How To Know When Your Business Needs Paid Ads
- Zoek Studio
- Feb 5
- 5 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
Your guide to identifying the right time for paid advertising — real stats, actionable tips, and ROI insights.
Introduction: From Print to Digital Paid Advertising
For marketers, the Super Bowl is our Olympics, or well, our Super Bowl.
Even with the controversial half time show, the cost of advertising during this year’s game has risen 43% since 2022.
Averaging $8-10 million for a 30 second spot, at least 46 confirmed brands are planning to face off with the most memorable, humorous, and thought-provoking in-game commercials money can buy.
Expect Artificial Intelligence to be front-and-center. Svedka vodka scored the first-ever fully generative AI production, Wix is showcasing their new hybrid-AI website builder with simultaneous nostalgia and hope-for-the-future, Meta teamed up with Oakley for "athlete intelligence," and Base44 is poking a bit of fun at lunch-time ennui with their AI app builder.
Then there’s brands going for the celebrity draw, like Pringles (Sabrina Carpenter) and Uber Eats (Matthew Maconaughey) with the latter taking it a step further. They’re allowing at-home viewers to create their own Super Bowl LX ad via the Uber Eats app.
What’s most notable, however, is that the cost of these ads has gone up, even with the controversy and the attention split between traditional broadcast TV (NBC this year) and streaming channels (Peacock, YouTube TV, and NFL+). Marketers are anticipating upwards of 100 million viewers and are paying a premium for it.
Jump to:
The Quick History Behind The Competition
Paid advertising isn’t new, of course. From print ads in newspapers to paid social, businesses have long invested in placing their brands top of mind with customers. But today, the advertising landscape has become all the more competitive with the average consumer being exposed to more than 4,000-10,000 ads per day!
For context, in 1970 that number was a mere 500-1,600 ads per day.
While "exposure" to ads is a bit different than "conscious processing," the math is simple: your ad needs to be able to break through all that noise.
With today’s digital paid ads, the benefits become all the more clear. Google search ads, Facebook and Instagram ads, etcetera, offer measurable results and precise audience targeting. This is decidedly unlike traditional channels, where the ROI on a $10 million Super Bowl spot is more esoteric.
Digital paid ads help balance the playing field a bit, and smaller businesses can now compete with confidence with big brands by using affordable, data-driven campaigns. But when Goliaths are spending millions for one commercial, how do you know when your business should invest in paid advertising? Let’s look into it.
Why Small Businesses Use Paid Ads
Paid advertising can accelerate growth when organic traffic and referrals aren’t enough. The right strategy drives traffic, increases conversions, and builds brand awareness, in a measurable way.
The data shows:
✓ About 65% of small and medium-sized businesses run PPC campaigns to reach customers online with approximately 80% of the global paid search market belonging to Google Ads.
✓ Small businesses allocate a median monthly budget of $3,500 for PPC.
✓ Digital ads contribute significantly to small business success with 57% of advertisers earning more than $50,000 per year from digital ads, and many relying on this revenue as part of overall growth.
✓ With Zoek Marketing businesses earn an average $2 in revenue for every $1 spent on paid ads. That’s a 200% ROI.
These numbers illustrate that when done right, paid ads aren’t just a noisy expense, they’re a growth engine.
Signs Your Business Needs Paid Ads
There are a few key indicators that your company could benefit from investing in paid advertising:
✓ Your Organic Traffic Isn’t Growing Fast Enough
Content marketing and SEO takes time — often months or years — to produce major results. If you need to increase visibility quickly, paid ads can put your business in front of customers now.
✓ Sales or Leads Have Plateaued
If your traffic is stable but not translating into more leads or sales, paid advertising can inject a new flow of qualified prospects into your funnel.
✓ You Have a Target Audience But They Can’t Find You
Paid ads allow you to precision target users by location, interests, behavior, and search intent — making every dollar more efficient. When organic keywords aren’t enough to reach your audience, paid campaigns fill the gap.
✓ You’re Launching a New Product, Service, or Offer
Paid ads are ideal for product launches and special promotions because they create immediate visibility and push your messaging to the right people at exactly the right time.
✓ You Need Fast Results for Seasonal Campaigns
Paid advertising shines for short-term promotions — think holiday offers, special events, or limited-time discounts. Organic efforts alone can't compete with the speed of paid placements.
Understanding Paid Advertising Options
Now, let’s look at some of the most common paid ad formats and when to use them:
✓ Google Search Ads (PPC)
Best for capturing high-intent customers who are already searching for products or services like yours. Google controls a huge share of search activity, and PPC can provide immediate visibility.
✓ Social Media Ads (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok)
Ideal for awareness and engagement, especially if your audience spends time on social platforms. These ads work well for brand building and retargeting past site visitors.
✓ Retargeting Campaigns
These ads reconnect with users who have already visited your site but didn’t convert. Retargeting typically yields higher conversion rates than cold traffic campaigns.
Partnering with a digital marketing agency, like Zoek, can help you customize a strategy tailored to your immediate and long-term goals — helping you design, manage, and optimize high-performance paid ad campaigns.
How to Measure Paid Ads Success
Success isn’t just about impressions, it’s about real business outcomes:
✓ Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) — how much revenue you earn per ad dollar.
✓ Cost per Click (CPC) — how much you pay per visitor.
✓ Conversion Rate — the percentage of visitors who complete a desired action.
✓ Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) — how much you spend to acquire a customer.
Many businesses achieve positive ROAS and growth once they optimize targeting, bidding, and messaging. Tracking and analytics are essential to know what’s working.
Mistakes to Avoid With Paid Advertising
𝗫 Not tracking conversions — without measurement, you’re flying blind. Despite the high usage, many businesses struggle with optimization, with 72% not even reviewing their ad campaigns in over a month.
𝗫 Using generic audiences — instead, precision-targeting improves ROI.
𝗫 Ignoring website and/or landing page optimization — even great ads can fail, if the landing page doesn’t convert.
𝗫 Skipping A/B testing — testing saves money and improves performance faster.
Final Thoughts: Is It Time for Paid Ads?
If you’re asking, “Should we invest in paid advertising?,” the answer depends on your goals and current performance.
When your business is ready to boost visibility, attract more qualified leads, and track measurable ROI, the answer is a resounding, “yes.” Paid ads could be the strategic step that takes your growth to the next level.
Integrating Paid Ads Into Your Marketing Strategy
Paid advertising isn’t a standalone magic bullet, however. It works best when complemented by other efforts:
✓ SEO builds long-term visibility.
✓ Social media marketing nurtures leads beyond the website click.
✓ AI-driven messaging improves repeat customer traffic across channels.
This way, paid ads can accelerate measurable growth while other channels build solid foundations, and it eliminates the guesswork of whether or not your million-dollar ad spend achieves its goal.
Dordle has a noticeable learning curve, but it’s fair. Early attempts may feel overwhelming, especially for players used to solving one word at a time. Over time, however, patterns emerge.
Playing Wheelie Life is about resisting impulse. The bike responds sharply to haste. Balance requires steady correction. Terrain punishes impatience. Large movements destabilize control. Small inputs preserve alignment. Distance becomes the real challenge. Each run feels fragile. Growth comes slowly. The game stays honest. Skill decides everything.
Cool post Slope