- Software ads promote software products and can take many forms, like image, video, or carousel ads.
- Video and dynamic creative optimization ads can create strong emotional engagement and provide personalized experiences.
- Software ads drive brand awareness, lead generation, user engagement, and conversion rates.
- Defining your target audience and crafting relevant, compelling ad copy is key to successful campaigns.
- KPIs like CTR, CPA, and conversion rates are crucial for tracking software ad success.
- Using retargeting and aligning ads with the buyer’s journey can significantly boost conversion rates.
Are you looking to maximize the reach and impact of your software product but are having trouble with conversions? More qualified leads and conversions lead to sales and revenue, which is any software company’s main goal.
If you haven’t considered advertising your software product on social media, you don’t know what you’re missing out on. With a nearly 10% conversion rate on Facebook ads alone, social media platforms offer excellent advertising opportunities.
They allow you to showcase your product's unique features and benefits to a targeted audience, such as Facebook’s over three million users.
That said, you might need help deciding what sorts or formats of software ads to run, how to formulate them, and how to ensure they perform well. We’re here to help with this today, so keep reading to see what some of the best software ads to drive conversions look like.
Let’s start by discussing what software ads are.
What are software ads?
Software ads are digital advertisements that promote software products or services. These ads can take various forms, such as display, search, social media, and video ads.
They are designed to capture the attention of potential users and persuade them to take a specific action, such as signing up for a free trial, requesting a demo, or making a purchase.
Software ads typically highlight the software's key features and benefits, as well as any special offers or promotions. They may also include customer testimonials, case studies, or other social proofs to build trust and credibility with the target audience.
Let’s move on and find out what software company ads work best.
Types of software ads
When it comes to advertising your software, you can use several types of ads to reach your target audience. Seeing as Facebook is one of the most far-reaching advertising platforms, it only makes sense for us to look at some of the best Facebook ads for software companies.
There are image, video, and carousel ads, among others. Each type has its strengths and can be tailored to your specific goals and audience preferences. Let’s look at some of the most common formats for tech company ads.
Let’s start with image ads.
Image ads
Image ads are static visual advertisements that showcase your software product through compelling graphics and messaging. They can be particularly effective in creating brand awareness and quickly capturing potential users' attention.
These ads typically feature a strong call to action, encouraging viewers to learn more or download the software.
In the example below, Spotify promotes its music app with a simple yet effective image ad. The ad features a concise message highlighting the app's benefits.
This Spotify ad is effective due to its visual simplicity, vibrant colors, and clear messaging. The phrase “Take a stroll with millions of songs, on Spotify” suggests that music can enhance everyday experiences, like walking.
The illustrated hand holding a phone with Spotify open creates a sense of relatability, making it feel personal and inviting.
The brand’s logo and tagline, “Listening is everything,” reinforce Spotify’s identity and mission, subtly encouraging viewers to explore its vast music libra
Carousel ads
Carousel ads allow you to showcase multiple images or pieces of content within a single ad unit, enabling users to swipe through different offerings or features of your software.
This format is particularly useful for demonstrating various functionalities or benefits, making it easier for potential customers to see what sets your software apart.
Below is a carousel ad by Uber Eats promoting different local restaurant options available for ordering through their app.
This Uber Eats carousel ad is effective because it combines humor, local appeal, and a clear call-to-action. The phrase "Get almost almost anything" found in one of the images adds a playful tone that captures attention and highlights Uber Eats’ wide variety of offerings, from diverse local food options to essentials.
The footnote “No newsfeeds full of heavily filtered selfies” in one of the slides injects humor, making it relatable and memorable by contrasting Uber Eats with social media.
The vibrant food images reinforce the ad's promise, enticing viewers with appetizing visuals. The consistent “Order Now” button throughout the slides keeps the call-to-action clear and accessible.
Video ads
Video ads are a highly engaging and effective way to showcase your software's features, benefits, and use cases. They allow for storytelling that can resonate with viewers emotionally, making them more likely to remember the product.
Video ads can also demonstrate how the software works in real time, providing a clearer picture of its value.
In this example, Bumble highlights various features of its dating app through an engaging video ad.
This Bumble ad is effective because it empowers viewers with its message, “the first move is in your hands,” positioning Bumble as a choice-driven dating app.
The playful suggestion, “instead of texting your ex,” resonates with those looking to move forward, sparking intrigue and relatability.
Featuring an approachable, attractive young woman who talks candidly about the app builds a personal connection and trust, making Bumble feel welcoming and user-friendly.
The subtle, captivating music enhances the ad's appeal, creating a warm and inviting vibe that encourages viewers to engage with the app and feel confident about making the first move.
Dynamic creative optimization (DCO) ads
DCO uses data to automatically generate personalized ad content based on user behavior and preferences, making it highly relevant and engaging.
This type of advertising can significantly enhance user experience by delivering tailored messages that resonate with individual users.
In the example below, Glam promotes its app through a DCO ad, showcasing different versions tailored to various audience segments.
As we can see in the video example included here, the advertisement caters to young people, particularly musicians, by displaying a variety of musicians and their edited photos and videos near the end of the ad.
This ad could also be tailored to anyone else who would like to edit photos and videos using AI simply by changing the last few seconds of the ad.
Use Foreplay’s Spyder Ad Spy tool to discover what kinds of advertisements the competition is running and how they perform.
Now that we know what some of the best tech ads on Facebook and other platforms look like, let’s explore the benefits of software advertising.
Benefits of software advertising
Software advertising offers a range of benefits that can help you grow your business and achieve your marketing goals. These include increasing brand awareness, allowing you to target lead generation, and enhancing user engagement.
These are the main benefits of software advertising:
Increased brand awareness
One of the primary benefits of software advertising is reaching a wider audience of potential users.
You can expose your brand to people who may not have otherwise discovered your software by placing ads on relevant websites, search engines, and social media platforms.
This increased visibility helps establish your brand presence in the software market and positions you as a viable solution to your target audience's needs.
Targeted lead generation
Software ads allow you to attract qualified leads actively searching for solutions like yours.
By targeting your ads based on specific keywords, demographics, interests, or behaviors, you can ensure that your message reaches people most likely to be interested in your software.
This targeted approach helps you capture contact information from potential users, which you can use in nurturing campaigns to guide them toward a purchase decision.
Enhanced user engagement
Advertising your software provides an opportunity to showcase its features and benefits compellingly.
You can demonstrate how your software solves real-world problems and makes users' lives easier through engaging ad formats like videos, interactive displays, or sponsored content.
This enhanced engagement helps potential users understand the value of your software and encourages them to take the next step, whether signing up for a free trial or requesting a demo.
Improved conversion rates
Ultimately, software advertising aims to drive conversions and grow your user base. Creating targeted ads that direct users to optimized landing pages can improve your chances of converting ad clicks into meaningful actions.
Whether you're aiming for free trial sign-ups, demo requests, or direct purchases, software ads allow you to tailor your message and user experience to specific conversion goals.
With the right ad strategy and continuous optimization, you can significantly boost your conversion rates and acquire new users more efficiently.
Now that you know the benefits of the best tech ads, let’s discuss how to create effective tech company ads that will grab attention and resonate with the intended audience.
How to create effective software ads
Creating effective software ads requires a strategic approach that considers your target audience, messaging, and design elements. Here are some key steps to crafting ads that resonate with potential users and drive conversions, starting with defining your target audience.
Define your target audience
Understanding your ideal customer is the foundation of any successful ad campaign. Take the time to research and identify your target audience's key demographics, interests, and pain points.
This information will guide your ad targeting, messaging, and design choices.
Consider age, job title, industry, and geographic location. What motivates your target audience?
What challenges do they face that your software can help solve? The more specific you can be, the better you can tailor your ads to their needs and preferences.
Craft compelling ad copy
Your ad copy should grab attention, communicate value, and motivate action. Start by highlighting your software's unique selling points and benefits. What sets your product apart from competitors? How does it make users' lives easier or better?
Use clear, concise language that speaks directly to your target audience. Avoid jargon or technical terms that may confuse or alienate potential users. Instead, focus on the outcomes and experiences your software enables.
Incorporate action-oriented language that encourages users to take the next step. Use phrases like "Try now," "Get started," or "Sign up for free" to create a sense of urgency and guide users toward conversion.
Consider this example of a Dynamic Creative Optimization (DCO) ad from Calm, which effectively showcases a customer review in the ad copy, stating, “When I was at my darkest, Matthew McConaughey's voice kept me alive. The more I learned about the app the more I was able to get through yet another day”.
The video also shows another message toward the end, “Stress Less. Sleep More. Live Mindfully”, thus effectively speaking to those who need to relieve stress and sleep better.
The accompanying images highlight top awards and mindfulness themes, culminating in a compelling call-to-action: “Install Now.” The ad copy does a fantastic job of highlighting why people would want to use this software.
Design eye-catching visuals
Visuals are crucial in capturing attention and conveying your software's value proposition. Choose images or videos that are relevant to your software and resonate with your target audience.
If you're showcasing your software interface, ensure it's clean, intuitive, and highlights key features. If you're using lifestyle images, select ones that align with your brand and show your software in action.
Maintain consistency with your brand guidelines, including colors, fonts, and overall aesthetic. This helps build recognition and trust with potential users who may encounter your ads across different platforms.
Take the video ad example below from Duolingo. It effectively showcases the platform, guiding users through learning a language, experiencing assessments, and more.
This approach highlights the software’s functionality through neat visuals and engages viewers by making the learning process relatable and accessible. The bright colors and fast-cut visuals grab the viewer's attention.
Include a clear call-to-action
Every software ad should have a clear call-to-action (CTA) that tells users what to do next. Whether you want them to sign up for a free trial, request a demo, or make a purchase, make it easy for them to take that action.
Use contrasting colors or bold text to make your CTA stand out. Keep the language simple and direct, focusing on the action you want users to take.
Ensure that your CTA links to a relevant landing page that continues your ad's messaging and design elements. This consistency helps users feel confident that they've arrived at the right place and reduces friction in the conversion process.
Consider the Google Chrome image ad example below, highlighting the CTA “Download Now” in bright blue against a white-gray background. This prominent CTA links to a relevant landing page that maintains consistent brand elements and showcases the same “Download Now” button highlighted in the ad.
As you’re an expert at creating tech company ads, you now also need to learn how to measure the success of your ads.
Measuring the success of software ads
Establish clear goals and track the right metrics to ensure your software ads are delivering the desired results. This allows you to make data-driven decisions and optimize your advertising campaigns for maximum impact.
Let’s start by talking about your campaign goals.
Set clear campaign goals
Start by defining what success looks like for your software ad campaign. What specific outcomes do you want to achieve?
This could include generating a certain number of leads, driving downloads of your software, or encouraging signups for a free trial.
Having well-defined goals helps you stay focused and measure progress effectively. You can’t measure progress without defined benchmarks. Once you define your goals, you can track performance through key indicators.
Track key performance indicators (KPIs)
Once you've set your campaign goals, identify the KPIs that will help you gauge performance. Some important metrics to monitor include CTR, CPA, and conversion rates.
Here’s what each of these can tell you:
Click-through rates (CTR)
Click-through rates (CTR) measure the percentage of people who click on your ad after it’s been displayed to them. A high CTR suggests that your ad is not only eye-catching but also relevant and compelling to your target audience.
This metric is a strong indicator of how well your ad resonates with viewers and encourages them to take the first step in the customer journey. Regularly monitoring CTR allows you to gauge the effectiveness of your ad’s visuals and messaging, making it easier to adjust for better engagement.
Conversion rates
Conversion rates indicate the percentage of people who take a desired action after clicking on your ad, such as filling out a form, signing up for a newsletter, or completing a purchase. This metric reveals how effectively your ad drives meaningful engagement and actual results.
A high conversion rate shows that your ad’s landing page and call-to-action are compelling and relevant, turning interested viewers into customers or leads. By analyzing conversion rates, you can optimize both ad content and landing pages to improve overall performance.
Cost per acquisition (CPA)
Cost per acquisition (CPA) represents the average amount spent to acquire a new customer or user through your ad campaign. Monitoring CPA is essential for assessing the return on investment (ROI) of your advertising efforts.
A lower CPA indicates more cost-effective customer acquisition, allowing you to stretch your budget further.
Understanding CPA also helps with budget allocation, enabling you to direct funds toward the most successful campaigns and maximize overall ad efficiency. Adjusting strategies based on CPA can lead to better resource management and profitability.
Analyze ad performance
Regularly review the performance data of your software ads to gain valuable insights. Identify which ad variants, channels, and targeting strategies are delivering the best results. Look for patterns or trends that can inform future optimization efforts.
Based on your analysis, make data-driven adjustments to your campaigns. This could involve tweaking ad copy, visuals, or targeting parameters to better resonate with your audience. Continuously testing and refining your approach helps you maximize the impact of your software ads over time.
Best practices for software advertising
To maximize the impact of your software ads, consider aligning ads with the buyer’s journey, using retargeting, and experimenting with different ad formats.
Here are some tips to get your software ads off the ground:
Align ads with the buyer’s journey
Different stages of the buyer's journey require tailored messaging. In the awareness stage, focus on educating potential users about their pain points and how your software provides a solution.
During the consideration stage, highlight your software's unique features and benefits compared to competitors. At the decision stage, provide social proof and a clear call-to-action to encourage conversions.
Use retargeting
Retargeting allows you to re-engage website visitors who showed interest in your software but didn't convert.
By displaying personalized ads to these individuals as they browse other websites, you keep your brand top-of-mind and increase the likelihood of conversion.
Retargeting helps you strengthen your connection with potential users and guide them back to your website to take action.
Experiment with ad formats and placements
Different ad formats resonate with different audiences. Test various types of ads, such as display, search, social media, and video ads, to determine which ones generate the best results for your software.
Also, experiment with ad placements on different platforms and websites to find the most effective channels for reaching your target audience.
Continuously monitor and optimize
Review the performance of your software ads regularly to identify areas for improvement. Analyze metrics like click-through rates, conversion rates, and cost per acquisition to gauge the effectiveness of your campaigns.
Based on these insights, make data-driven adjustments to your ad copy, visuals, targeting, and placement to optimize results and maximize your return on investment.
Best software ads examples
Now that you understand the fundamentals of software advertising, let’s examine some of the best tech company ads and what makes them effective at driving conversions.
The following ad examples can all be found in Foreplay’s Discovery library, along with millions of others!
Norton
In this example, Norton has effectively utilized a 30-second video ad to convey a crucial message about online safety. The ad emphasizes how easily personal information can be compromised in daily online interactions, making it relatable to a broad audience.
To address this concern, Norton promotes its Norton 360 with LifeLock app, encouraging viewers to "Opt-in to Cyber Safety" with a clear call-to-action (CTA) of "Shop Now." This straightforward approach not only highlights the product's benefits but also instills a sense of urgency and necessity for cybersecurity in today's digital landscape.
Adobe
In this example, Adobe's image ad showcases its Creative Cloud software, illustrating how users can effortlessly enhance their images with just a click. The messaging, “Transform images and create art,” paired with the CTA “Learn More,” invites users to explore the software's capabilities further.
This ad has been running since June 2nd, 2023, demonstrating its effectiveness in engaging potential customers and driving interest in Adobe's offerings.
Wave
In the example below, Wave takes a different approach with its video ad, focusing on a common pain point experienced by professionals: the challenge of taking effective meeting notes.
The ad introduces Wave’s AI note-taking feature, which records meetings and phone calls, providing users with detailed summaries and actionable lists afterward.
By showcasing the app’s interface and functionalities, Wave effectively communicates how it simplifies users' lives and enhances productivity.
Microsoft
This Microsoft 365 Personal ad is effective due to its clean, minimalist design and focused messaging.
The simplicity of the layout draws immediate attention to the product name, “Microsoft 365 Personal,” with the word “Personal” highlighted in red, emphasizing that this is a tailored, individual subscription.
The recognizable Microsoft logo at the top adds brand trust, making the ad easily identifiable. The large, stylized "365" in the background is subtly textured in warm tones, creating visual interest without being distracting.
The design’s professional look aligns with Microsoft’s branding and reinforces the product's reliability, appealing to individuals seeking personal productivity tools.
Loom
This software ad is highly effective due to its clear and visually engaging design, concise messaging, and appeal to its target audience of developers, educators, and content creators.
The headline, “Show. Don’t tell.,” immediately communicates the value of using video to demonstrate complex information, which resonates with people who need to explain detailed processes like coding.
The ad’s design simulates a screen recording interface with an image of a person explaining something on video, reinforcing the idea of personal, hands-on guidance.
This visual element is paired with actual code, making the purpose of the tool evident without additional explanation. The reaction emojis, such as thumbs-up and heart-eyes, add a friendly, modern touch, suggesting that the tool is interactive and appreciated by users.
The message, “Use video to educate your audience and capture your code in action,” aligns perfectly with the ad visuals and the software’s purpose.
It clearly states the tool's primary benefit, making it appealing to anyone needing to demonstrate or share technical processes. By combining an engaging visual with a targeted message, this ad effectively captures attention, explains the product’s utility, and appeals directly to its intended user base.
AutoCAD
Lastly, this video ad example from AutoCAD promotes its software through a dynamic 30-second presentation showcasing its revolutionary capabilities in 2D and 3D architectural design.
The ad effectively communicates AutoCAD's unique value proposition by highlighting specialized tool sets designed for architects and engineers. The inclusion of a CTA “Learn More” encourages viewers to delve deeper into AutoCAD's offerings.
Creating the best software ads: Final thoughts
Effective software ads are powerful tools for driving conversions, but success hinges on choosing the right format, crafting compelling visuals and copy, and aligning each ad with your audience's needs and wants.
By measuring ad performance and optimizing based on metrics like CTR and CPA, you can refine your approach for sustained growth.
Whether through video, carousel, or dynamic creative optimization, software ads allow you to showcase your product’s unique value and connect meaningfully with potential users. Prioritizing these strategies can dramatically increase conversions and maximize ROI.
Use Foreplay’s suite of tools to find inspiration for the best software ad campaigns.
Frequently asked questions
What makes video ads effective for software advertising?
Video ads allow for storytelling that showcases software features in action. They engage audiences on an emotional level, making the ad memorable and relatable, and often result in higher conversion rates by visually demonstrating value.
How can I ensure my software ads reach the right Audience?
Begin by defining your target audience based on demographics, behaviors, and needs. Platforms like Facebook and Google offer robust targeting options that allow you to reach users who match your ideal customer profile.
What are key metrics to track in software advertising?
Important metrics include Click-Through Rate (CTR) to assess ad appeal, Conversion Rate to measure goal completion, and Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) to understand budget efficiency. Monitoring these helps optimize performance.
Why are retargeting ads important in software marketing?
Retargeting re-engages users who’ve shown interest in your software but didn’t convert. By displaying personalized ads across the web, retargeting keeps your brand top-of-mind and encourages users to complete the action, whether a signup or purchase.
