The 7 Best Advertising Platforms for Small Businesses in 2020

You’ve just started your eCommerce business (congrats!) and you’re determined to make it grow. 

So, you’re ready to take advertising more seriously. To “pump” some traffic into your website, to fuel sales…

And you ask yourself: 

What are the best advertising platforms for small businesses in 2020?

For that..

You have 2 main criteria:

• To have a low cost per click 
• To get you good conversions

Now, here are your 7 best options — the top advertising platforms in 2020 that are both affordable and effective.

But First: What Are the Different Types of Advertising Platforms?

For they do come in all different stripes.

So, we have:

#1 Search Engines 

With Google Ads dominating the market, followed closely by Bing.

Why would you bet on search engine marketing? Because you want to have your business listed among the first ones in the search results.

To make it visible to your target audience when they look for products like yours.

#2 Social Media Sites 

Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, Twitter Ads are some of the best social media advertising platforms.

They make one of the easiest to use, but hardest to master types of online advertising platforms.

#3 Digital Publications 

Digital newspapers, digital magazines, blogs… You don’t run out of options when it comes to types of digital publications that you could promote your small eCommerce business on. 

#4 Forums

Quora and Reddit make the perfect places for small business owners to get their brands in front of large audiences of users.

#5 Online Retail Marketplaces

Think eBay Ads and Amazon Ads. 

Ok, they’re not precisely small budget-friendly, but still: you need to think two steps ahead, right?

After all, you’re planning to grow your eCommerce business.

7 Best advertising platforms for online businesses

Now, let’s get back to the main topic of this post and delve into the best advertising platforms to grow your business in 2020:

1. Google Search Ads

40,000 search queries are processed on Google every… second on average. 

Pretty crowded in there, isn’t it?

So, if you want your business to stand out from that huge crowd, invest in some intent-driven Google Search ads.

And give your website a better exposure in the SERPs.

Tip! Include the city name if it’s a local business that you’re trying to promote.

Why use Search Ads?

Because it’s a “low hanging fruit” type of advertising tactic. One that’ll help you drive traffic to your business site fast and easy.

Pros 

• You get to be very specific with your ads, to make them hyper-targeted; tailor them based on location, demographics and other criteria

Cons

• You can go over your budget quite easily if you’re not strategic with your choices when you set up your Google Ads campaigns

How much will it cost you to advertise on Google Search?

Be ready to spend between $1 and $2 to have your ads displayed in the Google Search Network.

2. Google Display Ads

Another one of the best advertising platforms for small businesses in 2020 is Google Display Ads.

They’re those Google-powered visual ads that get displayed on other relevant websites.

Why use Google Display?

Because you get access to a network of 2 million websites (Youtube, Mobile App Targeting, and Google Shopping here included). 

Pros

• You reach a large audience of internet users
• You can make the most of your remarketing ads: retarget former visitors of your website or simply users who’ve shown interest in products or services similar to yours

Cons

• Expect the initial setup to be a bit more complex, compared to the Google Search ads
• You have no control over which websites will display your ads
• You cannot target a specific audience for your ads

How much will it cost you to advertise on the Google Display Network?

The average CPC is under $1.

3. Bing Search Ads

Surprised that we’ve got Microsoft’s search engine listed among the top advertising platforms in 2020?

Don’t be! For it comes right after Google Ads. 

Is Bing Advertising worth it?

Just think about it:

68 million people search on Bing every month. 

Add this massive audience to the millions of users that you’ll be reaching out to via your Google Ads and… do the math.

Pros 

• You can import all your Google Ads campaigns to Bing 
• Users get to reach out to all those Bing users that your competitors have overlooked (68 million, remember?)
• You have total control over your campaigns: you know, at any moment, how much each click costs on your partner platforms
• Marketers can stick to their budget: it’s cheaper than Google Ads

Cons 

• a smaller market share, which translates into less traffic that you can drive to your website (if you decide to stick to Bing Ads only)

How much will it cost you to advertise on Bing?

Around $1.54 per CPC.

4. ConvertedIn

An ad automation platform that you’ll want to consider when striving to grow your small eCommerce business. You can use ConvertedIn to get the best ROI for your Facebook or Google ads. 

The best part is it will take care of everything from segmenting unique profiles to creating an audience and lookalike audience. You can use it for handling prospecting and retargeting campaigns on autopilot. 

Why ConvertedIn?

Because it makes remarketing and retargeting so much easier.

Pros

• You get expert help to optimize your ads; to strike that perfect balance between low costs and high click-through rate
• You’ll get to tap into social media retargeting

Cons 

• You have no control over the bidding

How much will it cost you to advertise on ConvertedIn?

It starts from $99 for the starter pack and goes up to $499/month and even custom plans for enterprise level stores.

5. Facebook Dark Posts

Remember the (not so) good old days when, if you wanted to promote your business on Facebook, you had to build and manage an audience first?

Not the ideal scenario when you’ve just opened a small business and you want to grow it fast and… on a budget.

These days, you have a better option at hand: Facebook Dark Posts. The unpublished posts running as targeted ads on the News Feed of a specific audience.

Why Would You Go for Dark Posts as Your Facebook Advertising Approach?

Because you get to target multiple groups of users with different offers and slightly different ad copy. 

And because by targeting specific groups of people, you take the spammy posts out of the equation.

Pros

• You get to target anyone on Facebook; anyone who might be looking for a product/service like yours
• Users can even set targeting to specific user credentials: Gmail users, users in your hometown, active Facebook spenders, etc.

Cons 

• you shouldn’t expect to reach a huge audience (rather a smaller, but a target one)

How much will it cost you to advertise on Facebook Dark Posts?

It depends on whether you want to drive more engagement , traffic, or conversions with your ads.

6. Instagram Ads

Over 1 billion active users per month…

Now, that kind of exposure is gold when you’re advertising a small business online.

Is Instagram a good way to promote your business?

• Yes, if you’re targeting a much younger audience
• or, if you’re selling fashion, health, food, or other types of consumer products

Pros

• Users get to include your business details in all of your posts, making it easier for potential customers to reach you
• Your ads get displayed as regular posts on Instagram, making them look less… evident
• You can drive some user interaction around your new brand, even if your niche is a “boring” one: stunning visuals appeal to everyone, after all

Cons 

• You’re constrained to using it on mobile if you want to access all its features
• You don’t get an in-depth reporting (e.g. how customers interact with your Instagram ads or who’s clicking them)

How much will it cost you to advertise on Instagram?

Somewhere around $0.70 and $2.00 per click. But costs will vary according to the industry you target and the ad formats you select.

For a highly competitive industry, expect to spend around $3 per CPC.

7. Twitter Ads

“What’s the best advertising platform for my small business?”

It could be Twitter if:

• It’s a niche global audience that you’re targeting (and precision-targeting is the best tactic for small business with… small budgets)

Pros 

• You get to promote a wider variety of services on Twitter 
• Users get to make the most of its hashtag-based targeting capabilities: reach out to those people who have mentioned a specific word during the last seven days
• Advertisers get access to an international audience of… 262 million users

Cons 

• The reporting around your campaigns is not as detailed as the one you’d get on Facebook or Google 
• Your target customers might just… miss your ads in that constant stream of tweets

How much will it cost you to advertise on Twitter?

Prices go from $0.50 -$2/action for promoted Tweets to $2 – $4 per follower for a promoted Twitter account.

So, Which Advertising Platform Is Right for Your Business?

It depends on:

• Your niche: what do you sell?
• The advertising objectives (engagement, traffic, brand awareness, etc.)
• A social media platform that your target audience uses
• The way your potential customers search for answers to their pain points

Tip! Go for a multi-platform approach. It’s one of the most effective advertising strategies.

Now, let’s say that you’ve made your choices going through this list of the best advertising platforms for small businesses in 2020.

You’ll still need to:

• create and optimize your ad copy
• fine-tune it to each platform
• set bidding strategies for each ad platform 

Pretty overwhelming, isn’t it?

But what if you could have these platform-tailored and hyper-targeted ads created for you… automatically?

Just fill in the form below for a quick demo of Converted.in and find out how you can put your advertising campaigns on autopilot!