Spreading the Word: Online Marketing

You have a solid business plan, you have your products, you have an awesome web site and everything is up and running. But there’s one big problem...you have no customers.

There are two of the primary advertising methods that online businesses can use to attract customers. The first method is to buy ads on Facebook that are customized to users based on profile information. This method of advertising is difficult to monitor and has a relatively narrower scope, but it has the huge advantage of being noticed by people who have interests in the same area. Another advertising method you could is search-based pay-per-click ads which can be hosted by large or small advertising networks, each offering slightly different options and benefits. This type of advertising has a far reach, is easy to monitor, and has a clear return rate. I believe a combination of these two methods is an ideal approach to online advertising.

With Facebook gaining popularity daily, Facebook advertising is becoming more and more profitable. . Using public information on people's profiles, Facebook displays advertisements on topics that relate to each particular person's interests. A drawback to Facebook advertisements is that people do not always click on them (because they are reluctant to leave Facebook), but this type of advertising is extremely effective for promoting awareness of your business. In my experience, after I have seen a certain advertisement a few times I become more interested and will eventually click on it.

While Facebook advertising is a relatively new development, pay-per-click advertising has traditionally been the most used method of online advertisement. There are many varieties to this kind of adverting. In this April 20 Practical E-Commerce article, Mett Ferner provides an up-to-date and extensive list of 25 different advertising options for online businesses, including both large and small networks.

One large search engine affiliated network that Ferner describes is Google AdSense, which he calls:

One of the most widely used and popular ad platform for online publishers to earn revenue by displaying relevant ads on a wide variety of content that is suited to an audiences specific interests. Participation in AdSense is free and advertisers pay Google for clicks or impressions of ads displayed on participating sites.

Ferner describes the features of a smaller, alternative advertising network called PocketCents in the following way:

Create and display text, image or video ads directly to the kind of users who are interested in your product or service on the PocketCents Network. Set up a fixed monthly budget per ad, eliminate competitive placement based on bidding and much more with PocketCents. PocketCents features a flat rate of $.25 per click on text or image ad or per play of video ad.

How does this type of advertising compare with Facebook ads? This video gives a good comparison of the two advertising methods.


To summarize, Scott Smigler wrote a Practical Ecommerce article on March 2, "Comparing Facebook Ads to Search-Based Advertising." He pointed out the following benefits of each:

Paid Search Ads:

1.Targets Direct Intent.
2.Easy to Calculate Return on Investment.
3.More Control.
4.Reach Most of the Internet.

Facebook Ads:

1.Targets Human Beings Based on Volunteered Data.
2.Increases Trust.
3.Calculate Your Ad’s Reach in Real Time.
4.Build Awareness.

Smigler's overall recommendation is that business owners should try out both types of advertising. I agree and think that the most important thing is to be open to trying different approaches until you find a combination that works for you. I would also encourage you to take Smigler’s advice and “look at your social marketing as a longer-term investment in your business.”