Facebook does better than Google in ad revenue

Facebook Inc is doing a better job than Google Inc in getting Web surfers to click on advertising based on browsing history, according to partners using the social network’s ad service that debuted in June. Facebook Exchange, or FBX, generates as much as four times the return on ad dollars than other real-time bidding systems, said Triggit Inc, which makes software tools to help Facebook deliver the ads. Another partner, AdRoll, said advertisers used to getting US$10 for every US$1 they spend are making US$16 for every dollar spent on FBX. Attracting more advertisers is critical for Facebook, which has seen its stock drop 45 per cent since selling shares to the public in May.

 

That’s partly because of concerns over the world’s largest social network’s ability to generate sales from users who are increasingly active on smartphones and tablets. “As more advertisers start to see the results we’ve been seeing, they will be willing to spend more money on Facebook,” Zach Coelius, chief executive officer of San Francisco-based Triggit, said in an interview. Facebook introduced real-time bidding in June as it competes with Internet giants such as Google and Yahoo! Inc for advertising dollars. By tapping users’ browsing habits to deliver ads from its Web site, Facebook is betting that it can lure advertisers away from Google’s real-time bidding service. In real-time bidding, advertisers compete to deliver ads once a user’s browsing history matches a marketer’s profile. For example, users researching trips to Hawaii on travel Web sites may later see a promotion on Facebook for hotels on the islands. (Bloomberg)