Ads on both Google and Facebook have one purpose, to increase online sales of your e-shop. Both platforms have their own niche and way of doing business, but real success for your business comes when you successfully combine both in an integrated advertising strategy.
At Astrolabs, the most common question we receive from e-shop owners is “Which channel should I choose to promote my e-shop? Google or Facebook?”. But the conclusion they come to after discussing and strategizing with the company’s ad experts is that this question is wrong as both mediums can effectively help their business. The real question then is how they can combine both advertising platforms for maximum benefit.
But how do Google Shopping campaigns and Facebook and Instagram ads complement each other so perfectly?

Both media are real “giants” in terms of online product sales, with the way of advertising having several common points but also some important differences in terms of targeting and the desired results. But what are the main advantages of each platform?
Advertisements Facebook / Instagram: They provide the most detailed audience targeting, ideal for attracting a large number of potential customers with a high probability of purchase.
Google Ads – Unique ability to target buyers purchase intent based on the keywords they actively use for their searches.
Facebook and Google Ads – They provide retargeting options to re-attract and re-engage potential buyers in order to make a purchase.
So both Google and Facebook use each other’s strengths to attract the largest possible number of potential buyers for your products. Essentially one complements the other, guiding potential customers through to the final purchase.
But what does a typical decision-making process leading to a purchase look like, and what steps does it consist of?
1. Buyers identify a need – People may start their search from an issue they are struggling with and looking for a solution, or they may simply need an everyday product such as a pair of shoes or a particular cosmetic.
2. They investigate all the products available to them – At this point, they start exploring all possible solutions and all available products that could meet their needs.
3. Buyers compare different options – At this stage, buyers know what they need and decide on the best product. They are comparison shopping and limitation options.
4. Choose a product to buy – This is the decision making stage where they now know what they want, have considered all possible options and have found the ideal product for their needs.
For example, a user may see one of your ads on Facebook, Instagram or even in a story…

…and after your products catch their interest, they can search for your product or brand on Google to find out more.

So once this potential buyer visits your e-shop and sees your products, you can use remarketing techniques to promote through dynamic ads – both on Facebook and on Google’s display network – the exact products they saw!

The latter form of advertising that aims to make a purchase from the user draws its power from both Google and Facebook. We are referring to remarketing campaigns between the two platforms to push shoppers to buy the product from your own e-shop. But how does this translate in practice?
When a potential buyer visits your online store, sees some products but does not buy, then remarketing type ads will follow him on the websites he will visit afterwards (e.g. informative, sports, etc.) and on his feed on both Facebook and Instagram, to show and remind him of the products he saw in your e-shop and eventually lead him to make a purchase.

So you can, for example, retarget users who have searched and shown interest in your products, but have not yet purchased, with a Facebook campaign through Dynamic Remarketing Catalogue Ads or with a Dynamic Remarketing campaign on Google’s display network.
But what is special about this form of advertising?
Have you ever visited an e-shop, where you saw a certain product, then closed the window and saw an advertisement for that very product appear on Facebook or Instagram a little later? That’s right!

For example, a user who adds a particular scented candle to their cart but doesn’t end up buying it will see dynamic ads for that exact product as well as additional products from the broader “scented candles” category appear on both Facebook and Google.

So these kinds of ads are highly effective because each user sees personalized ads based on the products they have seen or added to their cart but not yet purchased. All these targeting options of course require that you have Facebook Pixel and Google Ads Remarketing Tag installed in your e-shop, and you should also have set up the respective events for which you want to be able to show ads. E.g. for adding to cart ,starting checkout, adding payment details, searching and viewing a specific product etc.
Pro tip: Target and display your ads to your competitors’ audiences through Google’s display network and the creation of a Custom Intent audience.
This type of advertising allows you to target a predefined audience who, due to their characteristics, are more receptive to seeing your ads.
Creating such an audience is relatively simple. First you gather the websites of your main competitors and the main keywords that the average user uses to search for your products. You then create a display campaign and practically ask Google to show your ad to either those who have visited those websites or those who have searched for any of the keywords you have listed.
This way you succeed in showing your ad to an audience that is actively looking for your products, probably has visited the e-shop of one of your competitors and who have not clicked on any of the other ads you are running and may not even know your Brand.
Therefore the ideal strategy for attracting new buyers is the combination of Google and Facebook Ads. So using social channels to reach potential buyers and Google, dynamic product catalogue ads on social and remarketing to make purchases creates a powerful strategy between the two channels to increase your e-shop sales.