Advertising vs organic growth is one of the hot topic discussions in the small business world right now!
Growing a business feels like a never ending learning curve; there’s always a new trend or a new platform to sell on. Advertisement vs organic growth is the newest trend in the small business universe.
Organic growth involves making meaningful connections and building a trusting relationship with your customers and social media audiences; it’s hard work and requires a lot of energy plus results can take months to see.
Organic growth is the most sustainable and long term way to grow your business, your customers love what they see from you and you aren’t just the latest craze to them. This pathway to growth isn’t for the fainthearted - there is no denying that it is an absolute graft but the payoff is worth it. Post on your socials multiple times a day across your stories, feed and reels, update your website regularly and interact with potential customers daily.
If however you need to develop your brand quickly, you have the option of paid advertising, it can be an overnight growth but it isn’t always sustainable. New followers and customers will have come to you for the one product/lifestyle in your ad which means they have the potential to lose interest in your business really quickly (I know, it sucks because we know your small business is amazing and deserves the recognition!). We have all been guilty of following a tiktoker from one video then very quickly realising they just aren’t the content creator for us - it’s a very similar process.
Paying for online adverts can be very expensive per view if you don’t have a plan. The job of paid ads is to share your content to as many people as possible even if they aren’t the correct audience for your business. There is usually an option to reach your target market with your adverts, it won’t be seen by as many people but you will benefit greatly from knowing your ‘perfect customer’.
This is our advice when it comes to paid advertising:
- Set a budget (that you’re willing to spend without any *ROAS)
- Have a target audience in mind and be very specific, for example if you sell periodic table, handmade wooden coasters (one of our fave etsy sellers makes these) you’d know your audience is women, aged 25-35, interested in science, homeware and supporting small; you could even aim it to science teachers. YES, YOU NEED TO BE THIS SPECIFIC!!
- Start small and learn what time of day and lifespan of the advert works for your business because this is different for everyone
- Have confidence when designing your ad, if you don’t believe in it then nobody else will.
So, I wish there was a straightforward answer that we could give you but sadly (and happily too), every small business is different and has different budgets, requirements and ideas. I would recommend doing a happy combo of both because it can never hurt to have 2 courses of action running at once.
*Return on Ad spend (very important acronym in the ads world so take note)
If you've made it this far, you can have a bonus tip ;) micro-influencers are a great way to have your products seen by the right audience! There are websites where you can hire micro-influencers who match your business' ethos and values for a relatively low fee - people trust influencers.