Microsoft Advertising, often still called Bing Ads, is Microsoft’s paid ads platform, and it makes sense when you want additional search traffic, lower-cost lead opportunities, or access to buyers who may not be reached through Google Ads alone.
The main use case is paid search. Your ads can show when people search on Bing and Microsoft search partner sites, including Yahoo, AOL, DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, and other partners. Microsoft also offers Audience Ads, which can place visual ads on Microsoft-owned and partner placements such as MSN, Microsoft Start, Microsoft Edge, Outlook, and publisher sites. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
For a local business, the question is not “Should we be on every ad platform?” The better question is “Can this platform bring qualified calls, forms, bookings, or sales at an acceptable cost?” Microsoft Advertising can be a smart second channel when Google Ads is already working, when search costs are high, or when your customer base includes desktop users, homeowners, professionals, older buyers, or B2B decision makers.
| Situation | Does Microsoft Advertising make sense? | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Google Ads is profitable | Usually yes | Test Microsoft with your best campaigns, then compare cost per lead and close rate. |
| You have a small test budget | Maybe | Start with exact match and phrase match search terms for your best service. |
| You need urgent local leads | Sometimes | Use high-intent search campaigns before Audience Ads or broad display. |
| Your Google Ads account wastes money | Not yet | Fix tracking, landing pages, search terms, and lead quality before adding another platform. |
| You sell B2B or high-ticket services | Often yes | Test search ads for terms tied to buying intent, not broad research traffic. |
Good example: An Orlando pest control company has a profitable Google Ads campaign for “termite treatment Orlando.” We copy the winning structure into Microsoft Advertising, lower the starting budget, review search terms weekly, and send traffic to the same strong termite landing page.
Bad example: A dental office imports every Google Ads campaign into Microsoft, leaves broad match active, sends traffic to the homepage, and judges the channel after two weeks without call tracking.
One useful feature is Google Ads importing. Microsoft provides tools to import campaigns from Google Ads, which can save setup time. That does not mean you should copy everything without review. Budgets, locations, match types, ad text, assets, conversion goals, and audience settings still need a manual pass before launch. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
Use this checklist before testing Microsoft Advertising:
- Your Google Ads search campaign has proven keywords, not just clicks.
- You can track phone calls, forms, bookings, and offline sales in GA4, Google Tag Manager, your CRM, or call tracking software.
- Your landing page has one clear offer, fast load time, trust proof, service area details, and a simple contact path.
- You have enough budget to get data without spreading spend across too many campaigns.
- You will review search terms, device results, locations, and lead quality at least weekly during the test.
Our view: Microsoft Advertising is rarely the first paid ads channel we build for a small local business, but it can be a strong add-on once the offer, tracking, and landing page are working. The best tests usually start narrow: one service, one service area, proven keywords, controlled match types, and a clear cost per qualified lead target.
If you are already spending on Google Ads and want to test Microsoft without adding waste, our PPC services can help structure the test, clean up tracking, and compare lead quality by platform.
