Basic Guide To Online Advertising: Price, Pros, Cons, Platforms

Online advertising is one of the most effective ways for businesses of all sizes to expand their reach, find new customers, and diversify their revenue streams.

If you were to Google digital advertising, you’d see lots of positive feedback on it, yet many businesses do it and don’t get the expected results. So, in this post, we’ll look at different online marketing options; the cost, pros, & cons of online advertising in Nigeria.

Social Media Ads

This includes Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, etc. They are great platforms for advertising and when done well, you can get 1500% ROI +-. How to optimize your ads and make them run for success is a blog post for another day. For now, let’s get into the cost.

Cost Of Social Media Ads

Social media advertising is not a one-size-fits-all pricing model. How much you spend for someone to click on your ad – and ultimately become a customer – is dependent on multiple factors, including your targeted audience size, your industry, and the ad design.

While it varies widely, some general benchmark data does exist. Generally speaking, companies can expect to spend a median:

• CPC of $0.51 / CPM of $9.06 on Facebook.
• CPC of $1.28 / CPM of $6.70 on Instagram.
• CPC of $0.53 and CPM of $5.76 on Twitter.
• CPC of $5.61 and CPM of $6.05 on LinkedIn.

Ps. CPC means cost per click while CPM is cost per mile (per one thousand visitor views/impressions).

Pros Of Advertising On Social Media

1. Audience Diversity: No matter who your prospects are, there’s a good chance they’re on social media irrespective of the social media platform that works for your organization.
2. Editable Messaging: Realize that one ad isn’t performing well after a couple of days? No sweat. Make adjustments to ad copy and targeting immediately to improve performance. You can tweak ads from time to time till you get the one that works for you.
3. Varying Content Types: With social, you can advertise using GIFs, images, and videos for a more engaging experience.
4. Easy AB Testing: Some of the social media platforms – Facebook, for example, have AB testing features where you can continuously optimize your ads for success. Therefore, placing you on high ground for success because you can test different versions of your ads against each other. For example, the use of “your” instead of “the” might make a huge difference that you can find out from your AB test.

Cons Of Advertising On Social Media

1. Not Everyone Is On Every Platform: Social media sites have a diverse set of users, which means your ads might not be equally successful on each channel. For example, young college students might not be on LinkedIn yet, and new retirees may not be on Twitter. This is why you have to work effectively on your buyer persona and audience targeting.
2. Constant Monitoring: Because you see data on the success of your social ads in real-time, it takes more frequent monitoring than other ad types to ensure you’re producing the greatest ROI.
3. Can Easily Overspend: When not done right, people can easily overspend and get no results or results that don’t hit break-even. Mistakes like bidding on the wrong audience, location, or interests, can easily mar your campaign.

Google And Search Ads

Many people only know of Google ads, but people still use Bing and other search engines; nearly a third of searches are done on Bing. For ads, you might get great results outside Google as well, and competition is not as stiff. Regardless of the search engine you use, one thing is sure, search engines are a great place to advertise because you reach people that are looking for your service/product at the time they are actively searching for it.

Cost Of Search Ads

Search ads depend largely on your location and your industry, but on average, the cost varies between $1 and $2 per click on Google, though some ads can go well over $50 per click if the competition is steep enough. Bing ads are a bit cheaper and other platforms vary.

Google Ads are placed according to both a bid by the advertiser and the quality of the ad. Therefore, the better your ad, the less likely you’ll have to pay more to outbid competitors. There are also other factors like the search phrase used and all that.

Pros Of Search Ads

1. Ads Are Highly Targeted: online search ads appear when people search for a term that pertains directly to your business.
2. Easily Control Your Ads: with search ads, you can raise and lower your budget, turn certain ads on and off, and adjust what keywords you’re bidding for, giving you real-time control over your advertising.
3. A Huge Audience: there are more than 60,000 searches on Google every second. Buyers are always searching for what they want to buy.
4. Ads Are Less Intrusive: while some ads come across as disrupting a positive experience, like a TV show or an article, search Ads appear only when someone is searching for related information. Thus, making the viewer less likely not to view it.

Cons Of Search Ads

1. It’s Competitive: Everyone’s on Google looking for solutions, and every competitor wants to be that solution. To rank well, you’ll have to devote ample resources into developing and maintaining amazing ads and invest the funds to keep your #1 spot.
2. You’re Not the Only Ad: On YouTube or some social media sites, someone’s screen might only have enough room for one ad at a time. On the other hand, a search on Google for something you want to buy can produce four ads in a row – making it harder to stand out.

Video Ads

Although video ads are shown on social media platforms as well, you still get video ads in targeted video platforms like YouTube as well as events like the Super Bowl, for example.

Cost Of Video Ads

If you have an in-house video team, you would already know the cost of producing a video for your ad. If not, be prepared to both hire an employee and invest in production equipment, or pay an agency for their filming and editing services. Either way, you could be looking at thousands of Naira.

Distribution is another story entirely. For Youtube, the cost varies depending on the target audience, video quality, and goals, but it’s typically around $0.010 – $0.030 per view. Airing a TV commercial can range from 50,000 naira to 200,000 naira on average for 30 seconds. TV ads are usually priced per time. You’ll get 15 seconds price, 30 seconds, etc.

Pros Of Video Ads

1. Video Has Never Been More Popular: 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube every day, so exposing your company to that audience could be a real money maker.
2. Show Your Product in Action: Unlike text or image-based ads, video ads can include a demonstration, proof of concept, or customer testimonial about your product or service, so people can see the real value you offer.
3. Make Your Brand Modern: Companies are investing in video in droves, since video and the Internet have become synonymous. Failing to advertise with video can suggest you’re not as current as your competitors – depending on your industry.

Cons Of Video Ads

1. Video Ads Can Be Skipped: As they are often viewed as intrusive, viewers will try to fast forward through TV ads or skip an online video ad if it’s an option.
2. It Can Be Expensive: Video done right is one of the more expensive advertising methods, given the cost of professional equipment and some distribution channels. However, you can learn how to get started with video in your business quickly and cost-effectively here.
3. Videos Need to Be Passable: Video production can be tough if you’re new to it, and poor videos aren’t tolerated in today’s world. A bad video ad could give you a negative image in the eyes of potential customers.

Online Advertising Can Easily Be Rewarding

As mentioned earlier in this article, you can get a 1500% ROI on internet advertising, if not more, when done right. Like most other digital marketing options, you just have to know what to do and when to do it.