While Google Ads is often the go-to platform for Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, Bing Ads (now known as Microsoft Advertising) offers a powerful alternative that can provide significant opportunities for businesses. Bing Ads allows advertisers to reach millions of users across the Microsoft Search Network, including Bing, Yahoo, and AOL. With lower competition, often lower costs-per-click (CPC), and access to a unique audience, Bing Ads can complement your PPC strategy and help you achieve your marketing goals.
In this guide, we’ll cover how to set up and run a successful Bing Ads campaign, including key features, best practices, and tips for optimizing performance.
Why Bing Ads?
While Google dominates the search engine market, Bing and its partner networks still represent a significant portion of online searches—especially in certain demographics. Bing Ads offers unique benefits for businesses looking to diversify their PPC efforts and reach a wider audience.
1. Lower Competition and CPC
Since fewer businesses advertise on Bing compared to Google, there is generally less competition for keywords. This results in lower CPCs, making Bing Ads a cost-effective platform for driving traffic and conversions.
2. Unique Audience
Bing Ads reaches a unique audience, often composed of users who are older, more affluent, and more likely to use desktop devices. This makes Bing particularly valuable for businesses targeting niche markets or demographics that may be underrepresented on Google.
3. Seamless Integration with Google Ads
If you’re already running Google Ads campaigns, Bing Ads makes it easy to import your campaigns directly, simplifying the setup process. You can import your existing keywords, ads, and targeting settings into Bing, allowing you to leverage your Google Ads strategy on a new platform.
How to Set Up a Bing Ads Campaign
Setting up a Bing Ads campaign is a straightforward process, especially if you’re familiar with Google Ads. Follow these steps to get started:
1. Create a Microsoft Advertising Account
To run a Bing Ads campaign, you’ll need to create a Microsoft Advertising account. Sign up at ads.microsoft.com, and follow the prompts to set up your account, including your billing information.
2. Define Your Campaign Goals
Bing Ads allows you to choose from several campaign objectives, including driving website visits, increasing conversions, or promoting your products or services. Define your campaign goals clearly, as this will guide your targeting, bidding, and ad creation.
3. Import from Google Ads (Optional)
If you’re already running Google Ads campaigns, Bing Ads offers a convenient import tool that allows you to copy over your campaigns with minimal effort. This is particularly useful for advertisers who want to expand their reach without creating new campaigns from scratch.
- How to Import: Navigate to the Import tab in Bing Ads, select “Import from Google Ads,” and follow the instructions to transfer your campaigns.
4. Set Up Keywords
Like Google Ads, Bing Ads allows you to target specific keywords that are relevant to your business. You can choose broad match, phrase match, or exact match keywords to control how closely your ads align with search queries.
Best Practices:
- Start with long-tail keywords: These tend to have lower competition and can provide more targeted traffic.
- Use negative keywords: Add negative keywords to prevent your ads from showing for irrelevant searches, improving the relevance of your campaign.
5. Create Compelling Ads
Crafting effective ads is key to a successful Bing Ads campaign. Your ad copy should be clear, compelling, and aligned with the search intent of your target keywords.
Best Practices:
- Include keywords in the headline: This makes your ad more relevant to the search query and can improve your click-through rate (CTR).
- Highlight unique selling points (USPs): Focus on what makes your product or service stand out. For example, emphasize free shipping, limited-time discounts, or other key benefits.
- Use a clear call-to-action (CTA): Encourage users to take the next step, such as “Shop Now,” “Get a Quote,” or “Learn More.”
6. Set Your Budget and Bids
Bing Ads allows you to set a daily or monthly budget for your campaigns. You’ll also need to choose a bidding strategy, such as manual bidding or automated bidding, to control how much you’re willing to pay per click.
Best Practices:
- Start with manual bidding: This gives you greater control over your CPC and allows you to adjust bids based on performance.
- Monitor and adjust: Over time, analyze which keywords and ads are driving the most conversions, and adjust your bids to allocate more budget to high-performing keywords.
Best Practices for Running Successful Bing Ads Campaigns
To get the most out of your Bing Ads campaigns, follow these best practices to optimize performance and drive conversions:
1. Use Ad Extensions
Ad extensions allow you to provide additional information in your ads, such as your business location, phone number, or links to specific pages on your website. These extensions increase the visibility of your ads and provide more options for users to engage with your business.
Best Practices:
- Sitelink extensions: Direct users to specific pages, such as product categories, promotions, or contact forms.
- Call extensions: Add a clickable phone number to encourage users to call your business directly.
- Location extensions: If you have a physical storefront, use location extensions to show your address and increase foot traffic.
2. Leverage Audience Targeting
Bing Ads offers robust audience targeting options that allow you to reach specific groups based on factors like demographics, device type, or even user behavior. You can also create remarketing lists to target users who have already visited your site but haven’t converted.
Best Practices:
- Target by device: Adjust your bids to prioritize desktop, mobile, or tablet traffic depending on which devices perform best for your business.
- Demographic targeting: Refine your targeting based on age, gender, or household income to reach your ideal customers.
- Remarketing: Show ads to users who have previously visited your site but didn’t complete a purchase or sign-up.
3. A/B Test Your Ads
Regularly test different variations of your ads to identify what resonates most with your audience. By experimenting with headlines, descriptions, and CTAs, you can optimize your ads for higher engagement and conversions.
Best Practices:
- Test one variable at a time: Change one element, such as the headline or CTA, and compare performance to isolate what’s driving better results.
- Rotate ads evenly: Bing Ads allows you to rotate ads evenly to give each version a fair chance to perform.
4. Optimize Your Landing Pages
Your landing page plays a critical role in converting clicks into customers. Ensure that your landing page is relevant to the ad, loads quickly, and has a clear path to conversion.
Best Practices:
- Match landing page to the ad: If your ad promotes a specific product, make sure the landing page features that product prominently.
- Mobile optimization: Ensure your landing page is mobile-friendly, as a growing number of users search on their phones.
- Clear CTA: Use clear and compelling CTAs like “Add to Cart” or “Sign Up Now” to guide users toward completing the desired action.
Common Mistakes to Avoid in Bing Ads
While Bing Ads offers a powerful advertising platform, there are common mistakes that can undermine your campaign’s success. Here’s what to avoid:
1. Neglecting to Use Negative Keywords
Without negative keywords, your ads may show for irrelevant searches, leading to wasted ad spend. Regularly review your search term reports and add negative keywords to filter out low-quality traffic.
2. Ignoring Device Targeting
Not all devices perform equally. Analyze how your ads perform across desktop, mobile, and tablet devices, and adjust your bids accordingly to focus on the best-performing traffic.
3. Setting and Forgetting Campaigns
Bing Ads campaigns require ongoing monitoring and optimization. Regularly review your ad performance, adjust bids, and refine targeting to keep your campaigns performing at their best.
Conclusion
Running a successful Bing Ads campaign can help you tap into a unique audience, reduce your CPC, and improve your overall PPC performance. By setting up your campaigns strategically, leveraging audience targeting and ad extensions, and continuously optimizing based on data, you can create a Bing Ads strategy that complements your Google Ads efforts and drives meaningful results.
