This is part 2 in a series on Paid Social – if you’re just joining us, head over and read part 1 before you begin here!
Before you start, make sure you’ve got a budget set aside for Paid Social, and if you’re doing multiple channels/campaigns, ensure it’s split appropriately between them. LinkedIn can be quite expensive to advertise on for example, so if this is a key part of your strategy, ensure you have the budget set aside to give it its best shot.
It’s also a good idea to develop a forecast and set your goals before you begin so you can see your predicted/desired performance vs. your budget and plan for success. You may measure success based on CPC (cost per click), CPA/CPL (cost per acquisition/lead), ROAS (return on ad spend), or even views.
When doing the forecasting, you may determine that the channel you’re advertising on might not get you the results you need, allowing you to replan and re-strategise sooner rather than later.
Of course, your forecast may change/develop throughout the year – especially if you are testing and optimising as you go, or have to react to a budget change – but it’s a good place to start and have KPIs to refer back to, so you can measure the success and effectiveness of your campaigns.
Once you’ve decided which channels you’ll be using, you then need to ensure you can produce the assets and copy required to ensure success. Sometimes this can work the other way round however, so if you know you’re great at organic TikTok and Instagram video content, you may consider turning this into an ad. It’s a good idea to work with what you have already – so if something is doing well, use this to your advantage, especially considering it’s already performing well with your audience.
Your copy and chosen assets should match the style of the channel you’re using, and communicate in the way your audience likes. If you’re on LinkedIn, you may want to cater your content to a more professional audience and share tailored content such as blogs, compared to TikTok where you might want to communicate your brand’s personality more and share video content.
It’s also important to experiment with your assets and copy. This is our bread and butter at Door4, and we are always looking for ways we can improve and optimise what we’re currently doing. Testing is learning.
Refreshing or even AB testing copy and assets can lead to huge performance gains (or losses!) to a campaign. Test out different phrases, hooks, and even offers to see if your audience engaged more or less with your ads. Even if a tests loses, this is a key learning and you’re still more knowledgeable than before you did the test, so all tests will teach you something you didn’t already know about your audience.
It’s also easy to assume there’s only one way to say things, so consider conducting some research on search terms to see if your product might be referred to as something else by a different audience.
A good example of this is that in the UK we refer to an adhesive bandage as a “Plaster”, or even a “Sticking Plaster”, whereas a US audience is likely to call this a “Band-Aid” or a “Dressing”.
CASE STUDY
A simple test we conducted earlier this year was testing the financial messaging across one of our ads for our client National Fostering Group.
We tested 3 different ways to communicate with potential foster parents about how much they could get paid for fostering. The ad was the exact same in terms of images and ad copy, but the asset copy was broken down into “weekly”, “monthly” or “annual” payments.
We ran this test for a few months before concluding that “monthly” fees was the winner – and after determining this, we pushed the winning variant to run as the main message for communicating financial information across not only the ads, but also the website copy.
At Door4 recently, we’ve also been experimenting more with advertising with User Generated Content rather than highly polished, over produced content. This works especially well with “products” that you can show off.
CASE STUDY
We’ve been testing this more recently with our client, SKIL – whereby an organic TikTok video had been performing exceptionally well and we decided collectively to use this as a test across other social platforms to see how the audience received it.
We tested this more natural, user generated content against the typical produced video content and results show that we’ve seen much stronger engagement numbers, with users spending more time watching the UGC videos compared to the control. Conversions have been cheaper, and we’ve seen more clicks through, meaning the test was much more cost effective for our client. The continued learnings from this one test, are being used to shape the strategy across social for 2025.
But essentially, your goal should be to create “scroll-stopping content”.
Finally, how will you know if your Paid Media campaign has been a success?
A good way of monitoring consistent performance is comparing your current results to previous months, e.g. did your leads go up in October compared to summer? It’s also worth comparing to the same month the previous year also, especially if your business is more seasonal (such as garden tools and furniture).
You should also keep a log of any tests or changes you do, be it to the copy, assets, audience targeting, bidding strategy, or even budget changes. All of these can and will impact results, so it’s a good idea to make a log of these changes to explain the performance impacts they will have on your campaigns.
Ultimately, success in Paid Social hinges on a blend of preparation, creativity, and adaptability. From setting realistic goals and tailoring your content to experimenting with different approaches, every step is an opportunity to refine and improve. Remember, it’s not just about spending your budget—it’s about spending it wisely. With the right strategy and a focus on continuous learning, your campaigns can deliver real, measurable results. So, start with a clear plan, stay curious, and embrace the testing process—it’s the key to long-term growth and success.
Ready to take your Paid Social campaigns to the next level? Let’s talk about how Door4 can help you achieve your goals!
Door4 opinions and insight - exploring performance marketing, communications and optimisation.
