What are the best places for small businesses to advertise online? Should you stick to good, old Facebook advertising, or try a different platform?
To help you decide where to spend your advertising dollars, this article will show you the best places for businesses to advertise their products and services online.
3 Best Places for Small Businesses to Advertise Online
Advertising Platform #1: Facebook
For B2C Companies
If you are a business-to-customer (B2C) business, Facebook is the place to be, and a simple Facebook Image Ad is the way to go.
To get started, all you have to do is decide what you want to advertise, who your target audience is, and how you are going to get their attention.
A good B2C advertisement will have a catchy headline and an image the user just can’t scroll past.
A shock factor can sometimes improve your ad. However, knowing who your target audience is, and what they like, is more important.
For B2B Businesses
Business-to-business (B2B) companies can use Facebook Lead Ads to stand out from their competition. It provides a strong value proposition and an easy way to stay in touch.
Facebook Lead Ads include pre-populated lead generation forms that help B2B businesses capture more high-quality leads.
People can simply tap your ad, and a lead generation mechanism will pop up.
This is a great way to capture the attention of B2B decision-makers casually browsing Facebook, and send them relevant information about your business later on.
To make the most out of the Lead Ad features, your ad should clearly communicate why it’s valuable for people to share their information with your business.
You should also tailor your form questions to ensure you are reaching out to the right people with the right information.
For Offline Businesses
Facebook advertising is not just for online businesses. Brick-and-mortar stores can really benefit from Facebook Video Ads.
Creating a video ad on Facebook does not have to be an expensive, high-production endeavor.
A simple video showing what’s going on behind the scenes of your business will capture the attention of interested Facebook users.
For example, a driving instructor may want to shoot a quick video showing a part of a driving lesson. Then he posts it on Facebook along with a strong call-to-action.
The key here is really showing the work you do on a daily basis, and reminding Facebook users that you operate just around the corner.
Advertising Platform #2: Google Adwords
Google Adwords is the largest advertising service in the world.
This platform can be very useful for both B2B and B2C businesses and boasts a great return on investment: $2 per every dollar spent.
It uses a pay-per-click system that allows you to bid on keywords to appear in search results.
In essence, you pay for your website to pop-up in search results when someone searches for something that’s related to your business.
This is a great approach for new businesses, or those just getting started with online advertising.
To get started with Google Adwords, you do not have to create a complicated advertisement or take time to shoot a video.
All you need is someone with a little bit of SEO knowledge to help you pick out the right keywords.
Advertising Platform # 3: Custom Locations
The best place to advertise is wherever your target audience is hanging out.
Are you a B2B business looking to connect with decision-makers and stakeholders in your industry? Buying some ad space on LinkedIn is your best bet.
Got a brick-and-mortar store that you would like to promote to local customers? Try advertising on Google Maps.
On the lookout for the place to reach a female audience? Pinterest ads would be a great place to start.
The list goes on.
The key to finding the best places to advertise is figuring out where your ad has the highest chance to be seen by your target customer.
Finally, it is important to note that an ad campaign can only be considered successful if its revenue exceeds its costs.
If you are getting great results from LinkedIn ads but your advertising budget is being destroyed quicker than revenue is coming in, it might be time to consider other ways of bringing traffic and leads to your site.
How Handmade SEO Can Help
While these are great places to advertise online, your best option will depend on who your target audience is. Where they like to hang out is another factor to consider.
If you would like to learn more about generating more traffic and leads for your business, check out our free Digital Marketing Assessment.
It will show you how to make the most out of your marketing budget, and get started promoting your products and services online.
