If Google® is the bride, Microsoft Bing® is viewed as “always the bridesmaid” when it comes to its share of search engine marketing and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. But that doesn’t mean that Microsoft Ads® (formerly known as Bing Ads) shouldn’t be an integral part of your PPC strategy. Let’s explore why thinking should shift from “Bing Ads vs Google Ads” to “Bing Ads AND Google Ads.”
Why B2B Marketers Should Embrace Microsoft Ads
Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing allows you to communicate relevant messages to highly targeted audiences on search engines and display networks all across the web and can help you achieve goals like increased traffic to websites, growth of qualified leads and more revenue. Many marketers have a “Bing Ads vs Google Ads” mentality when developing a digital marketing strategy, but here are five reasons Microsoft Ads shouldn’t be discounted:
1. B2B Audiences are on Bing
Consider that most employees are provided a company-issued PC, either a desktop or a laptop. Additionally, many business computers run using the Microsoft® operating systems, which means they are programmed to run Bing as its default search engine. Add to this the fact that many corporations prevent employees from downloading software (or at the least make downloading difficult), which can include alternate search engines like Chrome® or Safari®. This means there are vast groups of potential customers who can only use Bing, or simply use it because it’s a lot easier. If you aren’t using Bing for your PPC search ads, you are missing out on that audience.
2. Backed by the Powerhouse that is Microsoft
Microsoft owns Bing, Yahoo® and AOL®. That means if you advertise on Bing, your ad can appear on all three sites and potentially their other owned partner sites (like DuckDuckGo® and MSN®). Think of it as the BOGO of PPC advertising!
3. Lower Cost
Because fewer businesses utilize Microsoft Ads, there is often less keyword competition. Lower overall traffic to the site means it’s easier to get to the right target audience and get traffic often without spending more. Don’t let the thought of less users deter you. Google may own most of the market share but consider this: Bing accounts for 36 percent of US desktop searches (more than one third) and gets more than one billion visits each month.
4. Differing Demographics
Bing is in the sweet spot of the decision maker age brackets as its users skew older in age (55 percent are ages 35-64) and interestingly is the popular choice of early millennials (35-44).
5. More Targeting Options
One crucial point in the “Bing Ads vs Google Ads” debate is the ability to target LinkedIn audiences in Microsoft ads. Why is that? You guessed it – Microsoft owns LinkedIn® too. With LinkedIn such a key tool for B2B marketers, this is a huge advantage. If you want to target specific companies, industries or job functions, Microsoft Ads is worth the investment.
Microsoft Partner for B2B Clients
As both a Microsoft and Google Partner agency focused on clients in B2B fields, our team works to ensure marketing goals, technical benefits and an understanding of your unique target audience is included in all PPC advertising. If you are contemplating the “Bing Ads vs Google Ads” question, or you’re considering adding PPC to your marketing mix, we want to talk with you. Complete the form on this page or contact us and someone from our team will be in touch.
Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency
Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. Our experts can precisely target your audience no matter where they are online for maximum ROI. Reach out today.