Organic vs. Paid Social Media: Why You Need Both to Get Customers

A word of advice to businesses from our marketing manager! SocialMadeSimple’s marketing manager, Taylor Sack, simplifies the differences between organic vs paid social media marketing, the unique value that each bring for your business, and the reason why you need both strategies to drive REAL results.

Taylor: If you’re running ads against a new audience, either they’re not going to know who you are and they’re not going to want to buy from you or you’re just not going to be able to learn enough about them. So you definitely need a combination for both brand presence and just for a successful advertising campaign.

Transition: Organic Social Media Content & Paid Advertising: Why You Need Both to Get Customers

Taylor: Yeah, I mean it’s huge! As you mentioned, it started off as just content, and then shifted towards more of an ad-focused platform. Although, what people don’t realize is that if it entirely shifts to an ad-focused platform, no one’s going to use it. It’s going to be like magazines are today: very few people open up a magazine and thumb through the advertisements because they like looking at advertisements. So they definitely need a balance there! Your content is the value that you’re really providing. When someone goes to your page and sees that you haven’t posted in years, you don’t really look like a legitimate brand at that point in time.

Gary Vaynerchuk wrote a book that’s called, Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook and that is really similar. It’s a great formula! Your content, those are the jabs you are going to give your potential clients where you’re providing them value, things for free. It’s not like, “Hey, here are 10 free tips, fill out your email and I’ll send it to you”, that’s not really free. You want to provide them content that’s either educational or provides them entertainment in some way. Then where the ads come in, that’s your right hook, that’s your ask, that’s your moneymaker at the end of the day. You’re giving people all this free content that’s helpful or entertaining. Then you come in with this advertisement and say, “Hey, here’s how I can help you. Here’s my ask: go to my website, download my book, buy my product”.

You really do need a combination of both. If you’re running ads against a new audience, either they’re not going to know who you are and they’re not going to want to buy from you or you’re just not going to be able to learn enough about them. So you definitely need a combination for both brand presence and just a successful advertising campaign.