Why are social networks now as much money as music?
Summary:
*Organic reach is never lower across all platforms
*Paid ads are no longer optional
*Expected quality of posts has increased but…
*Focus is on video material
*Moderate automation should be used
The era of quantitative marketing of posts and content for the sake of greater reach is over. There is practically no platform that promises a stable organic reach of even around 10% regardless of content format (which would mean that only 10% of your followers see your posts even in that terrible case) - the number is actually drastically smaller and decreases every year. On Facebook since the beginning of 2025, the organic reach was only 2.6% on average (it is rumored that it further decreased to 2.2% in the meantime), on Instagram the reported average is 9.4%, but realistically when we look at all forms of content it is 4%, while on LinkedIn it is 5.3%.
The message is not officially written anywhere, but it is clear - if you want stable growth and not to depend on the inclination of the changing algorithm (which never fails some types of business), you cannot rely exclusively on organic reach and you have to invest money in advertisements, i.e. advertising on social networks. Therefore, paid (often called sponsored) advertising is no longer optional, whether you want to build brand recognition, increase sales or grow your business.
Ads VS Organic Content
What exactly are advertisements on social networks? The so-called paid social media advertising is the placement of targeted ads to connect with your ideal audience and potential clients/customers. Whether we are talking about Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or any other platform, the principle is identical.
Unlike organic content, the placement of advertisements implies precise audience targeting, measurable results and scalable campaigns that can have different goals - building brand recognition or direct sales, for example. Advertisements can be in the form of an image, video, carousel (multiple images that can tell one story or show multiple products), or a combination - but in any case their reduced goal is to reach the right people at the right time.
So, what sets ads apart from organic "regular" posts is data-driven marketing and tweaks, as well as subsequent measurable results. From them come all those metrics with fancy acronyms like CPC (cost per click), CPA (cost per action), ROAS (return on ad spend) and the elusive ROI (return on investment). Compared to other types of advertising (such as different forms of Google Ads), social media advertising tools have affordable and highly detailed options for targeting target groups - demographics, interests, behavior, location...
If we take into account the fact that social networks and platforms have more and more users every year and have become an indispensable part of our behavior, daily rituals and communication, it is clear how we have come to the point where the "faucet" turns off every year and that it is increasingly difficult for marketers and businesses to remain competitive without investing in advertising. But what about organic posts?
It all sounds as if they have been completely discarded, but the truth is that they have only changed their meaning. Posts, stories, reels, etc. serve to increase the engagement of your existing audience. All this content is there to further build a relationship with followers and nurture their loyalty to your business. In some cases this can lead to additional or repeat sales, but since there is no measurable data and results, it is not something you can rely on for sales goals.
So to summarize:
* Paid advertisements imply reaching a new, targeted audience, attracting potential new clients and increasing conversion, with precise targeting based on demographic and other data, and a review of results for further optimization of advertising campaigns.
* Organic posting involves mostly free content placement that will engage your existing audience, cultivate brand loyalty, while relying on algorithms to get your content viewed.
Some of you are probably wondering where there is another popular option, so let's explain that too:
The BOOST option is an aid in expanding the reach of your organic posts, and is not the same as advertising.
If you want to grow as a business or brand, you need a strategy that covers both social media advertising and publishing content that relies on organic reach. Yes, you are right, it is now double work that no one asked for with a few unions here and there, but the sooner you accept it, the sooner you will be able to improve your business.
Why should you use paid advertising?
With the decline in organic reach and the ever-increasing budget required for advertising, social networks have become a very competitive space for marketers and businesses. That's why you should use absolutely every option and opportunity they provide. And here's why:
1. It actually pays off more
As illogical as it may sound, paid advertisements are actually a more cost-effective option. If we take into account the time involved, the effort and the possible results achieved, using paid advertisements is far more profitable than organic postings. With all available tools that allow precise targeting and budget optimization, and even additional options such as Meta Pixel, paid advertisements are far more effective than organic strategies that require far more time and effort without any guarantees.
2. Increased awareness of your brand
If your goal is to increase awareness and inform the public about your business, offer, services, products or brand, then paid advertising is a vital part of your strategy. Video ads dominate this segment, which does not mean that image or carousel ads are less represented, but with the increasing focus of Instagram on video content (in an attempt to fight with TikTok), video ads have proven to be a very interesting format that attracts the attention of users and gives measurable results. Collaboration with influencers, and the so-called user-generated content (UGC), is practically exclusively in the form of video promotions these days, which is perfect content for advertising.
3. Greater and more meaningful reach
As we already mentioned, organic reach drops dramatically year after year. Instagram, for example, records a decline of 18% every year. Clearly, if you want to overcome that reach hole, you need to rely on paid advertising. Even if you have no ambitions or desire to expand your business and target new potential customers, using boost and similar options is necessary to cover the entire existing audience.
4. Precise targeting
Proper targeting is the key to long-term success. Unlike organic posts that rely on an algorithm and random selection of your followers, paid ads allow you to target specific groups with great precision. There are demographic options such as age, gender and education, options that track specific behavior such as frequent travelers or online shoppers, interests such as specific hobbies, preferences or fans of certain industries, geotargeting options that allow advertisements to be served in a specific place, city or neighborhood, and finally (re)targeting of site visitors or specific pages.
5. Conversion and leads
Paid advertising has already proven to be an effective solution for increasing conversions and leads. Depending on the platform, new tools allow users to buy a product directly from an ad or download a filter that they can use for fun (and spread the word about your brand by sharing it further). There are LinkedIn ads that are directly focused on looking for potential clients, while Instagram and TikTok add a level of interactivity in the form of swipe actions or cards with a call to action. If you set up your website smartly, and all available Pixel systems, practically every advertisement will have the additional function of acquiring interested parties who may not become clients at that moment, but with some additional retarget advertising, they can easily become clients.
Tips for optimizing content for social networks.
Although paid advertising is constantly evolving, and new options and opportunities are constantly being added, including sub-platforms such as Threads, for example, here are some tips on how to conquer the market.
1. Increase the quality of your content
Regardless of what you see on the web and the internet these days, AI-generated image blurbs and cold repetitive texts by ChatGPT won't help you break into the market. After all, everyone else who uses these tools has access to the same text and images, and the visual identity and tone say absolutely nothing about your business or brand.
And let's be clear - content quality in this case is synonymous with effective content. This doesn't mean you need an 8K camera to shoot "better" video - it means you need to shoot video that grabs and holds the attention of your intended audience.
The focus should definitely be on advertisements and announcements that are attractive and tailored to your audience. You, your service or product should always remain in focus, but research the market and your clients in detail - your content must be visually attractive and relevant for them. Whether it's a video about a product or service, a promotion or an interactive ad, each one should make the user stop scrolling through the feed and see what it's all about.
2. A/B testing
Meta Business Suite has a built-in ad testing tool. What does that mean? You've made an advertisement for, say, one of your products, but you're not sure if one or the other title is better, or maybe this kind of image is better than this one - and it's hard for you to decide because both versions look great. But the truth is that one is definitely better than the other. A/B testing allows you to test different versions of the same advertisement, following exactly the parameters that interest you (eg which reaches more people, which more people react to, etc.).
Analyzing such data is a huge money saver and a great help to see what works, how and how much, and what you learn from one test, you can apply to all related advertisements. Lest we prefer Meta tools, other platforms such as TikTok Ads Manager, Google Ads and LinkedIn Campaign Manager offer the same or similar thing - and there are also independent programs and tools that can cover several platforms at once (AdEspresso, for example).
3. Everything optimized for mobile phones
For some, this information may be "nothing new", but it is worth noting that everything you do on networks or the Internet must involve viewing it via a mobile phone. This is not an option or a possibility - a must. Almost all types of advertisements that we have mentioned, video, stories, carousel, etc., are specifically designed for viewing on a mobile phone. Yes, some of them have a certain usability on computers as well, but the focus is exclusively on the vertical, rectangular, mobile phone screen. Even organic content is focused on mobile phones - horizontal video material or images on phones have a very poor display (they appear smaller and often with added black borders) and are therefore often skipped by users.
4. Research your audience first, then choose a platform
Not all platforms are for everyone. Considering the rivalry of some of them (Instagram vs TikTok, for example), it is sometimes more difficult to understand the differences in the audience, but these differences are certainly present. For example, TikTok is considered a platform that is great for the younger population, Instagram somewhere in between, and Facebook for the elderly. However, that's just looking at the age of the audience. If you need professional ones, then you're probably looking at LinkedIn. X, Threads, Pinterest, YouTube shorts have their specific users and maybe they are your potential clients. Accurately determining your audience, especially using tools like Google Analytics and Meta Audience, can help you determine where your audience is and stop spending time and money in places that don't match your business. Forget about any fantasies about your ideal Hero client etc. – research the market and use the right information to choose the platform that will get you results.
5. Moderate automation
With the rise of AI tools and various automations, we have more and more automatic options that simplify complicated processes to achieve better results. However, you should keep in mind that you must not completely surrender to it and that you have to control everything manually. Tools such as Meta Advantage+ and Google Performance Max can simplify the creation and maintenance of advertising campaigns, but you must always check them. In a world where one sentence or title can sell a product or turn off a customer completely, you have to be responsible for your success. Accelerate analytics and let processes analyze data and predict user behavior - control creative and make sure the messages you want are delivered.
6. Advanced targeting
In addition to the standard options, you can also use additional tools to always precisely target the target audience. One of the most famous tools is Lookalike Audiences – reach users who resemble your best customers. These are people who have traits or behaviors of your existing customer group, making them ideal candidates for targeting. Instead, you can use the targeting of users who viewed a specific page on your site or checked the advertisement but did not buy/order anything - an ideal strategy that increases the chance of encouraging them to become your clients because they are practically already on the threshold. And of course, if location is an important factor, if you have a store or space, geotargeting is absolutely necessary for local businesses and the promotion of places or events.
7. Video material
Video material has become and remains the dominant format for audience engagement. Whether we are talking about platforms that are completely dedicated to video material like TikTok, or platforms that have this option, like Reels on Instagram, or Shorts on YouTube, short, vertical videos designed for mobile devices are still at the top of engagement. Which doesn't mean that everything you do in the future should be in video format, but you have to use that format if you want to be successful on social networks, especially when it comes to advertising.
Videos of up to 30 seconds (which can start with the point and then the rest of the video to keep attention) performed best, exclusively in a vertical format optimized for mobile devices and definitely with integrated subtitles, because many users watch videos without sound or muted (subtitles also improve the accessibility of the video and memory of information).
Finally
Waiting for an audience to be reached organically and waiting for an algorithm to bless you is simply not enough to grow a social media business anymore. Paid advertising gives you the tools and precision to increase your reach, engage new audiences and increase conversions. In all of this, by the way, you should increase the quality of organic posts, use popular video formats and UGC so that everything related to your business is meaningful and brings real business results.
Social media advertising gives you the power to get your message to the right people at the right time and turn engagement into measurable growth and results - but that comes with a price and the "free" option no longer exists.
