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Top 6 Types of Cost-Effective Advertising for Small Businesses

Updated: Mar 31, 2020



Running ads can be expensive and it is true especially if you are a small business.


The main objective of investing in advertising is to build awareness of your brand among a larger audience. You can focus either on digital ad platforms or traditional advertising media to bring valuable new business to your organization.


Digital platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and Google Adwords are cost-effective ad types for small businesses. Although traditional advertising methods such as TV, radio or newspapers may provide you with good results, investing strategically in digital advertising can result in a high return on investment.


What are the Benefits of Advertising Online:

  • Helps reach a large audience online

  • Is cost-effective

  • Digital campaigns can be quickly implemented and removed

  • Ads can be updated easily

  • Performance can be tracked


Have a look at the different Cost-Effective Ad Types that you should consider for your business.


1. Instagram Ads

If your business deals with visuals then Instagram is your go-to platform for advertising. It caters to the younger audience under the age of 30. The ads include Instagram stories ads, image ads, video ads, and carousel ads. For better optimal results, make sure that you include clear call-to-action buttons to drive traffic to your website.


Benefits of Instagram Ads

  • Free ads

  • Reach target audience

  • Increased engagement with the audience

  • High conversion rate

  • Increased visibility


2. Google Search Ads

Google Search Ads are a popular form of Pay-Per-Click Ads (PPC Ads)that allow you to pay only when a viewer clicks on the ad.


These ads help you appear in top spots in Google search results for a keyword without any SEO strategies.


How do Google Ads Work?


When someone searches for a particular product/service, Google goes through every keyword that matches the query and provides the user with the results. Google Ads will ignore irrelevant searches such as searches from a different country or due to any policy violation.


Google Ads makes sure to reward businesses with high-quality ads that have low-click through costs and strong ad placements.


The average cost-per-click(CPC) on Google Ads ranges between $1 to $2. However, the cost varies according to the industry, keywords, and location.


What are the Benefits of Google Ads


  • Reaches people having the intention to understand, research and buy a product/service they are looking for

  • Allows you to identify a few keywords and target a specific geographical location

  • Allows you to target many audiences with a specific product or service


3. Facebook Ads

Facebook is one of the best platforms to advertise for small businesses. It is a popular social network and has over two billion active users. Also, on average, active users access Facebook about eight times in a day. More importantly, Facebook Ads allow you to target a specific audience.


What are the Benefits of Facebook Ads

  • A cost-effective way to reach your target audience

  • Helps target the exact audience

  • Allows remarketing


4. Amazon Sponsored Products

Amazon offers many advertising options like Google. It is the third-largest seller of ads in the US after Google and Facebook.


Sponsored Product Ads are driven by manual keywords and automatic keyword targeting. It means that whenever users type a keyword in the search bar, Amazon’s systems target the keywords for your ad.


If you are selling products, it is recommended that you advertise on Amazon and reach over 100 million Prime Members.


What are the Benefits of Amazon Ads

  • Reach more buyers instead of just viewers

  • Boost the sale of your products

To understand more about Amazon Ads you can read it from here!


Read More: Why is Amazon Advertising important for your business?


5. Google Maps PPC Ads

Google Maps marketing is perfect for location-centric local businesses. It allows you to use Google Local Search Maps Ads to bring in customers to your doorstep.


Over one billion people use Google Maps and your customers may also be using it. Therefore, there are more chances that you can benefit from advertising on Google Maps.


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Here are some statistics that reveal the importance of Google Maps ads;

  • 84% of users conduct local searches

  • Location-related searches have increased 50% faster than mobile searches in the last one year

  • 75% of users who search for a product, service or location nearby are more likely to visit the store within 24 hours and 28% of these searches end up as a purchase


6. Mobile Advertising

In this type of advertising, ads are served only on mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. These ads range from short message service text (SMS) to interactive advertisements. Additionally, 84% of customers under the age of 30 are likely to shop online via their phones.


What are the Benefits of Mobile Advertising

  • Helps you reach customers with little or no delay

  • More cost-efficient than other advertising platforms

  • Allows you to tailor campaigns to mobile user’s preference

To Sum Up

Online advertising can be a boon for small businesses if executed correctly. Google, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Amazon allow you to advertise your products and services and set daily budgets for your campaigns. You can leverage these platforms according to your requirements and get noticed by the masses.


If you are keen to increase sales, you should take advantage of either one or more of the above-mentioned advertising methods.

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