Google Ads, Meta or LinkedIn? Choosing the Right Platform for Your Campaign

When you’re steering the ship as a CEO, every marketing decision is ultimately about ROI, speed to market, and long-term business impact. Paid advertising is no different; the wrong platform can chew through your budget with little to show for it, while the right one can turn every dollar into measurable growth.

Today’s three heavyweights, Google Ads, Meta (Facebook & Instagram), and LinkedIn, each offer unique advantages, but they also have limitations. The challenge is knowing which one best matches your objectives, audience, and budget.

In this article, we’ll walk through:

• How each platform works and what it’s best suited for
• Cost differences and expected ROI
• Targeting capabilities and audience reach
• The strategic role each can play in your marketing mix

By the end, you’ll have a clear, data-driven framework to decide whether Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn, or a mix, is your best bet.

Why CEOs Should Care About Platform Choice

Choosing an ad platform is a strategic business decision. The platform you choose determines:

• The quality of leads you get, some channels attract more “just browsing” traffic, while others reach buyers ready to purchase.
• The speed of results, a platform like Google Ads can deliver leads tomorrow, while LinkedIn may take weeks or months to convert.
• The cost per acquisition (CPA), each channel has its own pricing structure and competitiveness.
• Your long-term positioning, consistent presence on the right channel builds brand authority in your industry.

A CEO who understands these dynamics can hold better conversations with their marketing consultant or CMO, make smarter budget allocations, and measure success more meaningfully.

Google Ads: Intent-Driven Growth

Best for: Capturing high-intent leads actively searching for your solution.

Google Ads works on an intent-driven model; your ads appear when someone searches for relevant keywords. This means you’re targeting people who already have a problem and are actively looking for a solution.

Advantages:

• High purchase intent: Someone searching “B2B marketing consultant Brisbane” is far more likely to convert than a casual social media scroller.
• Immediate results: Campaigns can be live within 24 hours and start delivering clicks almost instantly.
• Granular targeting: You can target by keywords, location, device, and even time of day.
• Scalable: Budgets can be adjusted quickly based on performance.

Challenges:

• Competition drives up costs: In competitive industries, cost-per-click (CPC) can be very high.
• Learning curve: Without a skilled Google Ads manager, you can waste thousands quickly.
• Limited brand building: It’s not ideal for storytelling or brand engagement.

Example: A Brisbane-based SaaS company targeting “inventory management software” can use Google Ads to put themselves in front of buyers right now, rather than trying to nurture interest over months.

Meta Ads: Awareness Meets Engagement

Best for: Building brand awareness, retargeting, and driving demand.

Meta includes both Facebook and Instagram advertising, making it one of the largest digital ad ecosystems globally. Unlike Google Ads, Meta’s targeting is interest-based, meaning you can find audiences who might be interested, even if they aren’t actively searching.

Advantages:

• Highly visual: Perfect for showcasing products, services, or brand personality through imagery or video.
• Strong retargeting capabilities: You can re-engage people who have visited your site or interacted with previous ads.
• Affordable reach: CPM (cost per thousand impressions) is often lower than other channels.
• Broad audience: Meta’s network covers over 80% of Australian adults.

Challenges:

• Lower purchase intent: Many users are not actively looking to buy.
• Short attention spans: You must capture interest in the first 3 seconds.
• Ad fatigue: Frequent creative refreshes are needed to maintain performance.

Example: A boutique financial services firm could use Meta to run educational video ads on “5 Tips for Reducing Business Tax” to generate awareness, then retarget viewers with a lead magnet for free consultations.

LinkedIn Ads: Precision for Professionals

Best for: B2B lead generation and industry-specific campaigns.

LinkedIn’s strength lies in its professional data, job titles, company size, industry, seniority level, and more. It’s the go-to choice for B2B campaigns where decision-makers matter.

Advantages:

• Unmatched B2B targeting: Reach CEOs, CFOs, or specific industry managers directly.
• Authority building: Content marketing on LinkedIn has higher perceived credibility.
• High-value leads: While fewer in number, leads tend to be of higher lifetime value.
• Great for thought leadership: Native video, carousel ads, and sponsored content perform well.

Challenges:

• Higher costs: LinkedIn’s CPC is often 2-3x higher than Google or Meta.
• Smaller audience: Reach is narrower compared to Meta.
• Longer sales cycles: Relationship-building takes time.

Example: A Fractional CMO service targeting mid-sized manufacturing businesses could run LinkedIn lead generation campaigns to reach COOs and marketing directors directly.

How to Decide: A CEO’s Strategic Checklist

• Clarify your objective: Are you looking for quick leads or brand positioning? If it’s speed, Google Ads often wins. If it’s authority and networking, LinkedIn is king.
• Define your audience: Are they actively searching (Google), casually browsing (Meta), or industry professionals (LinkedIn)?
• Set your budget realistically: If you have $5,000/month, Meta might give you more impressions, but Google could give you higher-quality leads.
• Consider your sales cycle: Short sales cycles benefit from Google Ads. Longer B2B cycles may require LinkedIn nurturing.
• Think about creative assets: Meta thrives on visual storytelling. LinkedIn prefers insightful content. Google needs well-crafted ad copy and landing pages.

Multi-Channel Synergy: Why You Might Not Need to Choose Just One

Many successful CEOs use a hybrid approach:

• Use Google Ads to capture immediate demand.
• Use Meta for brand awareness and retargeting.
• Use LinkedIn for high-value B2B networking.

This creates a full-funnel system where each platform plays its role, from sparking interest to closing deals.

Measuring ROI Across Platforms

A CEO should never rely solely on platform-reported metrics; they’re often optimistic. Instead:

• Track conversions in your CRM.
• Measure customer acquisition cost (CAC) and lifetime value (LTV).
• Use attribution modelling to see which platform contributed at each stage.

If your internal team lacks capacity for deep analytics, working with freelance marketers experienced in cross-platform campaigns can ensure every dollar is tracked and optimised.

Common Mistakes CEOs Make in Platform Choice

• Chasing trends instead of strategy: Just because “everyone is on TikTok” doesn’t mean it’s right for your business.
• Underestimating creative costs: Producing high-performing Meta or LinkedIn ads isn’t just about ad spend; you’ll need strong creative assets.
• Ignoring retargeting: CEOs often focus only on cold audiences, missing out on the warmer, more profitable segment.
• Failing to test: Without A/B testing platforms, messages, and audiences, you’re making decisions in the dark.

Your Next Step

Choosing between Google Ads, Meta, and LinkedIn is about which is better for you.

If you want to shortcut the guesswork and ensure your marketing budget delivers the highest possible ROI, now is the time to get a second opinion. Book your free audit with our partner Click Click Bang Bang, we’ll review your current campaigns, analyse your competitors, and give you a clear roadmap for growth.