Are you thinking about boosting a Facebook or Instagram post to increase reach and engagement for your business? Well, hold on just a second! I’d like to share with you why boosting a post might not be the best idea for your business. In fact, it might even be a horrible idea that causes you to waste money. But don’t worry, I have no desire to rain on your parade. I’m here to give you some helpful tips and tricks on how to get the most out of your social media advertising efforts.

Let’s start with the basics. Boosting a post on Facebook or Instagram is a quick and easy way to increase the visibility of your content. It’s so simple that all you have to do is click the “Boost Post” button, select your target audience, set your budget, and voila! Your post will be shown to a wider audience. Sounds great, right? Well, not so fast.

The problem with boosting a post is that it’s not a targeted advertising strategy. You’re essentially paying to show your content to a broader audience without any real control over who sees it. Sure, you can select a target audience based on demographics and interests, but that’s still a broad range of people who may or may not be interested in your product or service. Easy options aren’t always the best ones for you or your business.

So, what’s the alternative? Facebook and Instagram both offer robust advertising platforms that allow you to create highly targeted ads that reach the right people at the right time. With these platforms, you can set specific goals for your ads, such as driving traffic to your website, generating leads, or increasing sales. These platforms allow you to use multiple targeting tactics for your campaign so that you can judge what works best for you. They also give you the ability to run different ads within the campaign so you can determine which creative and message is best received by consumers.

Here are a few reasons why using Facebook or Instagram’s advertising platform might be a better option for your small business:

  1. Targeted Advertising – As I mentioned earlier, one of the biggest downsides of boosting a post is the lack of targeting. With Facebook and Instagram’s advertising platform, you have the ability to target specific audiences based on factors such as age, location, interests, behaviors, and more. This means that you can show your ads to people who are more likely to be interested in your product or service, resulting in a higher return on investment. If you have your own database of customers who have purchased your products or services, then you can develop lookalike audiences to reach more people just like them.
  2. Ad Formats – Boosting a post does limit you to just a few ad formats, such as a single image or video. With Facebook and Instagram’s advertising platform, you have access to a wide range of ad formats, including carousel and collection ads. These options allow you to be more creative and showcase your products or services in new ways so that consumers identify with your brand differently.
  3. Optimization – Facebook and Instagram’s advertising platform also allows you to optimize your ads for specific goals, such as conversions, clicks, or impressions. This means that the platform will automatically show your ads to people who are more likely to take the desired action, resulting in a higher conversion rate. The longer you run the campaign, the more it learns who the best targets should be, and it will optimize delivery in order to get your message in front of the best possible consumer who is more likely to engage with your message.
  4. Cost-Effective – Believe it or not, using Facebook or Instagram’s advertising platform can actually be more cost-effective than boosting a post. With the ability to target specific audiences and optimize your ads for specific goals, you can get more bang for your buck. We’ve actually tested this theory to see the difference in the number of consumers we could reach with a boost as compared to using the advertising platform itself. What we found surprised us…sort of. Using the exact same budget for both options saw our message reaching thousands more consumers when we utilized the advertising platform rather than from simply boosting the post. So, while Meta (Facebook and Instagram) makes it easy to spread the word about your business it doesn’t give you the best value when you click the boost button.

In conclusion, while boosting a Facebook or Instagram post might seem like a quick and easy way to increase your reach and engagement, it’s not always the best option for small businesses. By using Facebook or Instagram’s advertising platform, you can create highly targeted ads that reach the right people at the right time, resulting in getting your message in front of more people and providing a higher return on investment. So, the next time you’re thinking about just clicking on that little “Boost post” link, consider using Facebook or Instagram’s advertising platform instead. Your wallet (and your business) will thank you!

Are you in need of someone to develop your social media presence? Give us a call at (920) 445-9551 or fill out our form at Contact – Broken Egg Digital Marketing and Let’s Get Crackin’!