Why Meta & Google Together Print More Than Either One Alone

Hey, it's Arik.

I often see brands pick either Google or Meta for their advertising and treat it like an either-or decision. Google people think Meta is just vanity metrics and brand awareness. Meta people think Google is expensive and only works for high-intent searches.

But here's what I've learned after managing both for some of our clients: they're not competitors, they're teammates, and they multiply each other's effectiveness. Google captures demand that already exists. Meta creates demand that didn't exist before. When you combine them properly, you get this beautiful cycle where each channel feeds and amplifies the other.

Think about it from your customer's perspective. They might see your Meta ad while scrolling Instagram, get interested, but not buy immediately. Later, when they're actively searching for what you sell, they find you again on Google and convert. Which channel gets credit for that sale? Technically Google, but Meta did the heavy lifting of creating awareness and interest.

Let me show you exactly how this plays out with a real client example and why understanding this relationship is crucial for anyone serious about paid advertising.


The Problem
Before I dive into the results, let me paint a picture of what we inherited. This brand, had been running both Google and Meta ads, but they were treating them as completely separate efforts. No coordination, no strategic overlap, just two different campaigns running in parallel.

On the Google side, they had what I see everywhere: a messy account structure with branded and non-branded traffic all mixed together. Their Performance Max campaigns were competing with their Search campaigns. Their Shopping campaigns were fighting for the same traffic. They were spending money but not efficiently.

On the Meta side, they were running generic prospecting campaigns without any real funnel strategy. Top-of-funnel and bottom-of-funnel audiences were getting the same messaging. No proper retargeting sequence. No coordination with what was happening on Google.

The result: They were spending a lot of money on both platforms but not seeing the compound effects that make this combination so powerful.


How We Restructured Google for Maximum Efficiency
Let's start with Google, because getting this foundation right is crucial for everything else to work.

The first thing we did was completely separate branded and non-branded traffic. This sounds basic, but you'd be amazed how many accounts have this mixed up. We created a dedicated Branded Search campaign with exact match keywords only. This gave us complete control over brand intent and ensured we weren't overpaying for people already looking for them specifically.

Then we excluded all branded terms from Performance Max. This is huge because Performance Max will often spend your budget on branded searches that you could capture much cheaper in dedicated Search campaigns.

Next, we identified their hero product and created a separate Performance Max campaign just for that product. This let us control spend and optimize specifically for their most profitable item.

Finally, we launched a Non-branded Search campaign targeting their highest-intent keywords.

The results from this restructure alone:

Total spend: $5,314.57
Revenue generated: $84,481.89
ROAS: 15.89x
Average cost per click: $1.12

This Google structure created the perfect foundation for Meta to work even better.


How We Rebuilt Meta Around the Customer Journey
While we were restructuring Google, we completely rebuilt their Meta strategy around the actual customer journey. Instead of generic prospecting and basic retargeting, we created a full-funnel system that matched how people actually discover and buy products.

We segmented audiences based on real behavior:
• People who watched 25% of a video but not 50%
• People who watched 50% of a video but didn't visit the website
• Website visitors who didn't add to cart
• People who added to cart but didn't start checkout
• People who started checkout but didn't purchase

Each audience got completely different messaging and creative that matched their level of intent. Someone who just discovered the brand through a video got educational content. Someone who abandoned their cart got urgency-focused messaging about their specific products.

We also separated top-of-funnel and bottom-of-funnel campaigns with strict audience exclusions. This eliminated overlap and prevented people from seeing the wrong message at the wrong time. The transformation was immediate.

In January, after the restructure:

384 purchases from $23,646.81 spend
Cost per purchase: $61.58
ROAS: 2.75
Much lower frequency across all campaigns

Compare that to December before the restructure:

1,240 purchases from $101,324.76 spend
Cost per purchase: $81.71
ROAS: 1.99

We spent less than half the money and got much more efficient results.


Why This Combination Is So Powerful
Here's where the magic happens. When Google and Meta work together properly, they create this compound effect that's way more powerful than either channel alone.

Meta creates the demand. People see your ads, learn about your products, get interested in your brand. Some convert immediately, but many don't. They need time to research, compare options, maybe wait for the right moment to buy.

Google captures the demand. When those Meta-warmed prospects are ready to buy, they search for your products or your brand specifically. Your Google campaigns are there to capture that intent at the perfect moment.

But it works in reverse too. Google identifies your best customers. The people converting from your Google campaigns are high-intent buyers who love your products. You can use this data to build lookalike audiences on Meta to find more people just like them.

Meta scales the audience. Once you know what your best customers look like, Meta can find thousands more people with similar characteristics and interests. You're not just capturing existing demand, you're creating new demand from people who didn't even know they needed your products.


The Strategic Approach
Based on what I've learned running both channels for dozens of brands, here's how to think about using Google and Meta together:

• Start with Google if you have limited budget. Google typically has higher intent and faster payback, so it's often the better place to start if you can only run one channel initially.

• Add Meta once Google is profitable. Use Meta to expand your reach and create demand for what Google is already converting well.

• Use Meta data to improve Google. The keywords people use to find your Meta ads can become Google keywords. The demographics that respond best to Meta ads can inform your Google audience targeting.

• Use Google data to improve Meta. Your highest-converting Google keywords tell you what people actually want, which should influence your Meta ad creative and messaging.

• Retarget across both platforms. Someone who clicks a Google ad but doesn't convert should see Meta retargeting ads. Someone who engages with Meta ads but doesn't convert should see Google ads when they search.


Common Mistakes to Avoid
• Don't run identical campaigns on both platforms. Google and Meta require different approaches because the user mindset is different. Google users are actively searching; Meta users are passively scrolling.

• Don't ignore cross-platform attribution. Just because someone converted via Google doesn't mean Meta didn't play a role in their decision. Look at your overall business metrics, not just platform-specific ROAS.

• Don't optimize each platform in isolation. Changes to your Google campaigns can affect your Meta performance and vice versa. Think about the combined customer experience.

What This Means for Your Business
Whether you're currently running one platform or both, here are the key takeaways:

1. If you're only running Google: You're missing opportunities to create demand and reach people before they're actively searching. Meta can expand your addressable market significantly.
2. If you're only running Meta: You're missing high-intent traffic that's actively looking for what you sell. Google can capture demand that Meta creates but doesn't immediately convert.
3. If you're running both but treating them separately: You're not maximizing the compound effects. Think about how they can work together to create a better customer experience.


What You Can Do Right Now:

• Map your customer journey. 
How do people typically discover and buy from your brand? Where does awareness happen vs. where does conversion happen?

• Audit your current approach.
Are you running both platforms? Are they working together or in isolation?

• Start with your strongest platform. 
If you're not running both, start with whichever platform is more natural for your business, then add the other once it's profitable.

• Look at cross-platform data. 
Don't just look at platform-specific ROAS. Look at your overall customer acquisition cost and lifetime value.

• Test retargeting across platforms. Start simple: retarget Google clickers on Meta and Meta engagers on Google.

See you next Thursday,
Arik