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03 — Paid Media

Paid social advertising

Paid social, tested properly

When a paid social campaign underperforms, there are three possible culprits and most accounts change all three at once, then learn nothing.

Start a conversation What it costs

What this actually is

The three are: who you're talking to, what you showed them, and what you asked them to do. Change all three and a bad result tells you nothing. Change one at a time and each round teaches you something you keep.

That's how we run it. Structured tests, one variable at a time, with enough budget behind each to reach significance. It's slower to start and considerably faster after the first month, because by then you actually know something.

Creative does most of the heavy lifting on these platforms. The targeting algorithms are good enough now that the ad itself is usually the limiting factor, which is why this sits next to our performance creative work rather than apart from it.

What it covers

01

Campaign architecture

Structured so a result can be attributed to a cause. Most underperforming accounts change audience, creative and offer at the same time, then learn nothing from the outcome.

02

Audience strategy

Interest and behaviour targeting, lookalikes, retargeting and exclusions. The platforms' own algorithms are good enough now that over-narrow targeting is more often the problem than under-targeting.

03

Creative testing

One variable at a time, with enough budget behind each variant to reach a result you can trust. Slower for the first month and considerably faster after it.

04

Tracking and pixels

Installed, deduplicated and verified before launch, with server-side events where the browser is losing data.

05

Platform choice

Meta for most consumer businesses, LinkedIn where job title genuinely matters and you can absorb much higher click costs. We'll recommend one rather than running both by default.

06

Weekly optimisation

Budgets, audiences and creative reviewed weekly, with a record of what was tested so the account gets smarter rather than just older.

What you get

  1. 01Campaign structure built for testing rather than guessing
  2. 02Audience research and setup across Meta and LinkedIn
  3. 03Creative testing, one variable at a time
  4. 04Pixel and conversion tracking verified before launch
  5. 05Weekly optimisation, monthly written reporting
  6. 06A record of what was tested and what it taught you

How it runs

  1. Step 1

    Build

    Audiences, tracking and the first test set.

  2. Step 2

    Test

    One variable at a time, with enough budget to actually learn.

  3. Step 3

    Scale

    Put money behind what won, and keep testing behind it.

What it costs

How it's pricedMonthly retainer

Flat monthly management fee. Ad spend is separate. It's paid by you, directly to the platform, and we never take a cut of it.

We don't publish a number for this one, because an honest one depends on the job. Tell us what you're trying to do and you'll get a real figure, in writing, without a sales call first.

Get a figure in writing

Is this right for you?

Probably, if

  • Your product or service is visual, or explains well in a short video
  • You want to reach people before they start searching
  • You have creative to test, or want us to make it

Probably not, if

  • You need people who are ready to buy this minute. That's paid search. Social creates demand; search catches it.

Questions we get asked

Meta or LinkedIn?

Meta for most consumer businesses, LinkedIn for B2B where the job title matters and you can absorb much higher click costs. We'll say which suits you rather than running both by default.

Do I need new creative?

Usually. Creative fatigue is real on these platforms and the same three images will stop working within weeks. We can produce it, or work with what you have.

How is this different from boosting posts?

Boosting is a button that spends money on reach. This is campaign structure, audience testing and conversion tracking aimed at enquiries. They're not the same activity.

Works well with

All 16 services

Tell us what you're trying to do

No pitch deck, no discovery call you have to sit through. Describe the problem and we'll tell you whether this is the right service for it — including when it isn't.

Loop us in