Business Advertising - Google or Facebook?

The battle for supremacy between Google and Facebook rages on. It can prove difficult for advertisers to know which is more beneficial for their business, when it comes to determining marketing strategies. Creating and advertising a brand presence on Facebook has its own plus points, and needs a different approach to advertising on Google AdWords. There’s no doubt that Facebook and Google advertising are both effective methods for businesses to boost sales and brand awareness. So, what do we know?

• Similarities
Both Facebook and Google have enough potential to reach large, and relevant audiences through paid advertising. Both of these platforms offer paid advertising models along with free online marketing tools, such as the Google+ business page, and the Facebook Fan Page, etc. Google has Hangouts, while Facebook has Groups.

Differences
With over a billion users logging in to Facebook every day, sharing information about their lives, Facebook has more data mining potential than Google ever will. This means that Facebook advertising can hone in on the people you most want to target. The downside for Facebook is that when people want to find a product or service, they turn to Google. They don’t wait for Facebook ads to come to them. However, Facebook sessions tend to last much longer, which makes Facebook an ideal channel if you’re looking purely to build brand awareness. Google is more for the user who is ready to make a purchase, whereas Facebook is where you go if you’re looking to feel an emption about something, or someone – it’s more leisurely.

Will Google+ continue to grow in value?
While logging into your Google account will allow Google to capture your online movements, Google+ was, at one point, going to be phased out, as users just couldn’t connect with the platform in the same way as they could with Facebook.
When it comes to web searches, Google has the distinct upper hand. Google AdWords is the perfect place for businesses seeking immediate visibility, and to witness immediate returns. The return on investment is much easier to gauge, and can drive clicks towards specific products. Where Facebook helps the buyer’s decision making process, Google converts. Google’s remarketing campaigns help to mop up anyone who has visited a website without making an interaction of some kind, by creating banner ads which appear in a future browsing session.

Facebook gives businesses an opportunity to connect with users on a personal and social level, companies typically do not go to Google+ for user engagement.

In summary; Facebook is for brand awareness and customer engagement, and Google is for driving sales. In this sense, they actually complement each other. And, when combined with an SEO / digital marketing campaign, this is the most powerful way of rising through the search results.
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