How to Choose the Right Paid Ad Platform for your SaaS Business

After spending the last 10 years auditing PPC campaigns for hundreds of B2B SaaS and tech companies with our SaaS PPC agency, I’ve concluded that most of them are advertising on the wrong platform. It’s not because their campaigns are incorrectly configured or their strategy is inefficient but simply because they are running ads in the wrong place to begin with. Picking the wrong platform can lead to wasted budgets and missed opportunities. In this guide, I’ll break down the criteria and factors you need to know to choose the right one for your business.

1 – Understanding your SaaS business specificities

It’s not only about the platform capability but more importantly your business specificities that make a platform relevant or not.

1.1 – Business stage

Are you a startup with a limited budget, brand new and zero internal resources? This will probably make a good candidate for the one to go platform to capture the existing demand which is paid search platform like Google ads and Microsoft advertising. You will easily start with a few keyword research done and can get quick results unlike doing demand gen on social media platform that needs a long term strategy to get results.

Also when it comes to ad creatives, designing some ads are resource consuming compared to search ads that requires only a few headline and description but don’t misunderstand me, it’s not because Google is simpler to start and need less internal resources that you will get good results instantly. You’ll need to test different keywords variant, copies and bidding strategies to find the right combo. Another important thing to keep in mind is the needs of a landing page or at least a website that looks decent enough and with a clear message to convert the user that you’ll redirect from your ads to the page.

1.2 – Time Duration

Another important point to consider along with the business stage is the time duration you want to stick to run advertising campaigns. What is your plan? Starting from scratch with limited time to test which platform is better or playing the long run because you want to seriously bet on paid ads to support your growth.

In the case you want short-term results, we will reach the same conclusion as the previous section—paid search with Google Ads and search ads will be the winner. Demand generation and social ads need lots of touchpoints and time to reward the advertiser, so it’s better to know this before investing in social ads.

Expert Tip: Paid marketing and performance is a marathon, not a sprint. You need to start with some hypotheses and iterate based on the signals you get over time. Many companies have a very short time frame for their PPC plans, often just a couple of months with a very low budget. A minimum time duration should be 6 months for B2B SaaS, knowing that the buyer journey involves many touchpoints and is not linear. This is especially true if your product is complex with a long sales cycle.

1.3 – Product Complexity and Pricing

High-ticket or complex solutions always involve a longer sales cycle with multiple stakeholders and touchpoints. The more complex and costly your solution, the more interactions your prospect will need before considering buying it. LinkedIn Ads will be your best social ads platform to advertise because you can directly reach the key decision-makers who will purchase your solution.

On the other hand, if your B2B product is closer to a B2C model—meaning a low revenue per user or a simple product like Zapier or Canva with a broad ICP (e.g., all marketers)—Facebook or Instagram will be a better bet. These platforms allow you to target a massive audience at a lower cost without needing precise audience targeting. Additionally, direct response ads will perform better since the product is straightforward, and the end user could be the one making the purchase directly.

1.4 – Software Category

The software category your SaaS belongs to has an impact on the platform. Does your SaaS product operate in a mature market or an emerging one? Established categories like CRM or ERP have a lot of existing demand that needs to be captured but also a lot of competition. If you belong to this category, your strategy will be to differentiate your product from the others by emphasizing your features and advantages compared to your competitors. Paid search is definitely an area where you can capture a lot of demand. For new, disruptive, or niche products, you will need to build awareness and trust with educational content. In this case, videos on LinkedIn or YouTube ads could be useful.

Expert Tip: Differentiation is a huge advantage in established software categories. If you don’t bring anything new to the table, nobody will be interested in your product when competing in a crowded market. Try to find an angle where you have an edge over your competitors and communicate that in your ad messaging.

2- Understanding Your Audience

When it comes to the audience, this is one of the most important pillars of a successful paid advertising strategy. First, you need to build a detailed ICP (Ideal Customer Profile).

Your ICP should be very well-defined with precise job titles, industries, and company sizes. If you don’t have a clear ICP and knowledge of the demographics and firmographics of your audience, your ads won’t resonate with them, and this will result in wasted money.

Assuming you know your ICP well, to put it simply, if your ICP does not include specific white-collar job functions or titles (e.g., CTO, HR Manager, VP of Operations) but rather SMB owners like restaurant or shop owners, you will likely find more success on platforms like Meta or TikTok. These platforms have larger user bases and broader audiences that encompass such wide-ranging professional groups.

The second aspect to consider is where your audience spends their time. Everyone uses Google search daily, but not everyone is on Meta or LinkedIn during work hours. For example, a dentist won’t typically open LinkedIn but will likely log on to Instagram or Facebook regularly.

Expert Tip: The ICP needs to be grounded in real people. Otherwise, we are just talking about demographics and firmographics, similar to buyer personas, which are not always tangible. For this reason, we always ask our clients to include 5 to 10 LinkedIn profiles in the ICP information they provide. This allows us to analyze those profiles and identify patterns that can be leveraged in our campaigns. Below is an example of ICP details from one of our clients.

3 – Clarify Your Advertising Goals

Clear goals are the backbone of effective advertising. Without them, it’s impossible to measure success or allocate budget effectively. Here are common goals for SaaS businesses and the platforms best suited for each:

Brand Awareness: If you have low ARPU (average revenue per user) and are looking for massive reach, platforms like Instagram and YouTube are your best bet. Instagram’s visual formats (Stories, Reels) and YouTube’s video reach allow you to tell compelling stories that resonate with potential B2B customers.
Middle-of-Funnel Offers: LinkedIn and Google Ads are top picks for generating high-quality leads. LinkedIn allows you to target decision-makers with precision, while Google Ads captures users actively searching for solutions.
Bottom-of-Funnel Offers: For B2B SaaS businesses seeking marketing-qualified leads, Google Ads and LinkedIn Ads are highly effective. Google’s search intent targeting captures bottom-of-the-funnel prospects, while retargeting tools help re-engage interested users.

4- Analysis of Main B2B Paid Ad Platforms

Platform	Where the Ads Appear	Benefits	Challenges
Google Ads	At the top of Google search results, and across millions of websites via the Google Display Network	Highly effective for intent-driven searchers, quick sales, high CTR (4-6%), up to 800% ROI, diverse ad formats (text, image, video, etc.)	High competition, requires ongoing optimization to avoid wasted spend on poor-quality clicks
Bing Ads (Microsoft Advertising)	Bing search engine results and Microsoft partner sites	Lower CPC compared to Google Ads, ideal for scaling search spend, higher desktop traffic, effective for older business audiences	Smaller audience compared to Google, limited reach outside the U.S. market
LinkedIn	Homepage feed, messaging inbox, and LinkedIn sidebars	Best for high-ticket B2B SaaS products, precise demographic and firmographic targeting, excellent for building trust and authority throughout the buyer’s journey	Higher CPC compared to other platforms, limited direct intent targeting
Instagram	In profile feed, Reels, Stories	Ideal for B2B SaaS with a low ticket size or broad audience, visually engaging ad formats, effective for building brand awareness	Limited targeting for specific professional roles, better suited for broader audience engagement
Facebook	In feed, sidebars, and groups	Great for targeting SMB communities, strong community-building features (Groups, Events, Pages), cost-effective for broad audiences	Low engagement among B2B professional users, frequent algorithm changes
Reddit Ads	Main Reddit feed and niche Subreddits	Excellent for targeting tech-savvy and cybersecurity audiences, lower CPC, high engagement, works well for demand generation and ungated content promotion	Not ideal for direct lead generation, limited adoption among B2B niche audiences

Google Ads

The Google Ads platform is highly effective for reaching intent-driven searchers actively looking for solutions. It’s the best choice for driving quick sales. The platform offers various formats, including text, image, video, responsive ads, app promotion ads, shopping ads, and call-only ads. On average, Google Ads achieve a click-through rate (CTR) of 4-6% and can deliver up to 800% ROI.

With Google Ads, you can showcase PPC ads at the top of Google search results. As the largest search engine, Google offers unbeatable reach. Additionally, the Google Display Network allows you to advertise on millions of popular websites, making Google Ads a powerful platform for both search and display advertising.

Bing Ads (Microsoft Advertising)

B2B SaaS companies that have maxed out their Google search ads should consider adding Microsoft Ads to scale their search spend, especially if they are targeting the U.S.

Why?

Bing has 17% of the computer market in the U.S.
You will see a larger group of business users on Bing. Many users have selected Bing as the default browser on their business devices.
The audience that uses Microsoft Ads is generally older, and more than 90% of search traffic comes from desktops.
Bing Ads are cheaper than Google Ads. The CPC is lower because of fewer competitors.

LinkedIn Ads

If you’re selling high-ticket B2B SaaS products or services, this is the best platform to showcase your authority and build trust throughout the buyer’s journey. It’s one of the best platforms for reaching your exact buyer using firmographic and demographic targeting. However, you can’t directly target for intent except with retargeting or interest targeting (which isn’t very accurate). The reality is that nobody’s actively searching for products or services on LinkedIn. While it’s a professional space—not like the casual content on Facebook or Instagram—people are mostly there to network, get updates, or catch up on industry news, not to look for solutions.

Instagram Ads

Instagram is where all the youngsters are these days. It’s perfect for sharing photo and video content, with Stories, Reels, and posts driving tons of interaction. It’s an ideal platform for B2B SaaS with a low ticket size or targeting broad audiences. If you have a simple product for a young, broad audience, this is a great platform to build brand awareness and drive engagement.

Facebook Ads

Facebook is the OG of social media. Advertising works well on Facebook, and it’s especially effective for community building. Groups, events, and pages foster community and are popular. This makes it an ideal platform for targeting large professional SMB communities, like real estate agents, coaches, and agency owners.

Reddit Ads

If you run a B2B tech company targeting Cybersecurity, IT, or Tech audiences, you should consider Reddit. The platform offers cheaper CPCs and higher engagement for Cybersecurity and B2B SaaS businesses compared to other social paid channels. While it’s not ideal for lead generation (too much spam), it works well for awareness and demand generation with ungated content, retargeting to complement LinkedIn and Google Ads, and promoting online events or webinars.

Key advantages include targeting niche expert communities, active engagement, low competition leading to lower CPCs, and increased organic visibility on Google since the March update.

Conclusion

Choosing the right paid ad platform is critical for maximizing your marketing ROI and effectively reaching your target audience. Align your business goals, audience preferences, and platform strengths to create a strategy that delivers results.

If you’d like to learn more about how we help B2B SaaS and Tech companies grow their MRR through paid advertising, contact us online or send us an email today at info@getuplead.com to speak with someone on our team.