Margie Barkley: Microsoft Bing Ads: A Better Way to Market Your Business

Bing is a great alternative to Google for advertisers who want to reach a wider audience or diversify their marketing strategies.

Microsoft Advertising is the new name for Bing Ads. A nice catchy name. For the purposes of this article we will refer to Bing Ads because that is how most people are familiar with it.

Is Bing Ads a good option for pay-per click (PPC) advertising? What benefits can you expect if you decide to use Bing Ads?

This post will look at Microsoft Advertising Platform in more detail. We previously compared Bing Ads and Google Ads.

Some people believe that Google’s massive PPC platform is all they need. This may be true for some. There are other factors to consider to determine if Bing Ads will work for you.

What are Bing Ads (Search Engine Advertising)?

Bing Ads, formerly Microsoft Advertising, offers a similar package as Google Ads.

Pay-per-click results are the main attraction. Microsoft owns Bing and also:

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Your PPC ads will appear on all of these platforms as Microsoft’s search engines.

Microsoft owns Linkedin as well, but Linkedin Ads are their own. Bing Ads, however, can target users based upon their Linkedin profiles, which opens up some interesting possibilities.

Bing ads can appear on the Outlook email dashboard as well as in the Xbox Store, Windows App Store, Cortana results, and partner sites using AOL, Yahoo MSN or Bing search.

Microsoft search technology can also be found in Amazon Alexa, and Microsoft Cortana. Your Bing ads will be displayed as they display search results from Bing.

Bing Ads Reach

The potential reach is a key factor when comparing Bing Ads and Google Ads. Google is clearly the winner, but there are a few additional caveats to be made.

Bing covers over 7% of the US search market and around 6% in the UK. Bing is responsible for over 7% in the US and around 6% of the UK search market. Bing processes 13,2 billion PC searches per month on its various platforms. In 2022, Microsoft will expand to 164 countries and 35 languages, increasing the global targeting options for marketers. Bing’s daily active users surpassed 100M in just one month following the release of AI-powered search.

But that’s just the beginning. Microsoft claims that Bing Ads reaches 45 million US users that Google does not reach.

Bing Ads and Verizon also partner to provide native ads across platforms in 30 countries. It includes video ads, content ads and display ads on some of the most popular websites in the world. Microsoft’s AdSense network is a version of this.

Bing Ads’ second-place marketshare is actually one of its biggest advantages.

Microsoft’s AI integration has led to a steady increase in Bing and Edge users. This is even more significant. Microsoft expects this upward trend will continue as it rolls out new capabilities and features. Bing Ads will have a wider reach, giving you more opportunities to reach out to your audience.

Bing Ads cost is comparable to Google Ads.

Pay-per click (PPC), while a powerful tool for promoting your brand, can become very expensive. Google Ads is a good example, as the CPC can change dramatically over the course of the day.

Bing Ads’ lower market share can be offset by its more affordable cost per Click.

Bing’s CPC average is significantly lower than Google, according to the latest stats available online.

WordStream’s online advertising experts, for instance, discovered that Bing Ads had a CPC of around 33% lower than Google Ads.

It’s important to note that, while lower CPCs are not always accompanied by higher conversion rates, this trend is positive. According to AI Stratagems statistics, the conversion rate of Bing Ads increased 19% year-over-year in 2023.

While you may not get the same reach as you would with Google, your cost per click is lower and you have a higher conversion. Don’t you agree that this alone speaks volumes about Bing Ads?

Bing: More pros and cons

Bing is a great addition to any marketing toolkit.

I-powered Search

Let’s start with a topic that has been (and is still) a very hot one in recent times. Microsoft’s AI-powered Bing Search Engine launched in February 2023 has caused quite a stir.

They were among the first to identify the AI trend, and are now pioneers of integrating it with web-based searches.

No wonder the increasing use of AI chat models has slowly but surely changed the way people find information online. ChatGPT is now so popular that people use it to find a simplified answer. It can be anything from how to determine if a cat is sick to what type of therapy to use. Even more complex things like providing a roadmap and code for building a web site or a guide to actions.

Microsoft now offers the exact same thing (but better) via Bing and Edge. It is a review of a vast pool of web-based information to provide a summarized response. This fundamental change is a game changer for the entire industry. Bing’s smarter, more intuitive search results deliver highly relevant information to users and improve the overall experience.

It allows brands and advertisers the opportunity to be more creative and reach their target audiences in a more efficient way.

Bing is the search engine of choice for people who want a better experience. Google and other search engines still work on AI.

Competition

It’s impossible to discuss the pros and con of Bing Ads, without also mentioning its competition. Google Ads’ popularity is one of the biggest problems that most people will face.

This competition will mean that you’ll be in a fierce battle with every other business within your niche. This competition will also mean higher costs per click, and soaring prices during popular times when businesses are trying to outbid one another.

Bing is a platform often overlooked by search engine marketing, but it has recently shown a lot of promise for those who are willing to try it.

You’ve seen already that the reach of your ads is lower, but you are more likely to negotiate a better price with less people competing for ad space.

This means that you may not reach the same volume of ads as your competitors on Bing alone. Expert marketers suggest using Bing to complement Google Ads rather than as a replacement.

udience quality

Bing’s audience is also thought to be more discerning, which is why the click-through rate is higher. Google is the most popular search engine in the world, which means that it’s used by almost everyone.

Bing data shows that more than a third of its users earn over $100,000 a year. Bing users are overwhelmingly over 40k, and this is reflected by their age, as 56% of Bing users are between 25-55.

Businesses that target a more general or younger demographic may not find it to be an attractive selling point.

Flexible partner targeting

Google Display Network has a wide range of websites that you can use to display your banner ads and content. Content marketers have many opportunities to showcase their ads.

It’s not always easy to tell which websites your ads appear on. This can expose your ads to fraud by spoofed websites and fraudulent networks.

Bing makes it easy to customize your ads and see where they appear.

You can also see how specific websites perform, and if you think they are a bit suspect, you can add them to your website’s “exclusions” list.

Google Ads import

You can also import Google Ads campaigns into Bing Ads.

You may want to find out if a successful campaign can generate any additional leads. Want to test out different campaigns to see which one works best?

This is a simple process, and it’s one of the benefits of using Bing Ads over Google Ads.

Extra controls

Google Ads has a wide range of customization options, but it is lacking in a few key areas. Bing Ads lets you do some cool things, such as:

Use automated rules to easily change campaign settings compared to Google. More advanced mobile ads targeting by OS and device type

Microsoft Ads can be a great place to start for anyone learning PPC.

Should I use Microsoft Ads for my business?

Pay-per-click advertising is available on many platforms, including Facebook, Taboola/Outbrain and social media platforms.

This will depend on your specific marketing strategy. However, with the information we have already reviewed, there is a lot of value.

Microsoft, in addition to lowering advertising costs, is positioning itself as the pioneer of AI-powered search, staying ahead of the curve with new trends.

It’s only a question of time, given the influence AI has on various digital domains. Why not be the first to take advantage of this new technology that is revolutionizing the marketing world and stay ahead of the trends as an advertiser?

Bing Ads is not likely to be the only PPC platform used by most marketers. Google Ads is so widely used that it’s inevitable for most marketers to use it.

Microsoft’s offer could be useful, however, given the lower cost-per-click and increased competition. Bing Ads could be an option for those who are just starting their PPC journey.

Some may also be attracted by the high-earning demographic or the opportunity to target users based upon their Linkedin profile. Microsoft Ads could be appealing to those in business services, or who are working on account-based marketing campaigns.

Remember that click fraud remains a threat no matter what PPC platform is used. Data shows that 11,3% of online traffic in 2022 will be fake.

You still want to ensure that your marketing budget is being spent where you want.

The first time you saw this post, “How to drive better marketing results with Microsoft Bing Ads” appeared on the ClickCease Blog.