Stop 15 · Interview PreparationChannel & Strategy · 2/3

Paid Media Strategy Questions

Part of the Digital Marketing Roadmap

In short

'We have ₹2 lakh. Google or Meta?' There's no single right answer, but there is a right way to reason: match the channel to how your customers look for the product.

'How would you allocate a budget across Google and Meta ads for X product?' — testing your understanding of channel fit, targeting, and budget reasoning from Phase 6.

The blob stands at a pond's edge holding a fishing rod and a small net.

Think of it like this

Where to fish

Some fish crowd the spot where you scatter food: they're already hungry and searching. Others swim across the whole pond and need a shiny lure to notice you. Google search ads feed people already looking. Meta ads are the lure for people who didn't know they wanted it.

Watch it happen

Search ads vs social ads in an interview answer

Google Search

  • Captures existing demand and intent
  • Great when people search for it
  • Pay per click on keywords

Meta (FB/IG)

  • Creates demand through discovery
  • Great for visual, new products
  • Targets interests and lookalikes

Say which fits the product's demand, propose a test split, then explain how you'd shift budget based on cost per result.

The big ideas

What you need to know

Start with the goal

Sales, leads or awareness? The goal decides channels, bidding and KPIs.

Is there search demand?

Check Google Keyword Planner. No one searching means search ads have little to capture.

Test, then scale

Propose a small test budget across options, then move money to what hits the target CPA.

Retargeting

Mention retargeting site visitors. It's often among the most efficient spend.

Save yourself the pain

Common mistakes

Oops

Giving a fixed answer like 'always Meta' without context.

Do this instead

Explain how the product, audience and goal change the choice.

Oops

Ignoring how you'd measure success.

Do this instead

Name the KPI, like cost per lead or ROAS, and how often you'd review it.

Your mission

Answer for two products

~25 min

Quick check

An emergency plumbing service has strong search demand. Where should most of a small budget go first?

Go deeper

  1. 1Review Phase 6 and practice justifying a channel and budget split for a sample scenario.
  2. 2Prepare to discuss how you'd test before scaling a new campaign.
  3. 3Practice explaining bidding strategy trade-offs in plain, non-jargon language.

More channel & strategy at this stop

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