Facebook vs. Google Search Ads: Where Should You Put Your Advertising Budget in 2022

self-storage advertising tips

The world of online advertising is getting more complicated by the day. But two platforms still reign supreme for advertising a self-storage business online: Google and Facebook.

While there are several ad and campaign types within these platforms, there are two that we feel are key to promoting local self-storage businesses. Keep reading for three tips that break it down and explain how to best utilize them in your 2022 digital advertising strategy.

Understanding the Platform Users’ Intent

First, it’s important to understand what type of advertising you can do through each platform because they are fundamentally different at their core.

Facebook is a social media platform. Users are looking for information in a more casual sense. They log on to socialize with their connections and see content from pages they like and their joined groups. Instagram – owned by Facebook and managed within the same ad platform – works similarly, just with a more visual approach.

On the other hand, Google is a search platform and dominates the search engine arena. In fact, 70% of the search market share is Google. Their users are actively looking for information when they start a search. In fact, searches for storage-related keywords are up 22% year over year. Additionally, YouTube, owned by Google, is the second-largest search engine in the world, even though many think it is a social platform.

The Difference Between Facebook Ad and Google Ad Targeting

Because the platforms are so different, the type of targeting is also different.

Facebook heavily relies on demographic data. You can target people based on age, gender, interests, and so on. You are essentially picking a customer avatar and letting Facebook find people with similar traits to that avatar.

While Google has some demographic data, it’s more limited than Facebook and is not the main target factor. Google bases its targeting on keywords and phrases people input when searching for information.

Ad Costs and Choosing a Budget

While we wish we could tell you to start with X amount of spend on each campaign, it, unfortunately, isn’t that simple. It’s impossible to say that one ad type will cost more than another because it depends so much on each use case and many variables. Even ad campaigns within the same platform can differ drastically due to numerous variables such as demand, timing, season, and subject matter.

For example, Facebook Ads cost more during the holidays because more companies advertise their sales (and spend more money on those ads) than other times of the year. And given Facebook’s limited ad space inventory, this pushes up the prices of ads.

You can decrease your Facebook ad costs by focusing on segments that are more likely to convert and have shown good results in the past. If people click through or react to your ads at a high rate, Facebook will charge you less per ad click because you provide content that people enjoy.

Google Ad cost fluctuation is highly dependent on competition. For example, running an ad for a storage facility in New York City will cost far more than running the ad in a mid-tier city or small town (more competitors means more advertisers, resulting in higher ad costs).

Our best advice is to test the waters. Add more to what works and pull back on what doesn’t. Better yet, partner with a digital marketing agency like Vivial, which has already done the testing and has a good sense of what you will need to gain traction with your campaign.

If you’re ready to take your marketing to the next level, schedule a free strategy session with one of our Digital Marketing Representatives today!

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