Marketing on digital ad platforms in 2024 is completely different from marketing in 2022. Quite possibly, in a two years' time, you are going to hear the same about how rudimental were the strategies businesses applied to reaching their target audiences back in the day. Yet, the key message here is about reaching the target audience. Years will pass and the approaches to digital marketing might change, but one thing will remain certain: reaching the right segment of customers or partners in the right place and at the right time will still be the epitome of marketing efficiency.
With the global network these days offering a plethora of online advertising platforms – the grounds where you can get your message to the audience of your choice – it is crucial to choose the right one! However, the primordial question stands: what should be considered the right online advertising platform? This is exactly why we gather here today: to find out how to choose the best digital advertising platforms for your service or product in 2024.
What is a Digital Advertising Platform?
Let’s kick off today's conversation from the very basics, shall we? In order to be able to choose the best digital advertising platform, one has to know what a digital advertising platform actually is. In fact, digital ads platforms are online grounds that allow you to create and manage your digital marketing (or specific advertising) campaigns targeted at one or several promotion channels – websites, social media, search engine platforms, etc. Each and everyone of them have their own toolkit and resources that allow you to craft, launch, and manage ads that will reach specific audiences.
In general, you can start three types of campaigns: pay-per-click (PPC), pay-per-acquisition (PPA), and pay-per-permission (PPI). Going with a particular type of a campaign allows you to pay specifically for the outcome you want to achieve. Furthermore, modern digital ad platforms allow you to track and analyze a campaign’s performance, which is definitely a crucial, and yet not the ultimate benefit they offer.
Online Advertising Platforms: What Are the Benefits?
It has already been stated that online advertising platforms are a decent tool for stepping up your online marketing game. Nonetheless, let’s look in a bit more detail into what exactly they have to offer.
Maximized reach. Modern day digital advertising platforms allow you to reach audiences across various communication channels at the same time. The power of automated integrations which most those platforms have enables simultaneous multichannel marketing endeavors.
Precision-driven advertising. Any company is interested in selling efficiently. And what is more efficient in sales than approaching those who actually need your product or service? Contemporary digital advertising platforms have all the tools and means to let you reach specific clientele segments based on behavioral, customer journey, and demographic criteria.
Real-time optimization. This is one of the most prolific online ad platforms’ features, as it helps you save a lot of money. Given the campaign analysis capabilities mentioned above, you can change the campaign parameters on the go, thus maximizing ROI.
So, as we’re now cognizant of what a digital advertising platform is and the benefits it brings to the marketers, let’s cut to the chase and discuss the very strategy for choosing the best online advertising platform for your business.
Choosing the Best Online Advertising Platform: Eight Things to Consider
Regardless of whether you’re new to the world of online advertising or even if you have spent decades in the business, you know that there is a lot to think about. A joint marketing jury on Forbes Agency Council claims that there are more than a dozen parameters to take into consideration when choosing the best digital advertising platform for your business. Yet, we’ve put them all under a short list of eight for your convenience.
1. Choose the One for Your Target Audience
Understanding your target audience is where it all starts in efficient digital marketing, right? Hence, you should definitely kick off your journey toward choosing the best online advertising platform with an in-depth analysis of where to find your target audience. Start researching the demographics of your clientele and their behaviors, and this will show you the right path to follow. For example, if you’re targeting established professionals or people of specific occupations, LinkedIn might be the best platform for you; meanwhile, when reaching a younger generation, TikTok or Instagram are definitely the ones to use.
2. Why Are You Advertising?
This is the question to ask yourself when choosing among digital ad platforms. That is, what are your advertising objectives? Do you want to drive more website traffic or is it brand awareness that you are seeking? Or, maybe, you’re all in for direct lead generation? You should know that each platform offers various targeting options and ad formats, which might impact your campaign’s outcome.
3. Are You Ready for the Damage?
Once you know whom and where you’ll be targeting, it is time to calculate your budget, as the cost and modes of advertising may differ from one platform to another. For instance, Google Ads will charge you more if you’re looking to buy out some popular keywords, while Facebook can be more effective in terms of precision-led targeting. So, make sure to check the budget-platform-campaign goal compatibility before you actually invest in digital marketing.
4. Choose Your Formats, Narratives, and Creatives
Modern online ads come in a variety of formats, as digital advertising platforms will let you engage your target audience with texts, displays, videos, carousels, etc. Yet, the final choice of the format is up to you as you have to choose the one (or a combination of formats) that resonates best with your target audience. For example, if you sell a product that requires a lot of visual representation, opt for Instagram, YouTube, or Pinterest.
5. Is It Transparent and Capable of Analytics
First off, you would definitely need to be able to analyze your campaign’s performance in real time. Yet, not all platforms are that benevolent when it comes to letting the marketers be curious about their success; some online advertising platforms might even charge extra fees for such a feature. Hence, make sure that you learn everything you need to know about the provider’s analytical toolkit that comes in its default service package.
6. Think of the Digital Ad Platform’s Reach
No, we don’t imply the platform’s technical abundance that lets you reach specific audience demographics. By talking about the platform’s reach capabilities, we mean the lack of technical and geographical limitations. For example, TikTok might be banned in the United States in 2024, and having extensive digital marketing campaigns planned on this platform in America might be a bad idea this year.
Of course, platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube are popular and they operate worldwide, and thus can offer incredible audience engagement rates. Nonetheless, if you’re planning on working with a non run-of-the-mill platform, make sure to double check each platform’s status in the campaign territory of your choice.
7. Care for the Brand Image
Have you ever seen a decent brand’s ads on a platform with, let’s put it mildly, an ambiguous reputation? Especially when it comes to using programmatic solutions, one should stay alert in order not to end up explaining to their customers or partners why the company’s ads were seen where no one should have seen them. So, choose an online advertising platform that is explicit in showcasing the entire ad campaign journey before you even launch it.
8. Ensure Technical Compatibility
Last but not least is the platform’s capability to work with 2nd and 3rd-party integrations, which are paramount to the success of a modern online advertising campaign. Nowadays, it is impossible to think that you will be able to reach your target audience within a solidified advertising space. Regardless of their demographics, modern Internet users are everywhere - on TikTok and YouTube, on Instagram and Harvard Business Review. So, make sure that the platform of your choice eases your online ad campaign’s integration with the other marketing channels.
Axis Is an Ultimate Online Advertising Solution
It seems like choosing a decent online advertising platform is almost like navigating through a minefield where you have to tread carefully in order not to get blown away by an unexpected surprise of paid analytics or unethical ad placements. Fortunately, the digital marketing niche is progressing, and one might actually not need to face the challenge of finding the best online advertising platform.
The new school of programmatic advertising solutions is here to help you improve your online advertising like you never did before, and Axis is one of the most vivid representatives of this new class of solutions. There is so much more that Axis can offer as compared to average online advertising platforms.
Advertise Efficiently
Axis employs advanced ML technology to suggest your business partners and clients that align with your business criteria. Once you input your data, the platform continuously monitors and updates partner offerings, ensuring relevance to your evolving performance standards. You will receive email notifications promptly with new partner suggestions.
Integrate Seamlessly
Integrating with Axis is effortless. Simply fill out one form, select your role (ad traffic advertiser or publisher), and click a few buttons. The platform handles the rest, connecting you with the partners you need swiftly and efficiently.
Join the Community
Axis is a community-driven platform designed by and for businesses. Our low-touch approach means minimal hassle for customers, as we handle audits internally. This allows advertisers and publishers to focus on what truly matters: advertising.
Experience Effortless Efficiency
Imagine an AI-powered platform that requires no configurations. Axis delivers just that, analyzing your traffic and recommending the best partners seamlessly. We aim to delight businesses on both sides of the advertising industry, offering effortless expansion of clientele, enhanced trading efficiency, and transparent, AI-driven insights—all accessible with a few clicks. Plus, no onboarding required to get started.
Transparent Pricing
Axis operates on a transparent payment model, free of additional fees or margins. Rest assured that your advertising message will reach your target audience at the optimal time and place, maximizing the impact of your campaigns and ensuring a successful marketing strategy.
Conclusion
Modern marketers have a myriad of choices to go with when it comes to online advertising platforms. Nonetheless, the final choice is not always obvious as a huge number of variables accompany it. One has to take into consideration too many factors that might shape the outcome of the advertising campaign and the platform’s technical capabilities is the number one on that list.
At the same time, it cannot be denied that the programmatic industry evolves and new solutions appear on the market offering companies a revolutionary approach to reaching their target audiences in the right place, at the right time. Platforms like Axis represent a new class of all-in-one advertising toolkits that allow for streamlined, automated, and data-driven online advertising. So, if you’re looking for the best online advertising platform, it is quite possible that you’ve already found the one with all the features you might need.