We’ve previously discussed the subject of ads while talking about content marketing strategies for your eCommerce business. Today, I’m going to get into why ads are just a short-term solution for eCommerce websites. What’s more, that isn’t even the only downside.
Ads have been around for a long time, but they have lost some of their popularity in recent years. I personally think that things are going as they should. I doubt that ads are going to disappear any time soon, but now we have better ways to handle marketing.
Here are some solid arguments why ads aren’t a long-term strategy:
I admit that there are a lot of things to think about when making a social media ad campaign, but, in the end, the target audience experiences the same thing: They’re told square in the face that they should buy something. And that’s it.
Most people will just shrug and ignore the message. For those who were thinking about making a purchase, it might be the push that actually makes them buy, but that’s about it.
Even though some will buy, don’t expect them to care about the company after they make the purchase.
The only way they will ever think about that website again is if the product was extremely good, which doesn’t have anything to do with the ads.
Content marketing is better than ads because it gets people invested before convincing them to buy. Click To TweetAfterward, they’ll still be invested and there’s a good chance they will want to buy again in the future, or, at the very least, tell others about your brand. Ads don’t work that way. They just ask people to buy.
In case you’re wondering how content can make your brand more memorable. They’ll give you all the answers you need.
That means that when your eCommerce website stops paying for the ads, the people they were bringing in will stop coming. That leads to our next point.
[ Image Credits: NineWest]
If you ever checked Google to see how much social media ads cost, you probably thought “Wow, that’s pretty cheap”. Yeah, it would be if the competition for certain demographics wasn’t so high.
In reality, you end up spending quite a lot. Plus, the results might not even be that spectacular.
If that’s the case, you’re just wasting your time because you’re not making much money, and your brand isn’t growing in any meaningful way either.
The positive aspect is that it takes very little time, especially when compared to content marketing. Even so, I think that it’s not worth it.
If you really want to use social media ads, don’t completely rely on them. They should be part of a strategy, not the strategy itself.
Content marketing, on the other hand, has a better return on investment as it requires less money and the effect of a successful campaign, besides lasting much longer, can bring even more sales.
Always calculate how much money you put into ads and how much the customers coming from those ads actually spend on your online store.
No one is saying that companies should stay away from social media. Quite the opposite.
The thing is that people come on social media to unwind, start discussions and connect with others, not to buy something.
Ads just take people by surprise and urge them to spend money when all they want to do is talk to friends or tell others about their day.
The public generally dislikes ads because they are disruptive. Maybe they’re helpful for some, but, in most cases, they’re just a distraction. If someone will remember the name of the company that posted the ads, they will most likely not have a good opinion about them.
Content, on the other hand, is a welcome sight for users, since it gives them the option to choose when to look over the information. It’s supposed to be interesting and provide useful knowledge to the people who read it.
But that doesn’t mean that content doesn’t encourage them to buy. It generally has calls to action. The difference is that ads are just calls to action.
A good CTA needs proper build-up to make readers more open to the message it's trying to get across. Click To TweetThis probably doesn’t come as a surprise to you, but I want to make sure that you fully understand the implications of this fact. Just promoting your products does lead to sales, but that’s about it. Ideally, you want people to remember your website as well.
You may attract one-time clients this way, but next time they want to buy something, there is no guarantee they’ll come back to your website. They might see an ad for a different website and go there instead.
Think of any huge company. Their brand is immediately recognizable. People know about their business even if they have no interest in the company itself.
Ads don’t help with this at all. Your website and brand don’t evolve in any real way with ads. They just keep being average.
The bottom line is this: Ads aren’t a long-term solution because all they do is boost sales only on the short-term while the lifetime value of a customer will remains very low. That’s simply not enough. A business should always try to grow.
For that, you’ll need a way to keep your clients invested and make your brand well-known. Ads only boost profits, but those profits should be invested in a marketing strategy that also focuses on long-term results.
The company that is paying for ads can use other strategies to get better results, and that goes double for eCommerce websites because of the huge competition on the market.
Social media networks are turning people away with ads. People don’t want to read ads, since they have better things to do, and they also don’t like being treated like walking wallets.
If you agree with me, and are interested in coming up with a content marketing strategy for your own eCommerce business, I suggest you take a look at this article.
I know it can be tough, especially in the beginning, but the end results will be worth it. Having just a little bit of information can go a long way, so imagine what 7 well-explained steps can do for you.
