Google Ads v Paid Social

Google AdWords: Paid Search

Google AdWords is the world’s biggest and without doubt the most popular PPC advertising platform, It literally has defined the term “paid search.”

Paid search concentrates on the targeting of keywords together with the use of text-based advertisements. Advertisers using AdWords ‘bid’ on keywords – specific words and phrases that Google users have used to search for products and services  – The highest bidder ensures that their websites or landing pages appear at the top of the search results and /or their ads are displayed alongside the search results for these queries. Each time a user clicks on an ad or the search result that has been paid for,  the advertiser is charged a cost, this is where the term “pay-per-click advertising” comes from

In reality, advertisers are paying to build an audience based on the keywords and search terms they type into Google.

Facebook Ads: Paid Social

Although advertising on Facebook is very similar to AdWords, in that advertisers using both platforms are essentially marketing their business online via the pay per click model, the way Facebook creates your target audience id different. Unlike paid search, which targets keyword users, Paid Social helps businesses build their target audience using the old fashioned classical method by accessing Facebook user demographics and lifestyle choices

The primary difference between Google Ads and Facebook Ads, therefore, is how the target audience is built. AdWords target audience are keyword searches, the larger the keyword usage the larger your target market, while with Facebook you build the audience yourself. Google ads finds you new customers, whereas Facebook helps your target market find you