01 — Approach
Why Microsoft Ads is worth running next to Google
Microsoft Advertising, known as Bing Ads until 2019, serves ads in Bing search, in Microsoft Copilot and on syndication partners such as Yahoo and DuckDuckGo. On top of that sits the Microsoft Audience Network, with placements on MSN, Outlook.com and the Edge browser. On desktop, Bing accounts for just under 15 percent of search referrals worldwide (Ahrefs, October 2026), and on company machines where Windows and Edge are the defaults its share is noticeably higher.
That is the appeal. A lot of these searches happen at work, by people buying for their company, or by people shopping at a desk with time to compare. And far fewer advertisers bid on the same terms than on Google. If your Google campaigns are in good shape, Microsoft often adds conversions at lower cost per click. Our Google Ads page explains how we build search campaigns; Microsoft Ads is the extension that runs on the same foundation.
02 — Discipline
Importing from Google is a starting point
Microsoft Ads can pull campaigns, keywords, ads, extensions and conversion goals straight from Google Ads, once or on a schedule. That saves days at launch. The real work starts afterwards, because a mirror image rarely fits: bid adjustments and audiences behave differently, some ad formats and extensions exist on one platform only, and search volume spreads across different queries.
We import once and cleanly, then separate budgets and bids and decide what a scheduled import may overwrite. Otherwise the next sync quietly undoes your Microsoft-specific optimisation. Negative keywords get their own maintenance, since the search terms report on Microsoft shows its own patterns.
03 — Discipline
LinkedIn targeting inside search
Microsoft owns LinkedIn, and the ad account shows it. Search campaigns can be steered by company, industry and job function taken from LinkedIn profiles, either as a bid adjustment or for observation only. No other search platform offers this. For B2B, it means you can bid more for buyers and managing directors searching for "payroll software" than for students researching an essay.
At Activate in May 2026 Microsoft simplified audience selection and made AND/OR combinations of attributes clearer. We start in observation mode, check after a few weeks which functions and industries actually convert, and only then set bid adjustments. For campaigns on LinkedIn itself, see our LinkedIn Ads page.
04 — As of 2026
What's new in the ad account
In 2026 Microsoft is pushing the platform hard towards automation and AI. Here is where things stand in October 2026, with performance figures marked as Microsoft's own:
- Performance Max: new customer acquisition goals are available worldwide to every account with purchase conversions, along with better search term insights, self-serve negative keywords and landing page reporting. Microsoft cites roughly 8 percent more incremental conversions.
- AI Max for Search: broader query matching and automatically personalised ad copy, announced in May 2026 and still a closed pilot.
- Ads in Copilot: Copilot shows ads below its answers, fed from existing campaigns such as Performance Max, Shopping and responsive search ads. There is no separate Copilot campaign type. Newer formats like Showroom Ads are in pilot.
- Shopping: feeds come from Microsoft Merchant Center or are imported from Google Merchant Center, with supplemental feeds and more self-service since 2026.
- Content targeting: Audience Network placements can be controlled more precisely and reviewed in a dedicated report.
- Copilot in the ad account: AI-assisted root cause analysis when performance drops or conversion tracking breaks.
Our take: Microsoft's automation is only as good as the conversion signal behind it. Without clean tracking, Performance Max is optimising for noise.
05 — Discipline
Copilot: paid and organic visibility
Copilot answers questions from the Bing index and shows ads underneath. That gives you two ways into its answers: paid, through campaigns whose ads and product data Copilot can use, and organic, through content Bing finds and considers worth citing. The ad account does not report Copilot separately yet. How often your pages get cited is shown in the AI Performance report in Bing Webmaster Tools.
We treat both as one job: complete ad assets and a well-kept product feed on one side, content built along the lines of our GEO work on the other. The same thinking applies to advertising inside ChatGPT, covered on our ChatGPT Ads page.
06 — Honest
Keep a close eye on partners and the Audience Network
Part of your reach comes from syndication partners and the Audience Network rather than Bing search itself. Click quality there varies a lot, and advertisers regularly report suspicious traffic in Microsoft's own forums. We analyse partners and placements separately, exclude weak sources and compare the numbers with what actually arrives in your shop or CRM. Our article on click fraud explains how to spot invalid clicks and claim refunds.
Microsoft Ads isn't right for everyone, either. If your audience is very young and almost entirely mobile, or your Google campaigns are not yet stable, fix that first. We will tell you before you spend anything.
Want to know whether the channel pays off for you? We estimate volume and click prices for your key terms upfront. Get in touch.
07 — Foundation
No UET tag, no optimisation
Microsoft measures conversions with its own UET tag, which is entirely separate from your Google tag. Since May 2025 it needs its own consent mode for visitors from the EU, the UK and Switzerland, or conversions and remarketing lists go missing. For leads that only turn into deals in sales, offline conversions from the CRM come on top. How we set this up, including a free audit, is on our Microsoft Ads tracking page.
08 — Quick answers
Frequently asked questions
Is Bing Ads the same as Microsoft Ads?
Yes. Bing Ads became Microsoft Advertising in 2019 and serves on Bing, Copilot, syndication partners and the Audience Network.
Is Microsoft Ads worth it?
Often, especially for desktop-heavy audiences and B2B. Less competition usually means lower click prices.
Can you import Google campaigns?
Yes. The import gets you started; the optimisation afterwards is still its own job.
How do ads get into Copilot?
Through existing campaigns such as Performance Max, Shopping and search ads. There is no separate Copilot campaign.
What does LinkedIn targeting add?
Bids by company, industry and job function from LinkedIn profiles. A real advantage over Google for B2B.
Does Microsoft Ads pay off for you?
Tell us which terms and audiences matter to you and whether you already run Google Ads. We'll estimate volume and click prices and tell you honestly whether the channel fits.