Ads
What is an Ad?
We all think we know what ads are, but do we really?
In the world of business, ads are the single most effective way of drawing in an audience and retaining an existing client-based. For these reasons and more, ads are an essential part of any business strategy.
Let’s have a look at what ads really are and why you should be paying attention to them.
Ads - Definition
An advertisement, more commonly known as an ad, is essentially the paid promotion of a particular product to inform your potential buyers about what you can offer them.
Back in the day, the word “ad” was synonymous with TV and print media, which means that advertisements were primarily limited to only these channels.
To understand how ads operate today, let’s zoom in on digital ads and what they do.
Digital Ads
According to Toolbox, the definition of digital ads is this:
“Digital advertising is the practice of delivering promotional content to users through various online and digital channels. It leverages mediums such as social media, email, search engines, mobile apps, affiliate programs, and websites to show advertisements and messages to audiences.”
The world has gone through massive technological changes and ads today are found in many different forms and especially in digital channels. In the simplest of terms, digital ads are simply ads that are carried out online. Today, online ads are often the type of ads we are referring to when talking about ads.
Types of Digital Ads
To gain a better idea of what digital ads are, it is important to take into consideration the different formats of digital advertising that come into play.
- Search Engine Marketing
Today, this form of advertising is the most common one! These ads are the ones that appear on the top of the Google search results page. We associate these ads with PPC, SEA, and SEM.
- Display Ads
These are a combination of text and images that appear on third-party websites. The third-party website is usually affiliated with a network or a search engine, and that’s how it gets a hold of your ads. A display ad can be anything from an image to text, a video, or a banner.
- Social Media Ads
As the name suggests, these are the ads that run on social media. In recent years, thanks to an influx of users on social media sites these channels have become a favored choice for many small businesses. Especially as many people spend a lot of time on these platforms.
- Native Advertising
Ever seen a “Recommended Reading” or “Related Stories” section on a website? Well, these can be Ads too! They visually relate to the content you are viewing., and that’s how they attract their desired audience.
- Remarketing
We have all experienced the weird phenomenon of the products we once searched for following us everywhere on the web. This is known as remarketing! Websites use cookies to gauge the effects you are looking for, and then you see ads for those all over the web.
Final Words
Ads, especially digital ads, are one of the essential tools for a business today. If you want to gain a competitive advantage over other companies, you must invest in the right sort of ads for your business!