The world of paid ads can be daunting when you’re just getting started. So to make things a bit easier, we’ve put together a glossary of the most common types of paid ads and their benefits. Hope it helps!

GOOGLE ADS

Also known as Pay per click – Google AdWords offers both display and text ads that are associated with highly targeted keywords. Advertisers are able to bid on space based on their strategic keywords, budget, and ad type.

Benefits: These ads meet your audience where they are. It’s like positioning a billboard directly outside your target customers house.  

DISPLAY ADS

Also known as banner ads. Similar to Google Ads, however these ads contain a visual aspect. They appear in the sidebar or at the top of a webpage.

Benefits: They are highly visual and help to enforce brand recognition.

SOCIAL ADS

These are ads that appear directly in the Instagram and Facebook feeds of a user. They typically combine text and display features to create a visual ad that will grab viewers’ attention. They include:

– Facebook Ads

– Instagram Ads

– Facebook Lead Ads

– Instagram Story Ads

Benefits: If your audience is on social media, you need to be advertising on social. Period. These ads have the potential to reach new audiences who are likely interested in engaging with your brand in a way that feels somewhat authentic.

YOUTUBE PRE-ROLLS

Pre-Rolls are typically short video ads that pop up before YouTube videos. (Read more about them in our previous blog post: How YouTube Pre-Rolls Boost Brand Exposure)

Benefits: They are surprisingly inexpensive to run and are amazing at maximizing the number of people who see your content.

RETARGETING ADS

Retargeting ads allow a business to put display ads on the screens of someone who has previously visited their website, essentially keeping your brand top of mind.

Benefits: On average, it takes 3 exposures for a potential customer to convert. Retargeting is your best bet at ensuring you’re getting in front of the right people and staying at the front of their mind.

WE CAN’T TALK ABOUT PAID ADS WITHOUT TALKING ABOUT

A/B SPLIT TESTING

This isn’t technically a type of paid ad. But rather a method of comparing two versions of something (this could be the copy or the creative) to determine which one performs better. We do this with every single ad we run to make sure everything is optimized and is as effective as possible.

OPPORTUNITY COSTS

Consider how much money you’re missing out on by not investing in your brand and investing in a strategic marketing strategy.

If it costs $100 to get a $1,000 sale, the opportunity costs far exceeds not running paid for your brand and your business.

Julian Tillotson
Founder & CEO, INDIRAP

Bonus: Watch the video above to gain even more insight on what paid ads are the their benefits. And if you need some help crafting the creative for your paid ad or don’t know how to distribute it, hit us up. We’re here to help you succeed.