MS Ads: what it is, how it works and its advantages

Today, almost 95% of users who browse the Internet do so through Google, thus positioning it in the first place of the most used search engines. However, there are also Microsoft platforms, which have the remaining 5% of users, making them more skilled, valuable and easier to target. MS Ads (previously known as Bing Ads) is Microsoft’s SEM tool, which allows you to place ads on the sites of your network, a solution very similar to Google Ads. Covers users searching Microsoft Bing, Windows 10, Cortana, and Office using any device. In addition, it includes collaborations with third-party sites, including websites such as AOL, The Wall Street Journal, Gumtree and InfoSpace, XBOX, Linkedin, Microsoft Edge, MSN, Yahoo, Outlook and Netflix. This means some 162 million unique users and 6,000 million searches per month.

Functioning

MS Ads works very similar to Google Ads, it allows you to segment campaigns with different criteria, such as keywords, location, language, type of device, time and day of the week, demographic data, and purchase intention.

On the other hand, Microsoft offers different types of ads:

• Expanded text ads: 3 headlines and 2 descriptions.
• Dynamic Search Ads: available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• Product Ads: products must be entered through the Microsoft Merchant Center and work like Google Shopping campaigns.
• Bing Smart Search: ads formatted for touch devices.
• App Install Ads: linked directly to the app download button.
• Responsive search ads: they have 15 headlines and 4 descriptions that are combined to optimize their performance to the maximum.

Microsoft Ads application guide:

1. Define the strategy: define the budget you want to allocate and on the Microsoft Ads page create an account from scratch in the “campaigns” section and “create campaign”. There are two main types of campaigns that can be set up: Search campaigns or Display campaigns. There is also the option to import your campaigns from Google Ads.
2. Set up campaigns: campaigns can be set to only show ads for certain keywords or phrases, or target ads broadly based on certain criteria, such as location and demographics.
3. Create ad groups and keywords: enter the domain URL and the different categories of the website, and the tool will take care of giving you recommendations for the most suitable keywords. Then set up the ad groups.
4. Create the ads: fill in the details and requirements that the platform requests so that the ads are as optimal as possible.

Advantages

• Microsoft Advertising allows you to diversify your marketing strategy and expand your business, being able to reach an audience that you might not reach with Google alone.
• By being fewer, Microsoft users are more qualified, valuable and easier to guide to make a conversion (sale).
• You can import your Google Ads campaigns, saving you the work of configuring everything from scratch.
• Microsoft’s platform market share has been increasing in recent years. In Europe it reaches 6.5% of users, and in Spain 8.6%.
• Lower competition and cost per click (CPC). Being a fairly unknown tool, many advertisers still don’t take it into account, which makes your ads stand out more and the CPC is lower.
• There are incentives to get started. Microsoft Ads offers coupons to new advertisers to start advertising.
• Microsoft Advertising allows you to reach 167 million unique users with 15 billion monthly searches. In addition, these users spend 26% more on their online purchases than the average.
• Higher conversion value.
• It is the second most used search engine in the United States.
• It allows businesses to use machine learning algorithms, which help them optimize their advertising graphics and figure out the best time to launch their campaigns.
• Tool in full growth.
• Associated with eCommerce platforms such as Amazon and OfferUp.