Multi-platform: FAQ

Multi-platform: FAQ

With Multi-platform, you can manage your social network presence and search advertising in one place! Here are some common questions people have when getting started with Multi-platform.

About Multi-platform

Where can I advertise and engage customers?
You can manage your social network presence on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Search advertising is available in Bing and Google. Social ads are shown in Facebook and Instagram.

Is it free to use?
Yes! You only pay for search and social ads costs. Also note that we don't take any commissions on your ad spend.

Can I stop my ad campaigns or my social media management?
To stop your ad campaigns, you can either pause or delete them. To stop managing your social media, disconnect your social media profiles.

Pause your ad campaigns:

Delete your ad campaigns:

Disconnect your social media profiles:

Why can't I sign up for Multi-platform using my existing Microsoft account?
While using Multi-platform alongside your Smart campaigns account isn't available for everyone yet, you can sign up for the waitlist to be included. Don't want to wait? Learn how to sign up for Multi-platform on its own. Please note, you'll need to manage both accounts separately as there is no way to merge them yet.

Where is Multi-platform available?
Multi-platform is currently supported for businesses in the United States that advertise within the United States.

Do I need a website to use Multi-platform?
Yes, you will need a website to use Multi-platform. Please note, if you do not already have a website, you can create one during sign-up with our free website creation tool. Learn more

Create an Expert mode account under my Multi-platform credentials

Note: If you decide to create new Expert mode accounts, you'll be able to access your Multi-platform account. However, you'll be unable to merge information between Multi-platform (via Smart mode) and Expert mode accounts. This means that all Multi-platform information (including all campaigns, coupons, data, promo codes, etc.) won't switch over to Expert mode.

Where do my ads appear?
You can choose to run ads in the following places:

Do I need to add a credit card to try out Multi-platform?
There is no upfront or monthly costs to use Multi-platform. You'll only be charged for ad spend on ad platforms. You won't need a credit card to manage your social media profiles with Multi-platform, but you'll need to add a credit card if you want to run search and social advertising campaigns.

How do I delete my account?
We're sad to see you go! To delete your account, you can contact Microsoft Advertising support.

How can I send feedback on Multi-platform?
Your feedback is greatly appreciated and helps us understand how you use Multi-platform, and improve your experience! To send your feedback, please contact Microsoft Advertising support.

Is there a mobile app for Multi-platform?
Yes! Download the app for Android from Google Play or the iOS App Store. You'll be able to log in with your Multi-platform account.

How do I change my password?
You can change your password by updating your Microsoft account's password. Change your password here.

Does the Microsoft Advertising API support Multi-platform?
The Microsoft Advertising API doesn't currently support Multi-platform.

Social media management

Can I only manage my social media across multiple channels without paying for ads?
No, only paid advertisers can benefit from the social media tool once they've set up and launched their ad campaign.

What social media channels are available with Multi-platform?
We support Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Why can't I connect my Instagram profile?
You need to have an Instagram Business account that is associated to a Facebook page. Learn more about connecting social profiles.

How often is my Facebook page synced?
As long as you're online, new comments or posts are synced in less than 5 minutes.

How often is my Instagram page synced?
As long as you're online, new comments or posts are synced in less than 5 minutes.

How often is my LinkedIn page synced?
Every 15 minutes.

Paid advertising in search and social

What's the difference between search and social advertising?
Search advertising places your ads in search result pages of search engines like Bing and Google. Social advertising, on the other hand, places your ads in social platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Your ads may also be shown in placements like the newsfeeds of these platforms.

What is ad spend?
Ad spend is how much money you're spending for your ads in search and social media platforms, like Bing, Google, and Facebook. To learn more about budgets and billing, check out Multi-platform: How budgets work and Multi-platform: Credit cards and billing.

What channels for paid advertising are available in Multi-platform?
Paid advertising is supported for Bing, Google, Facebook, and Instagram.

What are the requirements to get started with paid advertising?
Let us know where you want to advertise. Then, you set your advertising goals and targets, create some ads, and finally, set your budget.

Can I use Multi-platform for only search advertising?
Yes, of course! You can choose to just advertise in Bing and Google without managing your social network presence. You can choose to advertise on Microsoft Advertising only, or both Microsoft Advertising and Google Ads. The campaign performance is monitored in both platforms and our machine-learning algorithm optimizes the budget allocation to maximize your ad performance.

How about using Multi-platform for only social advertising?
No, we don't offer the option to just run social advertising. You must run search advertising on Bing at a minimum and then optionally you can add social advertising.

If I already use Microsoft Advertising and Google Ads, can I just use my existing accounts?
No, you'll need to use a different email to sign in, and we'll create new Microsoft Advertising and Google Ads accounts for you.

If I already have a Facebook Ads account, can I just use my existing account?
We will create and manage a Facebook Ads account for you. This account will directly reflect the settings and ad campaigns of your Multi-platform account. Please note that some may have previously had the option to link their own Facebook Ads account. While this option is no longer available, if you opted-in in the past, your ads and account will be unaffected.

Can I import ads, keywords, or targets from my existing accounts?
Yes. You can create new campaigns in your Multi-platform account by importing them from Google Ads. Check out What gets imported from Google Ads for Multi-platform campaigns

How do automated ads work?
We'll use Microsoft AI to create automated text ads to be shown in Bing and Google, based on the business info and website URL you provide, as well as text ads that you create. We continuously monitor and make necessary changes to optimize your ad performance.

Can I turn off automated ads?
No.

Can I create my own ads?
Yes, definitely! Go to the Ads page and select the campaign that you want to create ads for. From the Ad preview tile, select View and edit ads.

What's the minimum budget amount for search and social advertising?
The minimum daily budget for advertising campaigns are as follows:

• Microsoft Advertising only: $2 USD
• Microsoft Advertising and Google Ads: $5 USD
• Microsoft Advertising and Facebook Ads/Instagram: $7 USD
• Microsoft Advertising, Google Ads, and Facebook Ads/Instagram: $10 USD

Where can I view my keywords?
Keywords are out of view and managed for you by Microsoft AI. Keyword themes and performance are taken into account, and we continuously make adjustments to optimize your ad performance.

What are the differences between keyword themes and search phrases?
Keyword themes are words or phrases that connect your ads with relevant searches. By selecting the right keyword themes, your ads can reach the customers who are searching for your products or services. Search phrases are what the customer enters into a search engine to find a product or service. This triggers your ads to be seen in the search engine. The keyword themes you generate allow your ads to be seen by the customers who are entering relevant search phrases into the search engine.

In search advertising, it's key to find the right people—your target audience—to see your ads. Audience targeting lets you zero in on specific criteria. Using audience targeting, you can choose the age range, gender, and location(s) of your ideal customers. This means that only customers who fit your selected demographics will see your ad. For example, let's say that you have a hair salon in Seattle and your ideal customers are women between the ages of 18-35 who live within 40 miles of your location. You can use audience targeting options to ensure that only members of that group will see your ad.

When targeting, your maximum radius is 500 miles/800 kilometers. However, if you're using Facebook, your maximum radius is 50 miles/80 kilometers. If you exceed Facebook's radius, we'll automatically adjust to Facebook's maximum radius of 50 miles/80 kilometers.

Can I allocate my budget by channel?
No, we monitor the performance of all channels and our machine-learning algorithm optimizes the budget allocation to maximize your ad performance.

How does the billing threshold work?
We charge your primary payment method when you reach your billing threshold or your monthly billing date, whichever comes first. Your billing threshold works as follows:

• In order for Microsoft Advertising to validate your primary payment information, we'll charge you after your spend reaches $1.
• After your payment succeeds, your billing threshold will increase from $1 to $25.

Does Multi-platform have a prepay option?
Yes. A prepay account allows you to manually add funds to your Multi-platform account whenever you'd like. Additionally, you can set up automatic payments (auto-recharge) to make sure there is no pause in your online advertising. Learn more about prepay for Multi-platform.

Why can't I see my ad on Bing or Google? Are my ads working?
If you can't find your ad on Bing or Google search results pages, here are some possible reasons:

• You're searching from a location that you have not targeted.
• You're running other ad campaigns in Microsoft Advertising or Google Ads, which are showing instead. The search result pages show only one ad per domain.
• Automated ads created by Microsoft Advertising are showing instead of the ads created by you.