Leveraging PPC Social Media Campaigns for E-Commerce Success

December 17, 2023

So much of today’s business landscape takes place online. You experience that firsthand operating an e-commerce site, but another sector of the Internet is shaping the digital marketing world. Social media sites serve as a platform for all types of consumers and are changing the way business leaders market their audience via pay-per-click advertising.

This guide explains helpful tips and tricks proven to be effective for PPC social media campaigns. Discover how you can capitalize on social media with help from Bear North Digital, a leading e-commerce PPC agency.

Table of Contents

Understanding PPC Management for E-Commerce Storefronts

In order to promote your products or services online, a pay-per-click advertising campaign can land you thousands of impressions and page views. One of the most effective ways you can advertise your business is by displaying ads at the top of search engine results when individuals type in specific keywords that align with their product, such as “red cocktail dress” or “virtual therapists near me.”

You can keep your advertising costs lower by implementing a campaign using Cost Per Thousand Impressions, in which you only pay for the ad based on the number of impressions it receives online. Pay-per-click often costs more but provides more informative metrics, such as the number of users who click on your ad and explore your site from that ad.

A recent study from Google reports that sites that abruptly stop their PPC ads lose 89% of their site traffic when they rely on organic views only. Another impressive piece of data from Google’s Economic Impact Report is that for every dollar that a business invests in PPC through Google Ads, it makes $8 in profit for an astounding 800% return on investment.

To drive your sales, you must make your ads meaningful so consumers act on them. Make sure you include your prices in the ad so consumers have the most important information upfront and can easily compare you to the competition.

How Social Media Strengthens E-Commerce PPC Campaigns

The explosion of social media opens the door for you to target your ideal audience and boost sales. Instead of relying solely on search engines for paid ads, you can establish an effective PPC social media campaign. You’ll pay each time someone clicks on the digital ad, but with the right strategy, you’ll earn more in sales than you’ll pay for your digital marketing methods.

Social media sites are additional resources you can use to your advantage when advertising your products or services. Rather than focusing on search engines and related keywords, you can display ads across relevant social media sites in hopes of attracting a wider audience.

Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and YouTube have billions of active users worldwide. Limiting your paid ads to one search engine like Google or Bing automatically limits the reach you can have. Taking your e-commerce marketing to these social sites can exponentially expand your audience.

Once you gain the attention of users, you can convert their initial impressions into long-term engagement. You can use social media to consistently interact with consumers. Through posting original content and reaching out to customers directly, social media provides the following benefits:

Increased customer loyalty
Better customer satisfaction
Honest consumer insights that you can use to improve your brand

How To Use PPC Social Media Campaigns for Your Benefit

Now that you know some of the key advantages of using paid ads across social media, let’s review the ways you can achieve success through your PPC efforts. Creating an effective pay-per-click campaign requires careful consideration of the following aspects.

Determine Your Ideal Audience

Digital marketing experts can’t stress enough how important it is to understand your target audience. When crafting an advertising strategy, figure out all of the key characteristics you’re looking for in a consumer. This includes the following:

Gender identity
Age
Race or ethnicity
Geographic location
Education level
Salary
Social media behavior

Depending on the type of consumer you’re looking to reach, this will impact your marketing efforts. For example, products marketed toward consumers under the age of 35 may see an increase in sales when you advertise on platforms like Instagram or TikTok. Products aimed at an older demographic could have success through ads displayed on Facebook or Pinterest.

Evaluate E-Commerce Advertising Opportunities

Just because your target audience responds better to one social media platform doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use other sites for advertising your brand. PPC social media campaigns can work on all platforms as long as you optimize your ads. Start small and measure the impact of paid ads on various platforms. You can adjust your budget and marketing plan depending on the results.

Assess Your Competitors’ Advertisements

E-commerce digital marketing can be tough when there are so many competing brands to go up against. Monitor the social advertising activity of your top competitors to find your edge. Analyzing the marketing tactics used by similar brands can help you craft a campaign that proves successful.

Create Compelling Content About Your Products and Services

Put yourself in your customer’s shoes. Would you be willing to buy a brand’s product without getting a lot of information and insight about it? Effective ads not only draw a consumer’s attention but inspire them to learn more about your product.

Your ad should be engaging and include some of the following components:

Pricing
Real reviews and testimonials
Demonstration of the product in use

Create content that is unique to each platform you advertise on. For example, you could utilize an image format when promoting your brand on Instagram, while an ad on YouTube or TikTok would be more effective as a short video.

Focus on User-Generated Content

An excellent way to advertise on social media is by creating a campaign that centers around user-generated content. In other words, the main goal is to get customers to interact with your ad by sharing their thoughts about your brand.

For example, say you sell makeup products. A PPC campaign can target your ideal audience and encourage them to interact with you on social media when your ad asks them to share a photo of them using your products.

Engage With Users

Your paid ad should reach a wide audience of those who are new to your brand and returning customers. Prospective customers may comment on your ad with questions about the product or your company, while loyal patrons could voice their thoughts on your brand. Respond to all of the concerns or feedback you receive to make your audience feel valued and draw them to your e-commerce storefront.

Take Advantage of Available PPC Social Media Metrics

Once you start to display ads across social media sites, it’s crucial to track their progress and how impactful they are on your e-commerce sales. Experts suggest measuring a few valuable metrics, also known as key performance indicators, to monitor the success of your PPC social media campaign.

Monitor Data Analytics

Every e-commerce business that runs an ad through Facebook, Instagram, or other social media sites will have access to data analytics. The platform will provide insight into the ad’s performance through metrics such as:

Total impressions
Engagement rate
Total clicks
Conversion rate

It’s not enough for your ad to garner a lot of views but deliver minimal engagement or a low conversion rate. Looking at the overall performance will help you pinpoint where your ad is succeeding, as well as areas that need improvement.

Perform A/B Testing

Digital marketing experts urge e-commerce brands to perform A/B tests when they launch a PPC social media campaign. This means running the same ad twice but changing one minor component the second time, such as your call to action. Track the performance of the first ad, also known as the “A” ad, and compare it to the “B” ad to see which one garners better results.

Adjust Your Digital Marketing Strategy When Necessary

Depending on the key performance indicators of your digital advertisements, you can make changes to your PPC strategy. For example, if you’re struggling to get users to engage with your ad, you can alter it to include a call to action like “Leave a comment below” to boost user engagement.

Your brand should consistently work on honing your marketing strategies for maximum success. If you find that ads on certain platforms directly increase your sales, try to implement similar tactics on another social media site to drive your business forward.

Frequently Asked Questions About E-Commerce PPC Campaigns

Should Paid Ads Follow a Certain Format?

Your social media ads should have a mobile-friendly format since most users access their social media accounts on smartphones. You can optimize PPC ads on search engines for mobile or desktop users.

How Can E-Commerce Sites Connect With Customers Over Social Media?

E-commerce sites can connect with consumers by posting original content like ads and relevant posts about trending topics. Brands can also respond to customer questions and feedback directly through their social media account.

How Can E-Commerce Brands Build Trust Among New Audiences?

E-commerce businesses can use influencer marketing along with PPC to gain new customers. Influencers with large social media followings create unique content to promote your brand and urge their followers to try your products or services.

Book a Free Consultation With PPC Advertising Experts

Whether you want to get a better understanding of PPC best practices or initiate a PPC social media campaign, the digital marketing experts at Bear North Digital are here to help. We help countless e-commerce businesses flourish thanks to carefully executed marketing campaigns that deliver big returns on the investment. Discover how our professionals can serve your business.