Should You Run Meta and Google Ads Together?

When it comes to online advertising, one of the most common questions business owners ask is: “Should I be running Meta (Facebook & Instagram) Ads and Google Ads at the same time?”

The short answer: a big fat yes. 100%.

Both platforms work in different but complementary ways and investing in both can amplify your results.

Meta vs Google: How They Work Together

• Meta Ads (Facebook & Instagram):
  Great for demand generation. They introduce people to your brand, spark interest, and drive discovery, even when users aren’t actively searching.

• Google Ads:
  Perfect for capturing intent. When someone searches for your product or brand, Google is there to convert that interest into action snd if you haven’t thrown your hat into the ring, especially when taking someone from problem aware to solution aware on Meta, you could be easily over looked and contributing to someone else’s sales.

When you run Meta Ads alongside Google Ads, you often see higher conversion rates on Google because Meta fuels the discovery stage and builds awareness that later shows up in search.

How Should You Split Your Budget?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer and with all marketing it depends on your brand and audience. But as a starting point:

• 60–70% on Meta Ads (to build awareness and drive discovery). Think of this as fulling your marketing funnel up.

• 30–40% on Google Ads (to capture intent and close the loop).

The best approach is to test budget shifts. Try adjusting spend and monitor your sales over 1–2 weeks to see the impact across both platforms.

What Happens If You Stop Running Meta Ads?

Many advertisers notice a drop in Google Ads performance when Meta campaigns stop. Why?

• Fewer brand searches.

• Higher cost per conversion.

• Slower new customer acquisition.

Meta fuels Google by driving the demand that leads people to search later.

Attribution: Why Tracking Matters

Here’s where it gets tricky. Each platform reports results differently:

• Meta often over-credits conversions (e.g. counting when someone sees an ad but doesn’t click).

• Google uses last-click attribution, which often misses earlier touch points that influenced the sale.

That’s why looking at blended metrics ( now often referred to as MER - Marketing Efficiency Ratio, and your overall sales and new customer growth is key.

For the most accurate view, consider using third-party attribution tools alongside in-platform data such as Triple Whale, Thought Metric

or Northbeam.