Should I Run Ads

Understanding  Advertising 

Understanding advertising is easy when sticking to the age old 5W’s; What, Why, Who, Where, When. Advertising is the promotion of products or services to potential customers. It’s a key element of marketing, enabling businesses to clearly communicate the value and unique selling points of their offerings.

Why is Advertising Important?

Advertising fuels business growth. Its core purpose is to create awareness, stimulate interest and prompt action from potential customers. It helps brands connect with their audience, build credibility and drive sales. Without advertising, your business may simply fade into obscurity, a small fish in a very large pond.

Who is the Target Audience?

Understanding your target audience is vital to the success of any advertising campaign. Every ad should be tailored to resonate with a defined demographic, ensuring that the right message reaches the right people. This includes considering factors such as age, gender, location and specific interests or needs. Heard of our Right MATCh model for guiding your marketing campaigns?

Where should you Advertise?

Determining where to advertise depends on where your target audience spends their time. Online platforms offer immense potential, with social media, search engines and email marketing being popular choices with borderless reach. Traditional methods of advertising such as print, broadcast and outdoor advertising remain relevant for certain businesses.

When should you Advertise?

Timing is equally important. Ads should be scheduled strategically to influence decision-making at crucial stages. Chocolate ad during the tea break when Corrie or Emmerdale is on? Consider industry-specific factors also, a business selling garden furniture, for example, might increase advertising in the spring months knowing that summer will be the period of consumption/use and typically people start anticipating the good weather following the winter.

The good old '5Ws' can help you organise your advertising plans in the initial stages, a robust strategy is much better and our other blogs make reference to strategies and how to compile them. Typically we use a process we call our “Notorious Nine” to guide the creation of any content strategy.

The Cost of Advertising 

Cost can vary greatly based on several factors including the method used, quality of the advertisement, industry, geography and more. We’ve looked into some of the information and pricing available online and compiled it into general median amounts below. Remember that advertising is essentially just another method of marketing.

Traditional Advertising: 

Traditional forms of advertising like television, radio or print can range from hundreds to even millions of pounds, depending on the scale and reach. Local newspaper ads can cost as little as £20. On the other hand, a 30-second national TV ad could cost more than £2500 per airing depending on the time slot.

Online Advertising: 

The cost of online advertising is generally more affordable and flexible, allowing for small to large budgets. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, like Google Ads, works on a bidding system where businesses can set their own budgets. The average monthly cost-per-click (CPC) in Google Ads for the insurance industry in the UK reached £5.49 in 2023 and was the highest among the reviewed industries. The lowest cost was for the pharmaceuticals sector, with CPC valued at 19p.

Social Media Advertising: 

On platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, costs can change based on many variables including audience targeting, ad quality and time of year. On average, businesses spend £0.77 per click on Facebook. Instagram and LinkedIn are considerably more £3 - £5. Really a budget of £100 is low for paid ads on social media so be sure it’s the route you want to take and invest in it properly.

Influencer Marketing: 

Collaborating with influencers for promotion can also significantly vary in cost, from £100 to £1,000,000+, based on the follower count, engagement rate and platform.

Email Marketing: 

This form of advertising is generally cost-effective with most email marketing tools offering plans based on the size of your intended sending list or rates.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): 

Although technically not advertising, SEO is an important element of advertising particularly Google Ads, keywords are a key component of these ads. Costs can range from £500 to £10,000 a month based on the agency and level of service.

Remember, while cost is an important consideration, the return on investment (ROI) is what truly matters. A high-cost ad campaign that brings in significant profits would be more valuable to a business than a low-cost cautious spend on a campaign that generates minimal results. In fact it could be detrimental as your brand image and presence are negatively impacted.

Challenges facing Advertisers

Running ads, especially in the digital landscape, can be a complex task. It requires an understanding of various platforms, knowledge of targeting techniques, budget allocation, creative design and most importantly, analytics. Here are a few challenges we’ve encountered:

Platform Complexity: Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads or Twitter Ads, each have their own complexities. Understanding the mechanics of each can be time-consuming and challenging.

Targeting: Identifying your ideal target audience and knowing how to connect with them is essential. Poor targeting can lead to wasted ad spend and disappointing results.

Creativity: Designing an engaging ad that captures attention and motivates action is a challenge, especially given the previous 2 points.

Budget Management: It's important to allocate your budget effectively across campaigns and platforms to maximise ROI. This requires an understanding of bidding in PPC ads and consideration of your spend in other methodologies. You need to spend money to make money, doing it meagerly just does not work.

Gaining Analysis: Interpreting the data from your ad campaigns can be overwhelming. Making data-driven decisions is key to improving your marketing activity.

Given these Challenges, Who and What Can Help?

In-House Marketing Team: If you have the resources, building an in-house team to run your ads can give you more control and integration with other marketing efforts and departments.

Training and Courses: There are numerous online courses available that can help you or your team acquire the skills to run ads effectively.

Digital Marketing Agencies: Possess the required expertise and experience to handle all aspects, from planning and executing to monitoring and reporting.

Platform Support: Platforms such as Google and Facebook offer guides, tutorials, webinars and customer support to help SME’s run their own campaigns.

Freelancers: Depending on your budget, hiring a freelance digital marketing expert can also be an effective route. They can offer more personalised attention to your campaigns.

No matter what route you choose, remember that successful advertising requires testing, learning and revision- it's an ongoing process that evolves with your business.

How Often Should I Run Ads

The frequency with which you run your ads largely depends on your business goals, budget and the nature of your campaign. There isn't a one-size-fits-all answer but here are some guiding factors:

Consistent Presence: To maintain brand awareness and remain fresh for consumers, it's important to have a consistent presence. This doesn't necessarily mean running ads non-stop but rather, scheduling them in a way that ensures steady visibility.

Budget: The duration of your advertising campaigns should align with your budget. Monitor the return on investment (ROI) closely and adjust your strategy accordingly. If a campaign is performing well and providing a positive ROI, it might be worth running it continuously or frequently.

Campaign Specific: Campaigns can be tied to specific occasions, events or promotions. For example, an e-commerce business might run ads more frequently in the lead-up to Christmas or during end-of-season sales.

Testing and Analysis: Over time, test different frequencies for your ads. Analyse the impact on engagement, conversions, and overall ROI to determine the most effective frequency for your business.

Market Conditions: Keep an eye on market conditions and consumer behaviour. If analytics suggest that your target audience is more active on certain days or at specific times, run your ads to maximise engagement.

Saturation Point: Beware of the 'saturation point', bombarding your customers with ads too often can have a counterproductive effect, leading to ad fatigue and reduced engagement.

In conclusion, the method of advertising, the frequency of running ads and the tools to create and share them requires a strategic approach that is tailored to your business’s specific needs, goals and budget. It may be beneficial to seek advice from a digital marketing expert or agency to help determine your optimal advertising campaign.