Search ads capture people who are already looking to buy, while display ads build awareness and retarget audiences across websites, apps and YouTube. Choose search when you can define buyer intent and a conversion goal. Choose display to create or amplify that intent and to bring back engaged visitors. The two can work well together: display builds awareness and lift, and search collects the demand it creates.
TL;DR:
- Start search when you can name relevant keywords and a conversion goal; track clicks, conversions, and CPA, using CPC or target CPA bidding.
- Use display for launches, reach, or retargeting, but measure viewable impressions and Brand Lift because last click can understate its contribution to branded searches.
- Sequence broad display or video, retarget engaged visitors with proof or offers, then use search to capture demand; aim for multiple weekly exposures across formats.
- In Canada in 2025, search generated $9.33 billion, or 43% of digital ad revenue; display generated $2.11 billion and grew about 5% year over year.
Table of Contents
- What search ads are and how they reach buyers
- What display ads are and where they run
- Search vs display ads: intent, reach, creative and cost
- When to use search, when to use display
- How to measure success and set bids for each channel
- How to run search and display together
- Why you can rely on this guidance
- The mistake we see most often
- How we can help with your search and display campaigns
- FAQ
- Sources
What search ads are and how they reach buyers
Search ads are keyword-triggered text ads that appear on search results pages and related properties. Google describes search campaigns as ads aimed at people actively searching for what you offer. Because the searcher raised their hand first, the ad meets existing demand.
Formats you will meet most often:
- Standard text ads: headlines and descriptions you write and control directly.
- Responsive search ads: you supply several headlines and descriptions, and the system tests combinations.
- Dynamic search ads: headlines are generated from your website content, which suits large catalogues.
Targeting starts with keyword intent. Match types control how closely a query must resemble your keyword, negative keywords block irrelevant searches, and device, location and audience signals refine who sees the ad. Typical goals are sales, leads and conversion-driven traffic. Creative demands stay low compared with display, since you mostly need strong copy and a landing page that delivers on the promise. We cover that last point in our piece on what Google evaluates on your landing page.
What display ads are and where they run
Display ads are visual creative that run across publisher websites, apps, Gmail and YouTube through the Google Display Network. Where search waits for a query, display puts your message in front of people while they read, watch or browse. Google’s own description notes that display campaigns now use optimized targeting and responsive ad assets by default.
Common formats:
- Responsive display ads: you upload images, headlines and logos, and the system assembles them to fit available placements.
- Image banners and rich media: fixed-size visuals, sometimes interactive.
- Video: short clips, often on YouTube.
Targeting options include contextual placement, affinity and in-market audiences, remarketing lists of past visitors, and optimized targeting that expands to similar people. Typical goals are brand awareness, consideration and remarketing. Display asks more of your creative team, because the image does the persuading before anyone has typed a word.
Search vs display ads: intent, reach, creative and cost
Search is pull: the user asks, you answer. Display is push: you introduce yourself to someone who was not looking. That difference shapes everything else. Search traffic tends to convert sooner because the intent is visible in the query, while display traffic often needs more exposures before someone acts.
Reach follows the same split. Search is capped by how many people type relevant queries. Display reaches large inventories and audiences, including people who have never heard of you.
- Measurement: search is judged on clicks, CPC and CPA; display on viewable impressions, reach, vCPM and lift.
- Creative: search needs copy; display needs images, video and several sizes.
- Operations: display adds frequency management, since the same person can see your ad too often.
Search generated $9.33 billion in Canada in 2025, 43% of the digital advertising market, while display generated $2.11 billion and grew about 5% year over year. Search is the larger line item, but display is still growing.
When to use search, when to use display
Match the channel to the job:
- Product launch: use display to create awareness, then search to catch the people who go looking for the name.
- Seasonal sale: lead with search, because buyers are already hunting for deals, and add retargeting to recover visitors who left.
- Lead generation: use search to capture intent, and display to keep prospects warm while they compare options.
Two simple rules cover most cases. If you can list the keywords and define the conversion, start with search. If you need reach, storytelling or a way back to warmed audiences, start with display.
Pro Tip: Sequence your creative to match the remarketing list: show an introduction to first-time visitors, then a proof or offer message to people who viewed a product page.
How to measure success and set bids for each channel
The KPIs differ. For search, track clicks, conversions and CPA. For display, track viewable impressions, reach, ad recall, vCPM and view-through conversions.
- Search bidding: Google’s bidding basics describe CPC and target-CPA as common choices when the goal is a click or conversion.
- Display bidding: vCPM, which prices viewable impressions, fits reach and awareness goals, and Smart Bidding can optimize toward conversions.
- Attribution: last-click reporting gives display little credit, so a channel that started the journey can look like it did nothing.
To see display’s real effect, use Brand Lift measurement, which compares branded searches and brand metrics between exposed users and a control group. Case evidence reinforces the point: last-click measurement undervalued display, and measured lift showed it raised branded searches and helped search convert.
Brand Lift quantifies display-driven brand interest in comparing exposed users with a control group.
A practical report to watch: branded search volume next to display reach week by week, so a rise in one can be read against the other.
How to run search and display together
A workable pattern has three steps:
- Awareness: run broad display or video to put your name in front of new people.
- Retarget: build audiences from those who viewed or engaged, and follow up with a stronger message.
- Close: use search, plus remarketing lists on search, to capture people when they come looking.
Modern measurement playbooks point to frequency and format variety as drivers of effectiveness. As a working target, use multiple exposures per week across more than one format. Display audience signals also sharpen search: if one segment engages heavily, bid higher on search keywords that match its interests. For a wider view of platforms, see our guide to online advertising platforms for small businesses. Testing creative before you commit budget also helps, and Take4K’s piece on testing video hooks shows one way to do it.
Why you can rely on this guidance
We manage paid search and display campaigns, and we choose channel mixes from data-driven reporting rather than habit. The market figures here come from IAB Canada’s revenue survey, and the measurement advice follows Google Ads and Think with Google documentation. You can review our case studies on our site.
The mistake we see most often
Teams treat display as the second-class channel. They fund search properly, then give display a thin budget, recycled creative and no measurement plan, and conclude it does not work. Fund the assets, agree how you will measure lift before launch, then run a small awareness, retarget and search pilot and judge it on the whole path.
— Stephen Ramkissoon
How we can help with your search and display campaigns
If you want a partner to run this mix, we can take it on. Our relevant services:
- Pay-Per-Click Advertising and Google Ads management: building and optimizing search and display campaigns.
- Analytics and reporting: attribution-aware reports that show what each channel contributes.
- Digital marketing strategy: a channel plan tied to your goals.
We start with an audit, run a pilot campaign, then move to subscription-based management with regular reporting. Book a campaign review through our Pay-Per-Click Advertising page and we will look at your account together.
FAQ
What are the two main types of display ads?
Common formats include responsive display ads and image banners. Responsive ads assemble themselves from the images, headlines and logos you upload, while banners are fixed-size visuals you design yourself. Video and rich media formats are also available.
What is the difference between the Search Network and the Display Network?
The Search Network shows text ads when someone types a relevant query. The Display Network shows visual ads across websites, apps, Gmail and YouTube, based on audiences and context. Google summarises the split as active searchers versus broad reach and awareness.
Where do Google search ads show?
They appear on Google search results pages and can also reach Maps, YouTube and partner sites, depending on your settings. Google’s campaign comparison lists these placements.
How do I stop seeing display ads?
You can adjust your ad personalization settings in your Google account, which limits how interest-based ads are chosen for you. Ads will still appear, but they will be less tailored.
Sources
- 2025 IAB Canada Internet Ad Revenue Survey & 2026/27 Forecast
- Choose the right campaign type - Google Ads Help
- BRAND LIFT
Recommended
- Content marketing services: a practical guide for Alberta businesses
- Your Ads Are Only as Good as Your Landing Page: What Google Actually Evaluates
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