Facebook and Google are the two biggest advertising platforms in the world, and both work in Ghana. But they do completely different jobs, and if you pick the wrong one for your goal, you will finish your budget and conclude that "ads don't work."
Here is the honest difference, and how to decide where your first cedi should go.
The core difference: creating demand vs capturing demand
Facebook and Instagram ads interrupt people. Somebody is scrolling past memes and market videos, not shopping, and then your ad appears. That is demand creation: you are showing a product to people who were not looking for it but might want it.
Google ads capture people who are already searching. Somebody types "event decorator Spintex" into Google with money ready to spend, and your ad appears at the top. That is demand capture: you are answering a question the customer has already asked.
Neither one is better. They simply meet the customer at different points of the journey.
Where your customers actually are
In Ghana, discovery happens on Facebook and Instagram. Fashion, food, beauty, events, gadgets: that is where people see things and fall in love with them. And the real shop counter is WhatsApp, where "please, how much is this?" turns into a sale.
Google owns the moment of intention. Plumbers, lawyers, hotels, courses, and anything a person researches before paying all get searched on Google first.
A simple rule of thumb:
- Visual, lifestyle and impulse products: start on Facebook and Instagram
- Services people search for when they have a problem: start on Google
- Honestly, most businesses need both eventually: Meta ads for discovery, while Google captures the ready-to-buy searchers
Which one should you try first?
Ask yourself one question. Would my customer wake up today and search for this, or do they need to discover it?
A bridal shop in Osu selling gowns people did not know they wanted until they saw one? Facebook and Instagram. A fumigation company whose customers only search when they see cockroaches? Google. A restaurant? Both, honestly. Mouth-watering food photos on Meta, and "restaurants near me" on Google.
How to test with a small budget
You don't need GH₵10,000 to learn whether ads work for you. Here is the test we run for new clients:
- Budget GH₵500 to GH₵1,000 for the first test. Enough data, not a scary loss.
- One platform, one campaign, one goal. Don't scatter a small budget everywhere. Small small, one thing at a time, so you can actually learn from it.
- Run it for two full weeks. The system needs a few days to learn. Judging your ad on day three is like judging a farm two days after planting.
- Send people somewhere that can actually sell. A WhatsApp click-to-chat link, a proper landing page, or your Google Business Profile. Never just your homepage.
- Change nothing in the middle of the test. Every edit resets the learning.
What to measure, and what to ignore
Ignore likes and views. They are applause, not sales. The numbers that matter:
- Cost per enquiry. How much you paid for each WhatsApp message or form submission.
- Cost per sale. What it truly costs you to win one customer.
- Return on ad spend. For every GH₵1 you put in, how much came back?
If a test shows a GH₵15 cost per WhatsApp enquiry and your average sale is GH₵400, my friend, ads are working. Scale carefully. If a month of testing brings enquiries that never buy, the problem may be your follow-up or your offer, not the platform.
One last honesty note: ads pour water on the farm, but something must already be growing there. If WhatsApp messages go unanswered after 6pm, even the best campaign will waste. Fix the funnel first, then feed it.
Want ads managed by people who report honestly?
Brand Afro Digital Agency plans, runs and reports on Facebook, Instagram and Google ads for Ghanaian businesses, with clear numbers on what every cedi brought back.
See our paid advertising service or email hello@brandafro.com and tell us what you sell.