Webinar Wrap Up: Hot PPC Tips for Microsoft Advertising

Microsoft Advertising, previously known as Bing Ads, is a power-packed fusion of data-driven marketing, automation, and AI. According to Microsoft, Bing powers 36 percent of U.S. desktop searches and 11 billion monthly searches globally and also connects you with 53.3 million searchers that Google can't reach.

In a recent Simplilearn webinar, Brad Geddes, co-founder of the award-winning company Adalysis and John Lee, Microsoft Advertising's Learning Strategist, discussed the growing and evolving ecosystem of Microsoft Advertising. This article includes analytical discussions on expanding advertising beyond Google Ads, easily importing campaigns, PPC ad best practices, expanding audience reach, and targeting efficiently and effectively.

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You can listen to the podcast, or watch the complete webinar here, or scan through the highlights below.

Why Microsoft Advertising?

Microsoft Advertising is a robust network of powerful benefits that helps you reach out to the customers looking for your business. It works like a pay per click advertising system. With its reach across devices, you can easily connect with users who are searching for your offers and services from home, at work, or on the go. 

The Microsoft Search Network and Microsoft Audience Network together reach over half a million people worldwide today. Microsoft Advertising effortlessly imports ads, especially if you are already using another product like Google Ads. You can comfortably transfer most if not all of your existing PPC data into your new Microsoft campaigns.

Getting Started With Microsoft Advertising

Microsoft Advertising allows you to manage your ads virtually — on the web, desktop, as well as your mobile device. You can also target millions of unique searchers through the Microsoft Search Network, by geography, country, city, postal code or within a specified distance. It is estimated that in the U.S. alone, the Microsoft Search Network has 125 million unique searchers.

Microsoft Audience Network

Microsoft Audience Network is an advertising solution that combines user intent from search and user profile data. This combination creates a strong match between a person’s need and an advertiser's product to deliver higher performance. 

Microsoft Audience Ads offer a massive reach by connecting you to millions of searchers through premium sites that are brand-safe. These include MSN, Outlook.com, Edge browser, and other partners, with more to come. These high-quality native ad formats naturally blend into the core user experience.​

Thanks to Microsoft’s purchase of LinkedIn, Microsoft Ads now allows you to use LinkedIn profile targeting data. This unique capability lets you target ads based on searchers’ job function, industry, company name, age, and gender​ (as they appear in their LinkedIn profiles).

Microsoft Graph

The Microsoft Graph is comprised of reliable data sets, including search and web browsing activity, LinkedIn profiles, demographics, and more. The data is regularly updated based on user actions. This Graph allows marketers to spot trends and uncover insights by mapping audience data on a large scale.

Import Your Campaigns from Google Ads

If you are already running Google Ads, you can easily import existing advertisements into Microsoft Advertising and run the same ads on Bing without extra editing. This feature is one of the easiest ways to expand your online reach. Once you have initiated the import sync, you can schedule ads as well. 

Google Ads Vs. Microsoft Advertising

Time Zones and Ad Schedules

In Google Ads, the ad schedule is based on the advertiser’s time zone while Microsoft Advertising is focussed on the user’s time zone for scheduling ads.

Location Targeting

For location targeting, Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising are similar. However, there are minor differences in the ways the two platforms support specific cities, countries, zip codes, etc. Therefore, you should be cautious while importing data and always double-check location targets.

Search Partners (Syndication)

Search syndication happens when a search engine offers its services to an approved third party, which has been vetted and on-boarded by a specific team in need of search capabilities for their digital properties (websites and apps). These syndication partners then showcase the search results and ads on their sites. You also can exclude and eliminate the irrelevant or poorly-performing search partners.

Bids and Automated Bids strategy

Microsoft Advertising exclusives

1. Ad Customizers

• Customizes plain text, prices, numbers, and dates​

2. Ad Extensions

• Adds call-to-actions to your ads​
• Choose from 69 predefined actions

3. Image Extensions

• Potentially serve a relevant image with a text ad in SERPs​
• Add images to native ads (Microsoft Audience Network – extending search campaigns)​

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How to Write a Compelling Ad Copy

You must strive to keep your ads relevant in Microsoft Advertising. You can achieve this by using your visitors' most popular search terms in your ad titles and text.

• Don't forget to mention what makes your product unique
• Another key to writing good ads is using your visitors’ language. This includes words, phrases, and styles that are popular and likely to attract your typical customer.
• Be clear and specific. For instance, a "50 percent off" offer works better than "big discounts."
• Offer customers a justification for clicking your ad instantly. Provide a specific call to action, like offering customers a brochure or consultation, download a free eBook, or a newsletter subscription.

Conclusion

All types of businesses (small or big) can profit with Microsoft Advertising. To learn more about PPC best practices for any platform, look into Simplilearn's Advanced PPC Course. This online training curriculum was created by industry experts to fast-track your PPC skills, including display advertising, conversion optimization, and web analytics. 

Brad Geddes is the author of "Advanced Google AdWords," and co-founder of the award-winning company Adalysis, an automatic platform for ad testing and PPC recommendation. Brad frequently writes articles for  Search Engine Land and other websites and has led more than 150 seminars on Google Ads. He’s also a course advisor for the digital marketing curriculum at Simplilearn.

John Lee is Microsoft Advertising's Learning Strategist, Client Experience Design & Delivery. He was instrumental in building and launching the Bing Ads Academy as well as the Bing Ads Accredited Professional program. John represents Microsoft and Bing at digital marketing events and on industry blogs.