When setting up a Paid Social campaign, you’ll start by choosing your objective, which is just a fancy way of saying what you want your ad to achieve. Different platforms may use slightly different terms, but here are the most common objectives across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn:
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1. Awareness: If your goal is to get as many people as possible to know about your business or product, you’ll choose an awareness objective.
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2. Consideration/Traffic: This is for campaigns where you want people to take a specific action on your website beyond just seeing the ad.
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3. Conversion: If you're focused on driving sales or getting people to take important actions on your site (like filling out a form or purchasing something), you'll use a conversion objective.

Should I adjust my objective based on budget or brand size?

This is very important to understand going into Paid Social advertising, as using the wrong objective based on your scale can be detrimental to performance. Therefore we advise the below directions:

Small Budget/New Brand: Start with objectives like Awareness, Traffic or Engagement to build your audience and trust. You can switch to Conversion objectives once you’ve warmed up your audience.

‍Larger Budget/Established Brand: You can afford to balance between Awareness and Conversion. You might even run separate campaigns for both objectives at the same time to capture both attention and sales.

How effective is social media advertising?

Like with any other form of marketing, social media advertising only works well if executed properly - and that involves much more than just designing a nice image. While the visual aspect of an ad or campaign is crucial, there are several behind-the-scenes elements on platforms like Facebook and Instagram that impact its success. To maximise visibility and conversions, you’ll need a comprehensive strategy that includes on-brand visuals, precise audience targeting, correct placement selection, ongoing analytics monitoring and bid optimisation among other key factors. When all these components align, the results can far surpass those of traditional advertising - often at a fraction of the cost.

What is the difference between Organic and Paid Social advertising?

Organic Social Advertising

What It Is: Organic social media refers to the free posts you share on your business' social accounts (like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter) without paying to promote them.

‍How It Works: Organic posts are visible to people who already follow your page and, if they engage with your content, their friends or followers might see it too. However, without paying, the reach of your organic posts is very limited.

‍Paid Social Advertising

What It Is: Paid Social refers to any content you promote through ads on social media platforms. You pay to have your ads or posts shown to a broader or more targeted audience, even beyond your followers.

‍How It Works: You set up a Paid campaign on platforms like Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads and LinkedIn Ads. Then choose your audience based on demographics (e.g. age, location, interests and behaviours). The platform shows your ads to that audience for as long as you’re willing to pay.

What platforms can I use?

There are several platforms you can use for Paid Social advertising. The best one for you will depend on your target audience and business goals. Here is a rundown of the major platforms:

‍Facebook: Best for broad audience targeting and a variety of ad formats.
Instagram: Best for visual brands, particularly in fashion, beauty, travel and lifestyle.
TikTok: Best for brands targeting younger audiences, especially Gen Z and Millennials.
LinkedIn: Best for B2B (business-to-business) companies, professional services and higher-ticket industries.
Snapchat: Best for engaging younger audiences with interactive, short-form content.
Pinterest: Best for visual brands in industries like fashion, food, DIY, home decor and weddings.
Twitter: Best for real-time engagement, news and customer service-based advertising.

What kind of creative content should I produce to use in the adverts?

Creating the right creative content for your Paid Social ads is crucial for grabbing attention and driving action. The content you produce should align with your goals, target audience and the platform you’re advertising on. Here is a breakdown of different types of creative content and when to use them:

Video: Video is one of the most engaging formats for social media ads. It’s great for telling stories, demonstrating products or showing how your services work in a dynamic, visual way.
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Image: High-quality images are simple but effective for grabbing attention quickly, especially on platforms where users are scrolling through a feed.
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Carousel: Carousel ads let you display multiple images or videos in a single ad. This format is perfect for showcasing a variety of products or features in one ad, or for telling a story in steps.
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Story: Stories are short, full-screen vertical ads that appear in between users' stories on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat. These ads are immersive, feel less intrusive, and tend to have high engagement because they blend into organic content.
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User Generated Content (UGC): Featuring content from real customers can build trust and social proof. UGC often resonates better because it feels authentic and relatable.

Is Paid Social advertising effective?

Social media marketing, especially through paid ads, is one of the fastest and most efficient ways to connect with your ideal customers. Platforms like Facebook provide a wide range of tools that allow business owners to tap into billions of potential users.

In simple terms, social media marketing works because of its massive audience, global reach, sophisticated ad targeting and excellent cost efficiency. It enables even the smallest businesses to set a tailored budget, run ads with custom visuals and content aimed at a specific audience, track the campaign’s performance in detail and adjust their strategy based on real-time data.

Should I use other advertising methods alongside Paid Social?

As long as there is room in your budget to not compromise on performance by splitting it across multiple channels, by combining different channels you can maximise your exposure, create a more cohesive customer journey, and achieve better results. Here are a few complementary advertising methods to consider:

Pay-Per-Click (PPC): Involves placing ads on search engines like Google and Bing. PPC ads allow you to bid on specific keywords, so when someone searches for that term, your ad appears in the search results.
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Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): Focuses on optimising your website and content to rank higher in organic search results. This means when users search for relevant terms, your business appears without the need to pay for an ad.

Email Marketing: Sending promotional emails directly to your subscribers’ inboxes. You can use email to share updates, special offers or nurture leads with educational content.

Content Marketing: Creating valuable content (like blog posts, videos and infographics) that educates, informs or entertains your audience. It’s designed to attract and engage users without directly selling to them.
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Influencer Marketing: Partnering with individuals (influencers) who have a strong following on social media or blogs to promote your product or service.

Affiliate Marketing: Partner with other websites or influencers who promote your products in exchange for a commission on sales or leads.

Display Advertising: Banner ads that appear on websites, apps or videos. These ads typically use images, animations or interactive elements to attract attention.