Why AdRoll and Bing Ads Can No Longer Be Ignored

Online marketers have dozens of advertising platforms and tools to choose from. Google AdWords is the largest and best-known of these, which is unsurprising because after all, Google is the biggest search engine in the world. But there are plenty of good alternatives, and for some marketers, these alternatives are actually easier to use and provide better ROI than AdWords.

AdRoll and Bing Ads are two especially good marketing tools to consider. Below explains why you should consider using AdRoll and Bing Ads in addition to, or instead of, Google AdWords.

Why Google AdWords Isn't Always Enough

Google AdWords is the giant of PPC advertising, but using AdWords alone isn't sufficient for many businesses, and it isn't even right for all advertisers. Here are a few reasons you might want to consider using other advertising platforms.

• AdWords is expensive. No doubt about it, using AdWords can be pricey. This is especially true if you're just starting out or working with a limited budget. Using lower-competition long-tail keywords can help you somewhat, but if you're looking for a cheaper way to do PPC, you might want to consider branching out to other platforms that have less users.

• AdWords is competitive. Everyone uses AdWords, so it's no surprise that there's stiff competition for high-traffic keywords. Big companies might be able to drop thousands of dollars to win ad spots for these keywords, but many smaller businesses can't. This drives some advertisers to seek out smaller but less-competitive platforms where they can dominate their niche.

• You're already doing great with AdWords, and you want to branch out. What do you do when you're on top of your AdWords game, but you want to keep improving? It might be time to try another platform. As the saying goes, "If you're not growing, you're dying." Expanding your advertising efforts is a good way to ensure your marketing strategy doesn't stagnate.

Using AdRoll for Retargeting

You've probably experienced the slightly uncanny phenomenon of retargeting on the internet before. Imagine you're browsing a website, researching their product or considering a purchase, but you click away without buying anything. Hours or days later, you see advertisements for the same product as you browse different websites. That's retargeting.

Retargeting works because it keeps your site or product fresh in a potential buyer's mind. Getting people to visit your site is enough of a challenge, and retargeting helps you turn more of those hard-won visitors into buyers. If one out of every 100 visitors makes a purchase, and you want to double your sales, it's easier and more efficient to remarket to the other 99 visitors than it is to double your traffic.

This is where AdRoll comes into play. AdRoll has been around for 10 years and is one of the best-known retargeting platforms on the web. WordStream, Dr. Martens, and Air New Zealand are among the many brands that have used AdRoll to capture more customers. Below is a screenshot of what the AdRoll integration looks like on AgencyAnalytics when trying to better understand what is working and what is not:

If you've done any remarketing in the past, though, you might have a question. Google also has a remarketing tool. Why not just use that, instead of switching to another platform? There are a couple of ways to answer that question.

Why AdRoll and Not Google Retargeting

• AdRoll can reach places Google can't. AdRoll, unlike Google, is partners with Facebook, so if you want people to see your ads as they scroll through their Facebook feed, AdRoll is the way to go. This is a big deal because 28 billion people around the globe log in to Facebook on a daily basis, and your site visitors are likely among them. That's a huge potential avenue for remarketing.

• Utilize marketing experts with AdRoll. AdRoll also has a number of other features that distinguish it from Google's remarketing tools. Google takes more of a do-it-yourself approach, and the learning curve can be steep if you're new to remarketing. AdRoll, on the other hand, provides you with plenty of help from their team of marketing experts, which can make setting up your first campaign less overwhelming.

• Target different segments easier. It's also easier to target different segments of your visitor base with AdRoll. Ultimately, the question of which is better comes down to the individual user's preference and skill level, but many people find AdRoll simpler to use.

What if you already use and like Google's tools? There's no reason to give them up. Instead, extend your brand's reach by using Google's remarketing tools and AdRoll together. With both platforms in your marketing arsenal, you'll be able to cover more of the web with your retargeting campaigns than you could by using just one or the other.

Why Use Bing Ads?

If you've been thinking of Bing Ads as a second-rate version of Google AdWords, it's time to give Bing a second look. For starters, while it isn't as ubiquitous as Google, Bing is far from dead – plenty of people still use it. Taken together, Bing and its partners Yahoo and AOL account for nearly 13% of the search engine market.

According to Net Market Share, Bing, Yahoo, and AOL make up 12.91% of the global search engine market. If you're not advertising on Bing, you're probably missing out on sales.

Besides being a major untapped market for many businesses, Bing is a more affordable place to advertise than Google. Since there's less competition, clicks tend to cost less on Bing, even for popular keywords. With effective targeting, that translates to a lower cost per conversion. At the very least, Bing's affordability means you can't go wrong by experimenting with a campaign or two, just to see what happens. Below is a screenshot of how you can monitor Bing Ads with AgencyAnalytics. As you can see, it's exactly like the functionality you'll get with Google AdWords, so there is nothing new you need to learn to understand your successes and where you fall short:

Bing also lets you segment your campaigns differently from Google. For instance, you can opt out of advertising on Google's partner networks, but you can't advertise on their partner networks alone. Bing, on the other hand, does let you advertise only on their partner networks if you want. Bing also lets you adjust your ads' location, language, and scheduling at the ad group level, while Google only lets you change these variables at the campaign level.

The Takeaway

Google offers some great marketing tools – that much is undeniable – but if you want to get your product or brand in front of as many people as possible, it's important to look at all your other options, too. Bing Ads and AdRoll are two of the best alternative advertising platforms on the web today. If you're ready to shake up your strategy, these tools might be just what you need to achieve your marketing goals. And remember, combining them with AdWords and Facebook ads is a great option – you don't have to pick and choose – and AgencyAnalytics integrates with them all. Learn more about our ppc reporting integrations and our AdRoll reporting tool.