Paid social that finds buyers, not just viewers
Meta, LinkedIn, YouTube and Pinterest campaigns run on cost per qualified lead
On search you capture demand that exists. On paid social you have to create it, which puts most of the burden on the creative rather than the targeting. So we produce ads in batches, test them on a fixed fortnightly rhythm, build audiences from your own customer data, and report leads and sales instead of reach.
Paid social that pays
Two things decide whether a paid social account works. Creative that stops the scroll and then says something true. Audiences that are genuinely your buyers rather than a broad interest category that happens to be large.
We make short video and static ads in batches, test on a schedule so results can be read, and build audiences from customer lists, site behaviour and lookalikes of both before touching interest targeting. Tracking goes in first: pixel plus server-side events through the Conversions API, because browser-only tracking now misses a meaningful share of conversions and the platform optimises towards whatever it can see.
Which platform, and which to skip
Meta for consumer and local businesses, and for cheap retargeting of everyone else. LinkedIn for B2B when the deal size can absorb a click that costs several times a Google click. YouTube where the product needs demonstrating. Pinterest for things people plan and save before buying.
Most clients should be on one or two of those. We say which, and we say which to leave alone. Where organic content is already earning attention, social media management usually deserves the first slice of the budget.
What paid social includes
Meta (Facebook & Instagram)
Prospecting and retargeting campaigns with a fresh creative set every two weeks, before fatigue starts showing up in the cost.
Lead-gen forms and sponsored content targeted by role, company and seniority, for deals large enough to carry the click cost.
YouTube & video
Skippable in-stream and Shorts campaigns, with the same message cut differently for each placement rather than uploaded once.
Creative production
Short video, statics and carousels produced monthly in-house, with two distinct angles per batch so the test means something.
Audiences & tracking
Customer lists, site events and lookalikes, with the pixel and Conversions API verified against GA4 before any budget goes live.
Landing pages
Pages that pick up the promise the ad made and convert on a phone, which is where nearly all of this traffic arrives.
The fortnightly rhythm
Tracking & audiencesweek 1
Pixel and Conversions API verified with a live test event, then customer and behaviour audiences built and uploaded.
Creative batchweeks 1–2
The first set of video and static variants, built around two clearly different messages rather than two colours.
Launchweek 2
Prospecting and retargeting go live together with capped budgets and a deliberately narrow audience to start.
Testongoing
New creative every fortnight, losers retired, and budget shifted towards whatever is producing enquiries this week.
Reportmonthly
Leads, cost per lead, and return on ad spend where the sales data supports it, with frequency shown so you can see fatigue coming.
Tools and platforms
From $600/month
Management from $600/month or 12% of spend; creative production included up to an agreed volume.
Paid social, answered
Which social platform should we advertise on?
Whichever one your buyers already use, which is rarely all of them. Meta for consumer and local, LinkedIn for B2B, YouTube when the product needs showing, Pinterest for things people save before they buy. We recommend one or two and explain what the others would cost you to learn.
How much should we budget for paid social?
From about $1,000 a month of media on Meta, which is roughly what it takes to get a creative test to a readable result. LinkedIn costs considerably more per lead and needs a bigger floor. Management is $600 a month or 12% of spend, with creative included up to an agreed volume.
How do you target the right people?
Your customer list first, then people who have been on your site, then lookalikes of both, then interests as a last resort. On current platforms the creative does a large share of the targeting by self-selecting the audience, which is why we spend the effort there.
What creative works best on paid social?
Short vertical video that makes one point in the first three seconds, and statics that look like they belong in the feed rather than in a brochure. Subtitles always, because the sound is off. Beyond that we test rather than theorise, since the pattern differs by category.
How do you measure paid social?
Leads and sales confirmed through the pixel, the Conversions API and GA4 together, with cost per qualified lead or return on ad spend as the headline. Platform-reported conversions are always the most flattering number in the room, so we do not lead with them.
Does paid social work for B2B?
Yes, with patience. LinkedIn reaches people by role and company before they start searching, and Meta retargets those same people far more cheaply once they have visited. It is slower to prove than search ads and works best alongside them.
Create the demand before the search.
Tell us who your best customers are and what they bought. We will build the audience plan and a first creative test around them.