What’s the difference between paid and organic social media?
Most well-known social media channels nowadays have some form of monetisation in terms of paid advertising to accompany the organic side of the platform. Paid social media is generally more aimed towards businesses or individuals who are after more immediate results and are looking for quick exposure to a new audience, but in return, will pay on a cost per click (CPC) or cost per thousand impressions (CPM) basis. Whereas organic social media is completely free, using the tools available on the platform to post about different topics to your existing audience.
When should you use organic social media?
No one should miss out on organic social media in any marketing strategy simply because it’s free and can take little effort, depending on how quickly you want results. Having a social media presence nowadays is just as important as a website as this is how you can give your audience an insight into what your business is up to or even give them a little behind-the-scenes of the day-to-day. Organic social media traffic is renowned for attracting high-quality traffic because it’s the part of your audience that already follow you, have an interest in your brand and like what you post on social media. In contrast, paid traffic is reaching out to a new audience unfamiliar with you.
Using organic social is great for small/medium-sized businesses that are just starting out or for those who don’t have a particularly high marketing budget. This is because it’s free and is the perfect way to begin building your audience, interacting with and nurturing them and slowly introducing your products and services.
When should you use paid social media?
As we mentioned, paid social is for those who desire quick results and want exposure to a new audience; perhaps they have already built a good size audience, and they would like to expand even further into new markets. Paid social can help businesses meet their objectives quicker but for a monetary value. Whether you’re looking to get more eyes on your brand, more traffic to your site or more sales for your products, these can all be accommodated on most paid social advertising platforms. Different platforms have slightly different demographics, features and tools available, so it’s vital you optimise your approach depending on your target audience and the budget you have at your disposal. Perhaps you’re launching a new range of products and services, and paid social is perfect for getting that instant exposure to kickstart the campaign.
How to integrate both into your marketing plan?
Organic social media should always be in the plan no matter what, but paid social can be optional. However, many businesses may choose to include both in their marketing strategy; this is where it becomes crucial that they complement each other and work in harmony.
First things first, is to make sure that you have each set up with different goals; as we mentioned, organic is for engaging with your audience, adding value and nurturing them, while paid social is for expanding your audience and/or encouraging more sales and traffic to your site.
Secondly, it’s important that your messaging is consistent and aligned across both formats, as you do not want to confuse your audience – you should still stick to your tone of voice and use your personality across both. Generally speaking, a paid advert and an organic post should look pretty similar; the only difference should be in who your post is speaking to. You want to keep your content consistent across both channels; otherwise, this will confuse your audience, especially if they see your ad, become a follower and then begin to see your ads and organic posts.
Start creating your social strategy
As you can see, there are a number of factors to consider when deciding when to use organic or paid social media for your business. It’s important to understand the pros and cons of each type of post before making a decision about what will work best for your company. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list of all the possible applications for organic and paid social media but it should give you a better idea of when to use each one. If you need help crafting an effective social media strategy that includes both organic and paid posts, our team at Capsule would be happy to help. Get in touch with us today to learn more about how we can help you grow your business online.
