Google display ads are a popular advertising option for businesses looking to reach a wider audience and drive traffic to their website.
These ads, which are often visual in nature and appear on websites across the Google Display Network, can be a powerful way to promote a brand and its products or services.
However, like any advertising method, there are both pros and cons to using Google display ads.
In this article, I will explore the key benefits and drawbacks of this advertising option to help you determine whether it is right for your car-wrecking business.
Over the years we have run tens of Display ads for auto wreckers while managing their Google Ads, however, at least for us, the results have not been the best.
Pros of Google Display Ads
Google Display Ads can be very profitable if run properly. The costs can be very low and conversions high.
Consider only one aspect of it, YouTube. It is the most popular video platform with over a billion watch hours every day.
You can reach thousands and millions of people in a few minutes through YouTube and other websites around New Zealand and the world.
Without further ado, let’s dive into the pros of using Google Display Ads.
Ability to reach a large and diverse audience
One of the biggest advantages of Google display ads is their ability to reach a large and diverse audience.
The Google Display Network includes millions of websites, so your ads have the potential to be seen by a wide range of people.
This can be particularly useful if you are trying to reach a specific demographic or target market, as you can use the available targeting options to ensure your ads are shown to the right people.
So what are the targeting options? There are many but I am going to list a few here.
Keywords: You can target your ads to users based on the keywords they are searching for or the content they are viewing.
Topics: You can target your ads to users based on the topics that they are interested in.
Demographics: You can target your ads based on factors such as age, gender, and parental status.
Interests: You can target your ads based on users’ interests, as determined by their online activity.
Remarketing: You can show your ads to users who have previously visited your website or engaged with your business in some way.
Placements: You can choose specific websites or apps where you want your ads to be shown.
Custom Affinity Audiences: You can create custom audiences based on user’s interests and activities.
Custom Intent Audiences: You can create custom audiences based on users’ search queries and other signals of their intent to make a purchase.
and many more.
You can see this can be a very powerful advertising tool for businesses of all sizes.
Flexibility
Another advantage of Google display ads is their flexibility.
These ads come in a variety of formats, including text, image, and video, so you can choose the type that best fits your message and goals.
You have complete control over the appearance and content of your ads, so you can tailor them to your brand and target audience.
If you want to run video ads only? No problem.
Want to show them on YouTube only? No Problem.
These flexibilities allow businesses to take full advantage of Display Ads in the way best suits them.
Effectively drive traffic to your website
Google display ads can also be an effective way to drive traffic to your website.
When someone clicks on your ad, they are taken directly to your website, where they can learn more about your products or services and take the desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a form.
This can help to increase the visibility of your website and generate leads and sales.
This is particularly beneficial to a business if they don’t have enough organic traffic to its website. The costs are very low, as low as a few dollars a day.
This traffic can be very targeted, all you need to do is set the right options.
Relatively easy to set up and manage
Google display ads are relatively easy to set up and manage.
You can create and run your ads through the Google Ads platform, which offers a user-friendly interface and step-by-step instructions.
Whether you have previously used the Google Ads platform or not, the instruction and interface make it quite obvious. So you can’t go wrong.
Other than that, as the largest digital advertising platform, you can easily find thousands of videos and tutorials on how to set up these ads.
This makes it possible for businesses of all sizes and experience levels to use Google display ads effectively.
Cons of Google Display Ads
It is not possible to have any side effects when using something. The same is the case with Google Display ads. However, I always say the benefits are much more than the side effects so it is always worth a shot.
When you run Google Display Ads you will obviously have a few things to be cautious about and try to mitigate the damage to your campaign.
Again, compare to benefits these can be minimal without you doing any.
So let’s look into issues you may run into while running Google Display Ads.
Risk of ad fatigue
One of the main drawbacks of Google display ads is the potential for ad fatigue, which occurs when users see the same ads repeatedly and become less likely to engage with them.
If I visit your website and I start seeing your ads on other websites afterwards. In the beginning, I will be impressed by your efforts.
However, when everywhere I go I see the same ad I say two days ago will be a problem.
This can reduce the effectiveness of your ads and make it more difficult to achieve your goals.
To avoid ad fatigue, it is important to regularly update your ads and use different formats and targeting options.
Google allows tens of images for every single ad so make full use of it.
Add all types of content like text, images, and videos. Experiment with text and images.
In short, the more variety you have the better it will be.
Potential for low ad relevance
Google display ads have the potential for low ad relevance.
Since these ads are shown on a wide range of websites, there is a chance that they will be shown to users who are not interested in your products or services.
I will add a simple example for clarification purposes where you sell computers.
You choose a targeting option “Computers”. Now computers can mean anything, people looking to purchase new computers, people who are IT, people who sell computers and many more.
This will lead to showing your ads to all the people who Google thinks may be interested in computers.
For you, there’s only a part of those who are being shown the ads may bring leads or sales. However, the rest will never click on your ads.
This can lead to low click-through rates and a poor return on investment.
To improve ad relevance, it is important to carefully choose your targeting options and create ads that are relevant to your target audience.
Can be expensive, especially for small businesses
Finally, Google display ads can be expensive, particularly for small businesses with limited advertising budgets.
I know, earlier I said it is very cheap. I still stand by those words. If we compare the costs of reaching thousands to millions of people for a few dollars. It is cheap.
However, if ads are not managed properly it can cost you an arm and a leg.
The cost of these ads is determined by a variety of factors, including the targeting options you choose and the competition for ad space.
Now, if you do start running ads for the wrong audience, or a competitive market, or bad quality ads. They will all cost you and will have no return.
I believe if I spend one dollar and it brings nothing then it is expensive.
So, the cost can be managed if apply the right techniques and understand your audience.
To make the most of your advertising budget, it is important to carefully monitor your campaign performance and make adjustments as needed.
Despite these drawbacks, Google display ads can still be a valuable advertising option for many businesses.
By understanding the pros and cons of this method, you can determine whether it is the right fit for your business and develop an effective advertising strategy.
On the plus side, these ads can reach a large and diverse audience, offer flexibility in terms of format and content, and drive traffic to your website.
Ultimately, whether Google display ads are right for your business will depend on your goals, budget, and target audience.
