Paid Social Media – What Makes Audiences Click?

Are you effectively leveraging social media to grow your business via paid social advertising?

Social media can be a dynamic tool for businesses in terms of consumer engagement. But did you know that it’s also a treasure trove of opportunities in terms of robust paid advertising to build your audience, generate new leads, improve brand recognition, and drive high-value, relevant traffic to your website?

Let’s explore some aspects of Paid Social Media advertising: what it is, its benefits, why it works, and some strategies for success.

Connecting with Customers Via Social Media

There is no denying the powerful influence of organic social reach, which occurs when businesses provide engagement opportunities for consumers via their targets’ preferred social platforms. Likewise, paying for advertising on social media can also be incredibly advantageous – and even a game-changer for brands when it is done right.

Social media advertising exploits Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or TikTok (also Pinterest and Snapchat) by delivering paid, clickable ads to brands’ target audiences in relevant users’ timelines or newsfeeds. These appear as Sponsored or shoppable posts.

This approach to advertising offers numerous benefits:

  • Attract new prospects at a time when they tend to be relaxed and amenable to targeted advertising
  • Quickly and effectively communicate with your targets
  • Showcase your value proposition
  • Expand your reach
  • Improve recall for your brand
  • Encourage ad sharing and passive lead generation
  • Boost engagement
  • Deliver personalised content by hyper-targeting audiences
  • Drive audiences to your social profile and website
  • Boost conversion rates
  • Save money – ads are paid for on a pay-per-click basis
  • Achieve positive return on investment

Why invest in Paid Social Ads?

Just a few considerations include:

  • 93% of internet users worldwide use social media[1]
  • More than 91% of businesses avail social media for marketing[2]
  • The average business in 2024 allocates 14.9% of its marketing budget to social media[3]
  • 93% of modern businesses have an active Facebook presence and 86% advertise on the platform[4].  There are more than 200 million business accounts on Instagram[5], 67 million on LinkedIn[6], and 35 million on Snapchat[7].
  • Almost half of all social media users welcome and act upon brand recommendations from influencers[8].
  • 64% of consumers who watch branded social media videos convert and purchase thereafter[9].
  • 90% of Instagram users follow at least one brand/business profile[10].
  • Despite its diminished popularity overall in recent years, more than 80% of B2B businesses use X (formerly Twitter) for X Ads and organic social media marketing[11]. 80%[12] also use paid LinkedIn Advertising and 96%[13] use LinkedIn for organic marketing.

(It’s important to note that social media advertising is not the same as social media marketing (SMM). Social media marketing involves a brand utilising social media to showcase its products or services within its own profile page via content creation; it promotes and engages rather than actively selling.)

Social Media Ads Strategies – What Works?

Why are some social ads successful – while others fall flat?

It’s all about understanding what generates clicks – and why.

You need to make sure your ads:

  • Stand out
  • Are visually appealing
  • Are concise and catchy
  • Reflect high-value offerings
  • Compel audiences to click

To achieve all of this, you need a clear strategy, a creative outlook, and a savvy understanding of your audience. You should also appreciate the power of urgency, colour psychology, your chosen medium, and social proof.

Urgency

Fear of missing out or FOMO is very real – both in life and marketing. You can capitalise on this human trait in your social media ads. By creating a sense of urgency, you can drive your targets to act quickly and definitively. Using phrasing such as “Don’t Miss Out!” and “Almost Gone!” are incredibly powerful, effective drivers for decisive consumer action.

Colour Psychology

Visual appeal is everything and your ads need to captivate their targets within mere seconds of first being seen. Whether you use impactful images, graphics, or videos, they must engage and compel, while also being clear and concise in their messaging. Striking visuals and a clear, simple, strategic call to action work best.

Consider your use of colour – and make sure it complements your brand identity and product. Bright hues are energetic and trigger action; light blues and soft tones are soothing.

The Medium Itself

Are you maintaining an active presence and paying for social media ads on the right platform for your business? You need to consider who your targets are, how they use social media and when they use it, and which platforms they’ll be on – as well as your unique product offering. Your audience (and your brand itself) will dictate where you invest. For example, seniors are less likely to be using Snapchat than they are Facebook; Generation Z is entirely likely to be amenable to ads shown on TikTok but not really expected to be using X. Knowing your audience and your brand inside-out is imperative. These will inform the type of ads you create and the way they are presented to your target audience.

Social Proof

Social proof refers to a psychological phenomenon whereby individuals emulate the actions of others in an attempt to behave “properly” in any given circumstance. Also called “informational social influence”, it’s based on the concept that “others know better” and the tendency of most humans to “follow the crowd”. Marketers and brands exploit this by showcasing positive testimonials and reviews, recommendations, popular products, influencer content, existing customers, awards and accolades, and more.

In a Nutshell…

Paid social media ads are worth the investment because:

  • Social media pay-per-click marketing is economical
  • You can reach – and sell to – a larger audience
  • They increase website traffic
  • They maximise conversion rates
  • They support search engine optimisation efforts

Drive Engagement & Trigger Clicks with Dot-To-Dot Digital!

Dot-to-Dot Digital is a modern Australian digital marketing agency operated by an expert team of talented digital marketing strategists. Through creative content, savvy marketing strategies, and in-depth tech know-how, we’re here to help your business succeed with everything from social media marketing to brand strategy, search engine optimisation (SEO), content marketing, and much more.

Want to know how to get those clicks?

What are you waiting for? Touch base with us today to have a chat, explore your options with us, and get the ball rolling on effective Paid Social Ads to bring relevant visitors to your website right at the time they’re actively seeking the solutions you offer. We look forward to meeting you!


[1] https://nealschaffer.com/social-media-marketing-statistics/

[2] https://www.statista.com/statistics/203513/usage-trands-of-social-media-platforms-in-marketing/

[3] https://www.statista.com/statistics/1223663/social-media-marketing-budget-share-usa/

[4] https://localiq.com/blog/social-media-statistics/

[5] https://www.omnicoreagency.com/instagram-statistics/

[6] https://www.demandsage.com/linkedin-statistics/

[7] https://www.socialpilot.co/blog/snapchat-statistics/

[8] https://localiq.com/blog/social-media-statistics/

[9] https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/03/08/video-marketing-statistics

[10] https://localiq.com/blog/social-media-statistics/

[11] https://localiq.com/blog/social-media-statistics/

[12] https://localiq.com/blog/social-media-statistics/

[13] https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2020/09/b2b-industry-benchmarks-budgets-trends-research/

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