Understanding Google Ads vs. TV & Social Media Ads

What are the first images that come to mind when you think of “advertisements”? Is it something along the lines of an overdramatic scene of a celebrity driving a fancy new car, pulling up to a red carpet event with paparazzi and cameras everywhere? Or a furniture salesman yelling at the camera for you to come in for THE BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR!? Or a pizza company showing the delicious satisfaction of plopping down on the couch with your friends and taking a bite of the warm and cheesy pizza?

If you thought of something along the lines of what I just mentioned above, that is probably because these are the most noticeable types of ads. These ads have to be flashy, memorable, catchy, or dramatic because they are interrupting what you are doing with the hopes of catching your attention and motivating you to take action. These types of ads are called “interrupt ads”.

For example, if you’re watching a football game on TV, you’re there to watch the game, not the ads. Therefore, when ads are shown, they are interrupting what you are there for. In order for these types of ads to be effective, they need to catch your attention long enough to convince you to buy their products or services. Therefore, they tend to be loud, catchy, flashy, or dramatic. While these are the types of ads that we tend to remember the most, there is another type of ad that quietly surrounds us.

This other type of ad is called an “intent-based ad”. Intent based ads are extremely effective, yet oftentimes forgettable (in a good way). These are ads that are shown to people who are actively searching for a product or service.

For example, the other day I needed to buy a new keyboard for my computer so I jumped on Amazon.com and searched for “keyboard”. The first couple of keyboard options that came up were technically ads but they were so subtle that the only reason I could even tell that they were ads was because the word “sponsored” was written in small font next to the listing. Yet I didn’t even care that they were ads; instead, I was grateful for them because they helped me find what I was looking for. In fact, the keyboard that I am writing this article on right now is one that I found because of these ads. Unlike flashy or dramatic interrupt ads on TV or Facebook, these ads are extremely simple and most of the time aren’t even recognized as ads.

Try it out for yourself; go on Amazon and search for “keyboard”. You’ll likely see the first couple of options that pop up, say “sponsored” or “featured” in small font next to the listing. These are technically ads, but they’re not like TV ads - they’re just simple listings that show up at the right place at exactly the moment you’re looking for a new keyboard.

If the company that I bought my keyboard from had not paid for their listing to show up at the top when I was looking for a keyboard, there is a very high chance that their listing would have been buried in all the other keyboard listings, and I would have never found them. However, since they paid Amazon a small fee to show up at the top of the search results, I found them and subsequently purchased their keyboard.

Google Search Ads (previously called Google Adwords) are just like these Amazon ads, but for local service based businesses like funeral homes. Just like people tend to turn to Amazon to find physical products, most people turn to Google to find local service based businesses. In fact, we’ve used Google’s database to do research on hundreds of cities in the country and we’ve found that in most cities, there are hundreds (if not thousands) of people who turn to Google every month looking for a funeral service provider in their area. Google Ads are simply sponsored listings that show up at the top of the results on Google when a family is looking for a funeral home, allowing you to reach them at the exact moment they need you.

Try it out yourself for a different industry; go on Google and search for “Plumber near me”. You’ll likely see the first couple of options that pop up, say “sponsored” in bold text next to the listing. Odds are that there are several plumbers in your area for people to choose from, and if a plumber isn’t paying to have their listing shown at the top, there’s a good chance that they will be found significantly less often. The same holds true for funeral homes.

The beauty of “intent-based ads” like Google and Amazon paid listings is that your business gets in front of people who need your service at the exact moment that they are looking for you. Unlike FaceBook or TV ads, where your ad is interrupting what a person is there for, with Google ads you show up in front of people who are actively searching for your services.

Now I do want to be clear that Facebook and TV ads have their place and can be effective in growing your brand, staying top of mind, and generating pre-need leads, but that is a topic for another day. From my experience, paid listings on Google (a.k.a Google ads) are a great fit for funeral homes because they put you directly in front of families who need you at the exact moment they are looking for your services.

In summary, there are two main types of ads: interrupt ads and intent-based ads. Interrupt ads are the ones that “interrupt” what you are doing, such as watching TV or scrolling through Facebook and tend to be more noticeable because they need to get your attention. Intent-based ads, such as the ones we see on Amazon or Google, are often just paid listings that get your business in front of people who are actively searching for your services. Each type has its benefits and can be useful for funeral homes.