Complete Social Media Advertising Pricing Guide 2023
Last update: 3 August 2023 at 05:37 pm
2.33/5According to our report on the state of social media, more SMBs than ever are seeking professional assistance with their social media, as demand has skyrocketed in the last year and a half.
So owners often wonder if the amounts we are investing in social media marketing are within the normal range or not.
If what we pay per impression or per click makes sense, or if, on the contrary, it is costing us too much. Throughout this article, we help you to know the prices of advertising on social media platforms and what are the factors that influence the cost.
Read on and find out why your business needs to invest in social media advertising campaigns.
Factors That Influence the Cost
Giving a concrete answer to how much social media advertising costs is no easy task. There are a number of factors that come into play that have a direct impact on the final cost.
It is therefore important that you understand that the amounts we share here are merely a reference that lets you know if your spending is above, below, or aligned with the market.
Among the elements that most affect the cost of your social media ads on Facebook, Instagram or any other social platform are:
- Seasonality – It’s not the same to activate ad campaigns during the Christmas season when all brands want to advertise their products, as it is in January. The higher the demand, the higher the price of social media advertising. That is why it is so important that your team manages a calendar of the most important dates for your market and for the location you are in.
- Audience – The size and specificity of your target, location, and interests directly influence the cost of reaching them. It is not the same to send a message to a small but highly sought-after group as to millions of people throughout New York City. But be careful, you don’t want to waste money sending messages to people with zero interest in your products or brand. Therefore, it is essential that you are clear about who your ideal buyer is, what their interests are and where they are located.
- The location of the ads – When it comes to social media campaigns, you have a range of options. You can select that they only appear for people who connect from mobile devices, computers, or both. On Instagram, you can place them in stories or in the feed. On Facebook, you have even more options. Depending on what you choose the costs of your ad campaign can go up or down.
- The relevance of the content – Beyond how much you are willing to invest, social media platforms take into account how relevant is the content and the message you are transmitting to your target. To do this, they check the interactions it generates and how many people follow the call to action you have placed.
As you can see, to launch a social media advertising campaign you need to have a good definition of who your audience is and, above all, a knowledge of what their main interests are. This is the only way to have more control over the cost.
Payment Methods
In the world of social media advertising, there are different ways to pay for your ad campaigns. It depends mainly on the objective you have defined. You can choose to generate traffic to your website, for brand awareness or brand recognition, to present a video, or to acquire new customers.
Nowadays there are many paid options. However, below we review the ones we consider most relevant to our readers’ budgets and marketing efforts.
CPM
CPM comes from the term cost-per-mille and refers to the amount you pay each time your ad achieves 1,000 impressions. By impressions, we mean the number of times your piece is presented on any social media platform, search engine, or any other marketing channel.
It should be noted that these are not unique users. The same person can receive your ad 2 or 3 times and all of them would add up in the impressions counter.
This option is preferred by businesses and organizations that want to increase their brand recognition and notoriety. Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, YouTube Ads, and Google Ads offer the possibility to create campaigns of this type.
CPC
Cost Per Click or CPC campaigns are those in which you are going to pay for each click your ad receives. Also known as Pay Per Click or PPC is the preferred payment method for advertisers as it is one of the most effective in relation to cost and results obtained.
Your CPC ads can be as varied as texts, videos, images, and tweets. You can create them on platforms such as Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, LinkedIn Ads, and the Google network.
But most importantly, make sure they redirect visitors to your website, a landing page, and a checkout page that really helps them understand why your brand is the best choice.
CPV
The cost-per-view is the amount you pay for each view of a video in social media advertisements. But, you must take into account that not all platforms understand “view” in the same way.
For example, in the case of Google, it is considered a view when the user watches more than 30 seconds or when he/she interacts with your video. While Facebook gives you two auction options: for at least 3 seconds of playback or for 10 seconds or more.
From Sortlist, we want to invite you to consider this form of digital media advertising investment. Not only is it the ideal way to maximize the reach of your investment in the development and production of a video, but it allows you to understand live if your content is resonating with your target audience. In case visitors abandon the material after a few seconds then you don’t pay for playback.
CPA
Finally, even though there are other forms of payment, we find it important to review the CPA or cost per acquisition. As its name indicates, it refers to how much it costs for a user to complete a certain action: subscribe, download, register, buy, schedule a demo, etc. In other words, it is the cost for a user to advance through the different stages of your conversion process.
For example, let’s say you have a social media advertising campaign in which you invite your target audience to download an ebook related to one of your services. The CPA would be the cost of each download.
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From Sortlist we want to recommend that if you are considering investing, or if you already have campaigns running, in Google Adsyou should do it through the CPC model. This way, you will only pay for each visit to your website, or landing page, that is generated from a click on your ads. And you avoid costs associated with mere appearances of your advertising.
One factor you should keep in mind is that Google defines the cost of your ad based on three factors: the maximum bid amount you indicate, the quality of your piece (quality score), and the information you share.
That said, how much does it cost to advertise on Google? On average you can expect the following prices:
- For Google Ad Search campaigns, the cost per click is $2.32.
- For campaigns on Google Ad Display, the cost per click is $0.67
- For Video campaigns, the cost per playback is $0.1
However, it is important to mention that the industry your business is in influences the cost of your Google advertising. For example, the average cost per click on display campaigns for e-commerce businesses is $0.45 while for mass consumer businesses, it is $0.81. This difference is due to the level of competition in each sector.
While you can estimate your budget based on the average cost and objective of your marketing efforts, it is important that you include a budget for the development, execution, and management of your campaign. If you need help, you can consult our list of agencies specialized in Google.
Social Media Advertising Prices
Now, if your target audience is on social networks, we explain below the price of social media advertising on the most popular social media platforms.
As in the previous case, you must consider part of the budget for the development of audiovisual pieces and messages, as well as the management of the ad campaign on each of the platforms. It is essential that you work with experts since success lies in knowing how to take corrective measures in time.
Facebook Ads
As we have explained throughout this text, the cost of your campaigns will vary depending on the industry of your business, the objective of your advertising, your budget, and your location.
For example, companies in the finance sector will require the largest budget. As there is more competition, the price per result tends to go up. While those in the restaurant and food industry experience the benefits of lower bids.
That said, you can use the following figures as a reference for Facebook ads:
- Average CPC is $1.01
- Average CPA is $19.68
- Average CPM is $14.94
While many believe that Facebook is old-fashioned, the truth is that it is still the platform with the best cost-performance ratio. It has a database of more than 2 billion users and continues to rank first in the number of monthly active users.
Instagram Ads
In this case, we must make it clear that the campaigns must be managed from the Facebook Ads platform.
This does not mean that the costs are the same. The behavior of each social network is independent and, not because Instagram is a little more expensive or has fewer ad options, you should avoid it. In fact, from Sortlist we are fully confident in the power of this tool and its ability to generate interactions.
- Advertising on Instagram, on average, can cost:
- For CPC campaigns: $0.85
- For CPM campaigns: $6.7
In the case of Instagram, any interaction your ads receive is considered a click. That is likes, reactions, comments, and sharing impact the CPC.
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LinkedIn Ads
B2B social media advertising is slightly different than the usual B2C and you’ll have to adapt your social media advertising strategy a little for this platform.
LinkedIn will require you to have a minimum bid of $2 for your CPC and CPM campaigns. However, the average price is considerably higher.
As in the previous cases, the cost of your campaign will be determined by taking into account the relevance score of your ads, the bid you are willing to pay, and the target.
There are three ways to advertise your brand or products on LinkedIn Ads:
- Cost per click, the average investment is $5.26 per click.
- Cost per impression, the average investment is $6.59 per thousand impressions.
- Cost per send refers to the amount it costs to send sponsored messages through the InMail network. The average investment is $0.80 per message.
The key here is to regularly measure the activity and results generated by each of the ads in your LinkedIn campaign. Only then will you be able to see if the cost is in line with the overall average for this social media platform.
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How much does Twitter advertising cost? The answer is it depends. It depends on the industry, target, budget, and ad type. However, this network can be the most economical social media advertising solution for you to connect closely with people who are highly likely to become customers.
We calculated the price of Twitter ads and concluded that:
- The average cost of a click is $0.38.
- The average cost per 1,000 impressions is $6.46.
To make an informed decision about which platform to activate a promotional campaign on, you should check if your target is actively participating in that network. It’s no use having a series of ads on Twitter if your audience spends more time consuming content on Tik Tok.
YouTube
More than 1.5 million monthly active users make YouTube one of the preferred social media advertising platforms for any marketer.
However, you should keep in mind that the vast majority of campaign formats are in video format. This is why your budget for material development is important.
That said, on average you can expect the following prices:
- $0.020 per playback of your ad
- $2 per thousand impressions of your material
On this platform, you decide what you want your daily spending to be. But our recommendation is that you start with a budget of $10 per day. And, as you get results and analyze them, you can adjust the figure to reach the goal you have set for your video ads.
Like the above, Pinterest helps you meet three marketing objectives: create brand recognition, invite consideration of your products or services, and achieve conversions.
It is estimated that a business invests between $200 and $1500 on ad spend for this platform. But how much does it cost to advertise here?
- The average cost per click is $0.80.
- Every thousand impressions cost around $2.50.
- Conversions are around $8.
You’re probably wondering if it’s really worth investing in this social network. The quick answer is yes. But, it is especially recommended for brands related to fashion, personal care, and home decor.
Twitch
Last but not least: Twitch, the streaming service focused on esports broadcasts, video games, and more. Brands like yours have a variety of advertising options. You can, for example, include videos in the pre-roll or during a broadcast. In addition, you can promote a live stream on the platform’s homepage or have banners on leaderboards.
This range of campaign options makes it a bit more complicated to estimate the average cost. But by reviewing results and analyzing behaviors, we dare to say that each impression has a cost ranging from $2 to $10.
This is a social network owned by Amazon, with more than 15 million daily active users and an average usage of more than 95 minutes per day. There are many reasons to be there, but make sure you always have a good definition of your target and if they actively participate in this platform.
Conclusion: Why Invest in Social Media Advertising?
Social networks have become windows and spaces for brands to approach their respective audiences. Organic content is one way, but we have all noticed that it is increasingly complicated to generate noise. That’s why we want to invite you to allocate time and money within your marketing budget to secure your social media presence.
Every penny invested can achieve a very good return. But, as always, the key is to know your audience and understand the platforms where they spend the most time and the content they consume.
On the other hand, we know how difficult it can be to estimate social media advertising figures within budget. That’s why we decided to create this guide and help you understand how much is the average cost for different types of campaigns in each of the most popular social networks of the moment.
If you need help you always have the option to turn to professionals with training and tools that allow them to measure, analyze and make strategic decisions aligned with your goals. Click here and discover a wide variety of agencies ready to become your ally
