871: What’s Actually Working with Paid Social Ads in 2025

Summary

Episode Summary: The Goal Digger Podcast | Episode 871: What’s Actually Working with Paid Social Ads in 2025

In Episode 871 of The Goal Digger Podcast, host Jenna Kutcher sits down with seasoned business strategist Carrie Sweatman to dissect the evolving landscape of paid social advertising in 2025. This in-depth conversation delves into effective strategies, platform-specific insights, budgeting tactics, and the critical mindset shifts necessary for sustainable growth through paid ads.

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1. Evolution of Paid Social Ads

Carrie Sweatman opens the discussion by addressing the dramatic changes in the paid advertising arena since her last appearance on the podcast in 2017. She highlights the disappearance of incredibly low-cost leads, emphasizing that "advertising isn't a shortcut, it's a strategy. It's a long game really" (13:09).

Carrie Sweatman [13:09]: "Advertising isn't a shortcut, it's a strategy. It's a long game really."

Jenna echoes this sentiment, recalling early business challenges and recognizing the amplified impact that structured ad strategies can have when paired with established systems.

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2. Key Strategies for 2025

Expanding Visuals and Content Variety

Carrie emphasizes the importance of diversifying visual content to capture audience attention in a saturated digital space.

Carrie Sweatman [05:10]: "Really expanding your visuals. We are testing so many different kinds of graphics... Anything that will make people stop scrolling."

Importance of Testing

The duo discusses the critical need for continual experimentation with different ad formats and styles to identify what resonates best with the target audience. Jenna shares a practical example of their "treadmill video," a simple yet effective ad that garnered significant engagement despite its straightforward content.

Jenna Kutcher [07:46]: "... it's literally me walking on a treadmill. And so it is just funny because you don't know what will hit or what will take off."

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3. Starting with Paid Ads

Carrie advises entrepreneurs to prioritize building a robust organic foundation before investing in paid advertising. She insists that ads should "amplify what is already working" within your existing marketing efforts.

Carrie Sweatman [10:05]: "Ads will only amplify what is already working. So you want to start there."

Jenna illustrates this by sharing a coaching client’s success story, demonstrating how integrating ads can exponentially enhance proven systems.

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4. Budgeting for Ads

Determining the right ad budget is a common concern. Carrie breaks down budgeting strategies based on campaign goals, recommending a minimum of $30 per day for lead generation campaigns to obtain meaningful data.

Carrie Sweatman [23:16]: "For a lead gen campaign, don't do something less than like $30 a day."

She emphasizes aligning ad spend with specific goals, ensuring that budgets are tied directly to desired outcomes such as lead acquisition or revenue targets.

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5. Patience and Optimization

A recurring theme is the importance of allowing ads adequate time to optimize. Carrie advises against the temptation to "panic and shut it off" when initial costs appear high, explaining that platforms like Facebook and Pinterest require several days to stabilize and perform effectively.

Carrie Sweatman [24:43]: "You truly do have to give it several days. ... So be patient, don't panic, and then give it some time and then you can adjust."

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6. Utilizing Different Platforms: Pinterest

Carrie and Jenna explore the rising efficacy of Pinterest as a paid advertising platform. Jenna shares their recent success, noting that Pinterest leads were both affordable and highly effective in driving purchases.

Carrie Sweatman [26:24]: "Advertising across multiple platforms will let you reach people at different points in their customer journey."

They discuss how platforms like Pinterest offer unique targeting capabilities based on search behavior, making them invaluable for brands with strong visual elements.

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7. Continuous Ad Campaigns

Contrary to the common practice of turning ads off during non-launch periods, Carrie advocates for running evergreen campaigns year-round. This approach ensures continuous lead generation and brand engagement, fostering long-term relationships with the audience.

Carrie Sweatman [32:25]: "We are constantly running ads... building relationships, which is very similar to your organic strategy."

Jenna adds that maintaining consistent ad presence allows for ongoing audience connection without the burnout of constant content creation.

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8. Targeting Strategies

Effective targeting remains a cornerstone of successful ad campaigns. Carrie outlines three primary targeting categories:

1. Warm Audiences: Existing followers, email subscribers, and website visitors.
2. Lookalike Audiences: New prospects resembling current customers.
3. Cold Targets: Fresh audiences unfamiliar with the brand.

Carrie Sweatman [44:53]: "You want to think about your customer and... it does allow you for a more diversified experience and to reach people in different places."

This multifaceted targeting ensures comprehensive reach across various segments of potential customers.

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9. Long-term Mindset and Incorporation

Both Jenna and Carrie emphasize viewing paid ads as an integral part of a long-term marketing strategy rather than a temporary solution. This perspective shift is crucial for maximizing the compounded benefits of consistent ad investment.

Carrie Sweatman [41:56]: "How can I explain this better so that people understand that it really is a long game and it will benefit you, it will become easier and it will compound."

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10. Final Tips

Carrie concludes with actionable advice for navigating the paid ad landscape:

• Stay Consistent: Continuously run and optimize ads to build momentum.
• Know Your Numbers: Understand key metrics like cost per lead and customer lifetime value.
• Test and Optimize: Regularly experiment with different ad formats and strategies to identify what works best.

Carrie Sweatman [48:54]: "My best advice is to stay with it and to know the numbers and to constantly glean what you can, any insights and then feed that back into your marketing."

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Conclusion

Episode 871 provides a comprehensive roadmap for leveraging paid social ads in 2025, blending strategic insights with practical examples. Jenna Kutcher and Carrie Sweatman underscore the importance of a diversified, patient, and data-informed approach to advertising, ensuring that entrepreneurs can sustainably scale their businesses while maintaining meaningful connections with their audiences.

Listeners are encouraged to apply these strategies to transform their ad efforts into a powerful, ongoing asset that complements their organic marketing endeavors, paving the way for enduring business success.

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Notable Quotes:

• "Advertising isn't a shortcut, it's a strategy. It's a long game really." — Carrie Sweatman [13:09]
• "Ads will only amplify what is already working. So you want to start there." — Carrie Sweatman [10:05]
• "You truly do have to give it several days. ... So be patient, don't panic, and then give it some time and then you can adjust." — Carrie Sweatman [24:43]
• "My best advice is to stay with it and to know the numbers and to constantly glean what you can, any insights and then feed that back into your marketing." — Carrie Sweatman [48:54]

Transcript

[Jenna Kutcher]

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[Carrie Sweatman]

The brands that succeed focus on long term growth and consistency, not just the short term win. So while one and done campaigns are still powerful, I would challenge you to think bigger and more long term. So while the 40 cent leads may be over, it's still a wonderful strategy.

[Jenna Kutcher]

I'm Jenna Kutcher, your host of the Gold Digger podcast. I escaped the corporate world at the age of 23 with nothing more than a $300 camera from Craigslist and a dream. Now I'm running a seven figure online business that feels even better than it looks. All from my house in small town Minnesota with my family here, we value time as our currency. We mix the woo and the work and we are in the pursuit of building businesses that give us the freedom to live lives that we love. I've always loved turning big goals into reality and I'm here to help you do the same. This isn't just a peek behind the curtain. Come along with me and my guests as we tear the whole curtain down. Every week we tackle practical no fluff marketing strategies and host honest discussions on what works and what doesn't. Join me and my expert guests for actionable insights to help you grow your dream business with confidence. Pull up a seat and get ready to be challenged, inspired and empowered. This is the Gold Digger Podcast. Let's be real. Paid ads have changed a lot over the years and keeping up with what actually works can feel like trying to hit a moving target. But lucky for me, and for you, I have had the same brilliant ad strategist in my corner for years and today she is here to break it all down for us. Carrie Sweatman is a business strategist, a systems nerd, and a master of simplifying the complex world of online advertising. She's not just any expert in Facebook ads. She's been my personal go to strategist for eight and a half years, helping me navigate the ever changing digital landscape and making sure my ads are working for me, not against me. The last time Carrie was on the Gold Digger podcast was back in 2017. Yes, you heard that right. And so I think it is more than safe to say that we are overdue for an updated look at the paid ads landscape in 2025. In today's episode, we're diving into what is working right now for paid ads in 2025. What strategies are performing best, the best types of content to test what's not worth your money or time anymore, and Carrie's biggest tips for maximizing your return on investment. I'm also dropping a shocking fact in this episode that I think is going to blow your mind when it comes to our ad strategy. Whether you're running ads for the first time or looking to fine tune your paid approach, this episode is jam packed with gold. Welcome to the Gold Digger Podcast, Carrie. Carrie, you know that we're all about actionable strategies on this show and so I Want to dive right into it with you. What is the number one strategy that is working right now for Facebook ads in 2025?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Ooh, that's a good one. It's fluid, for one, so I always want everyone to keep that in mind. But social ads can be nuanced. But for 2025, I would say really expanding your visuals. We are testing so many different kinds of graphics right now, from these really bold visuals with bold statements to videos with funky transitions, tons of B roll video with text overlaid, and, of course, the storytelling via video and carousel ads. Anything that will make people stop scrolling. And it's best to incorporate a variety of different GR graphics. And one thing that we saw with your most recent launch was that while video received the most engagement and the most leads, it was static images that garnered the cheapest leads. So we were amenable to both, and we wanted the volume and the lower cost per lead. So, you know, I felt like it was a great reminder that you should always test a variety of assets because your audience will pay attention to different things.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yes. Okay. I love that we're kicking off on this, and I feel like we are consistently. I mean, even yesterday, you and I were having a conversation about, like, trying different things. And I think a lot of times when people think about ads, it's like they're stuck in, like, either something that worked before, which could be, you know, just a static image that you made in Canva. That's great. But one thing I love about you is, like, you love to experiment and try different things. You're like, let's just try it. And that has given us so much insight and data and also given us kind of the creative direction as we're going into bigger launches of like, okay, here is what we need. Here's what we want to try. And it's been so helpful. And so I love that we're kicking off on this. And I think, you know, the main point here is, like, if you are somebody that's running paid traffic, no matter where you are paying for it, don't just stick to one style of graphics or videos or something like that. Like, mix it up. Because we have found. And I feel like every launch. Do you think, Carrie, like, every launch has kind of a unique angle or something that we're like, that's really peculiar. That's interesting.

[Carrie Sweatman]

It does. And, you know, while you can kind of see from your historical data trends, it really is like launches, you know, which may feel overwhelming to some people, that every launch is kind of different or Whatever. But like I said, you can see some trends and feed that back into your marketing. But it really is. Should we talk about the treadmill video?

[Jenna Kutcher]

Your treadmill? Talk about it.

[Carrie Sweatman]

You know, we had this B roll video of you on the treadmill and no matter where we put it, whether we put it to an evergreen ad or we put it to a live launch, it. I mean, it comes out of the gate just soaring. It's incredible. And we are constantly touching base with each other. Like, what, what is it about? What's so appealing about this?

[Jenna Kutcher]

But it's also hilarious because in that video my posture is 100% and so sometimes I'll like click on it and like the comments will be like, you need to stand up straighter, like all these things. But it's interesting because it's, I think a lot of times people get overwhelmed in the thought of video that it needs to be like highly produced or like, you know, this like crazy interesting thing. And it's literally me walking on a treadmill. And so it is just funny because you don't know what will hit or what will take off. And I just love that, you know, we toss a lot of things out into the ether and then we kind of dial it in as time goes on and as the data comes in. But this should be encouragement to anyone listening of like, you don't need to go hire a video team or anything like that to create compelling ads. You're probably sitting on video clips that could do really well as an ad.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Absolutely, absolutely. And sometimes, you know, like, like the treadmill video, we just overlay some text on it. It's hard hitting text. And that along with, you know, the video is, is what gets people to stop the scroll. So it is. You really have to just try different things. And I love that about you. It's. It's been really just such a pleasure to know that you are for. And we've had a lot of fun. Yeah. Throwing things around and testing different things. So.

[Jenna Kutcher]

And we're not done. I feel like we're just getting started. Like I, I feel like we are always curious as to like, okay, what's going to work now or what's next? One thing I'm curious about is there is probably a really great segment of this podcast. Maybe you, the listener right now are like, I have never put a single dollar into paid ads. They've run a business or they've started a business. Maybe they've gotten their first sale or their 1000 sale, but they've actually never paid for Ads. And so where should somebody begin and why would now be the time to consider starting for them?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Yeah, you really should always begin with your strategy. And I know that's not as concrete as probably some will like, but ads will only amplify what is already working. So you want to start there. What are you currently selling? Well, that's the thing you want to put your ad dollars behind. And always remember that ads are just one piece of the puzzle. That's another thing that you do so well. Ads work best when combined with a solid organic strategy. So whether that's social media or email marketing, or both, when you pair your paid and organic strategies, your efforts comp and build this unstoppable momentum that just grows bigger and better. So it's so important to have both. And the last thing that I'll say is that the ad platforms are more integrated and user friendly than ever before. So don't be afraid to get in there and give it a try. Not only is setting up ads easier, but the various ads managers within each platform have added so many integrations with the other softwares that you're likely already using. So it's, it's much easier than it once was to navigate and get a campaign up and running. And if you're not quite ready for ads yet, that's okay. I would encourage you to focus on building your audience organically through social media and email marketing. And the more you grow your base now, the stronger position you'll be in when you start to run those ads.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah, I love that. I'm doing coaching, just a few different coaching clients offline. And one of them I sent over to you and I had been talking to her because she is an incredible entrepreneur. She runs a multimillion dollar business and she's never put a penny into paid ads. And I was blown away. Like, I was blown away because she has the system. And she basically was asking me like, how do I make this more sustainable because I cannot keep running and live launching and doing all this to get the same results. And so immediately I was like, wow, you already have the proven system, you already have the funnels, you already have the content, you already have the audience. Like, imagine what could happen if you put some paid ad dollars behind it. And it was just this realization of like, ads can be like throwing gasoline on the fire, but the fire has to exist first, right? Like the flame has to be there for the gasoline to make the impact. And so I love that advice that you're giving of like, get a proven funnel or Strategy or sales, a means of making sales and then consider putting paid ad dollars. And I couldn't agree more with that. So, one thing I'm curious, and this is kind of a fun question, but what is something that used to work with Facebook ads that no longer works? Like, when I think of the fact that you came on this podcast back in 2017, I would actually say I stand by almost all of the content we talked about. But is there anything that's like totally dead in the world of Facebook ads?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Well, you and I both know that in our heyday, long before each platform was as crowded as they are now, long before the data privacy laws, we used to set up campaigns and get leads for, you know, under $0.40 pretty easily for most people, I would say that those days are gone. And ultimately, you know, advertising isn't a shortcut, it's a strategy. It's a long game really. And the brands that succeed focus on long term growth and consistency, not just the short term win. So while one and done campaigns are still powerful, I would challenge you to think bigger and more long term. So while the 40 cent leads may be over, it's still a wonderful strategy.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah. I will never forget one of the first big girl moments I had in business. It was when I finally released the white knuckle grip I had on my business and I finally decided to hire help. I was so excited to get help, but I quickly became so overwhelmed because I didn't know the first thing about payroll or how to stay on top of taxes as a business owner, and trust me, I just wanted to do it right without spending hours buried in paperwork. Now if only I had had Gusto back then. Gusto is the all in one platform that makes payroll, benefits and HR feel doable even if you're not a numbers person. Whether you're paying W2s, 1099s or offering health insurance and 401ks GU, Gusto's got your back. You can run payroll in just a few clicks and Gusto will automatically file and pay your taxes at the federal, state and the local level. With no spreadsheets and no guesswork. Over 400, 000 small businesses across the country, including mine. Trust Gusto because it is so simple and so intuitive. If payroll's been sitting on your I'll figure it out later list, this is your sign. Right now, Gusto is offering three months for free. When you run your first payroll, head to Gusto.com goal digger to that's Gusto.com/gold digger. So the other day, I went down this rabbit hole of finding really cute matching summer outfits for my girls. I had my cart full, my dog was asleep in my lap, and of course I didn't have my wallet on me. And so I was just about to abandon it, telling myself I would circle back later. And then that purple shop pay button popped up. One tap, it's done. It's kind of dangerous how easy it is, but it's also totally magical. Well, that little purple button, that's Shop Pay and it's powered by Shopify. It remembers your info so that checkout can be instant. And for business owners, Shopify makes it just as easy to run your store as it is to shop. One Shopify powers 10 of all E commerce in the US from brands like Gymshark and Mattel to businesses just getting started. It is everything you need to launch gorgeous templates built in tools for payments, inventory and marketing. It's, it's all in one place. No code, no hassle. And that purple shop pay button, well, it's not just cute, it is why Shopify has the best converting checkout on the planet. If you want to see less carts being abandoned, it is time for you to head over to Shopify. Sign up for your $1 per month trial and start selling today at shopify.com gold digger go to shopify.com gold digger shopify.com gold digger I talk about this show way too much on the podcast, which is Shark Tank. And I love Shark Tank. I don't know, I'm just obsessed with it. And Coco has started to watch it with me and she's like, mom is the person getting the deal. What's happening? I don't like that bald guy. He doesn't seem nice. But I love how much they ask about like, what is your cost per lead and what is your, you know, customer lifetime value? And all of these different things. And one thing that I think is really beautiful about ads is for most business owners, especially in the early stages, you can't really say or answer those questions right. You don't really know how much am I spending to get a new email subscriber? What is this actually costing me to get somebody to view my sales page? And one thing that I think is so beautiful and under talked about and underutilized honestly, is the fact that Facebook ads can give you a ton of insight and a ton of data that can really help make sure that like your copy is hitting, that your offers are right, that your pricing is right. Let's talk a little bit about that, because I think that a lot of times people look at paid ads as like the direct line to the consumer, which is the ultimate goal. Right. But beyond that, I also think that you're kind of sitting on a goldmine of information that can really help you retailer your strategies or your messaging or your offer.

[Carrie Sweatman]

It's so true. And it's my favorite clients are the ones that get that right, that aren't looking for the super short term. Obviously, like you said, you know, we're, we're trying to pay for the ads and then some. But it really is a long term strategy and it has this compounding effect and it, it does. We, our results, we are constantly talking about what worked, what didn't work, and then feeding that back into not just your ads, but your emails, you know, your organic social everything. And so it really is a holistic tool to gain information about what platform people respond to, what type of graphic, what type of copy, what buzzwords, what, you know, specific hard hitting text. We get a lot of things, a lot of headlines and, and things like that from the results of ads. For sure.

[Jenna Kutcher]

I love that and I love testing because I think a lot of entrepreneurs will hear things about like split testing and they're like, how do I even do that? How do I know the data? And it's like ads are actually a pretty easy way to kind of get some clear winners and some of the decisions that you might be grappling with within your business. So I kind of love that.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Yeah.

[Jenna Kutcher]

So one thing that I'm curious about is like if business owners have been utilizing ads and maybe they're feeling similar shifts to what I've been feeling, what I know my friends have been feeling. What's the best place to start when creating 2025 Facebook ad strategy?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Yeah, I think, you know, number one is this mindset shift. I feel like a lot of people think very narrowly when thinking about paid media. And you know, we've been touching on this and instead of realizing that your ad strategy is never truly done, the brands that are winning are constantly testing, optimizing and iterating. And while that may feel overwhelming, you want to try to adjust your mindset so that you're focusing on that long term success. And it really, for 2025, it really is about putting different things out there. I mean, like I said, we are testing, you know, these really funky videos with really crazy transitions, all different kinds of, you know, the talking head videos, the B roll with text overlaid, just all different kinds of things. And I think that that is probably going to be the key for 2025 is just to get in there and have your ad strategy be kind of this. This creative playground for your brand.

[Jenna Kutcher]

One thing that I've been doing that I think might be helpful for somebody that's listening is Carrie and I will sit down before launch and we'll kind of make a laundry list of, like, here's what we want for content. And it actually helps me because I am the person creating my organic content. And so it forces me to batch create a ton of my organic content before I get into a launch so that Carrie has it to also run ads. And then what's interesting is, is a lot of times she'll be running my, like, reels or carousels that I'm going to be posting anyways prior to me posting them. And I can already start to get feedback on that content. Let me tell one funny story that we had on a recent launch. I had created this carousel about starting my podcast. And on one of the slides, I had made a remark of, like, I was nervous for my husband to hear me, like, like, speaking. And I worded it poorly. I worded it like I thought it made sense in my mind. And so Carrie posted this carousel. And all of a sudden I'm like, clicking on the ad comments, and all these people are like, I hope you left that husband and all this stuff. And I was like, I messaged her. And I'm like, oh, my gosh, I didn't mean that when I said that on that slide. And so we pulled that ad down, and it helped me tweak the copy on that carousel before I posted it on my own feed, which I was like, like, so grateful for. But that's a funny example. But one thing that's helpful on that is I think a lot of times when entrepreneurs get into a launch, whether you're launching a product, a service, or an offer, the last thing you want to be doing is sitting there at 7pm thinking, what am I going to post today? I know I should be posting something, and I have nothing to post. And so what has really helped me is knowing the needs in advance, creating them for Carrie for my ads team. And then, okay, when I'm in the launch, I have all the assets prepped and ready to go so that I'm not sitting there creating at the last minute. And that's been so helpful. Do you have anything to add to that?

[Carrie Sweatman]

It's huge. I mean, it really is huge. If you're, you know, into energy, it really takes the it really makes the energy for a launch especially so much better. And there is something to that. I can feel it on my end when people are scrambling. And it just makes for a much better, more seamless launch.

[Jenna Kutcher]

I love that. Yes. Okay, so I want to know what is your take on ad budget? So like, what is the minimum someone should spend to actually see results? Like, where do you recommend people putting their dollars and like kind of focusing their efforts?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Yeah, this, you know, I feel like this is the one question that everyone's always trying to pin me down.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yes.

[Carrie Sweatman]

For years and years and years. And. And the answer is, you know, as annoying as I'm going to be, it depends on your goals. And the cool thing about most platforms is that you can get started for very little, $5 a day, or sometimes even less than that. But the truth is you're not going to get very far with that and it's going to take a long time to get decent data, basically. So particularly with the way that the algorithm is currently, it really needs to see a certain number of conversions each week in order for it to optimize and continue to produce. So you don't want to shoot yourself in the foot by not allotting enough budget. Having said that, 99.9% of the time your ad spend should be tied to your goals. So when people ask me, what should I choose as a budget? I will always say, how many leads are you trying to get? Or what is your revenue goal? You know this very well. But when you're first starting out and until you have some historical data, you will end up kind of picking a number out of thin air. I would say, you know, if you're doing a lead gen campaign, don't do something less than like $30 a day. But very quickly you'll see what your cost per lead is or your cost per purchase. And then it's a simple math equation from there and you can adjust your budget.

[Jenna Kutcher]

One thing let's talk about, because I don't think people realize this, Carrie, is that it takes a little bit for the ad to like settle and the cost to go down. Can you explain that? Because I think some people might pop up an ad and their cost per lead is higher than they were anticipating and they panic and shut it off. So let's talk about that process of it kind of figuring it out and going down, or how you make the call to like pull the plug. Like this isn't working.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Right. So you truly do have to give it several days. The way that Facebook in particular pushes their ads out is to a small amount of people and then they see the results and then it kind of goes from there. So it does really take several days to optimize. With Pinterest specifically, it takes a while. It takes a good week, I would say maybe even more for it to settle down, for it to optimize and kind of become what we call stable. So, yeah, you do have to be patient. I'm queen of. Especially when we launch, you know, I have to kind of sit on my hands to.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Which is so hard for you to do.

[Carrie Sweatman]

It is. It really is. But yeah, you have to give it some time to optimize. So be patient, don't panic, and then give it some time and then you can adjust.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Let's talk about Pinterest. I was actually just. I have a couple different text threads with some other female entrepreneurs and I was telling them about our recent launch and Pinterest and how we did on our Pinterest ads. Can we talk a little bit about that here? Because I thought this was one of the biggest takeaways for me for 2025.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Yeah, and really me too. When I see the reports come across for you for Pinterest for the last few months, it's just. It just keeps getting better and better. I mean, it's. It is really fun. It's. Advertising across multiple platforms will let you reach people at different points in their customer journey. Someone might first discover your brand on Pinterest and then see your Instagram or Facebook ads later on. It creates a more diversified opportunity for you to reach people where they are on, you know, across multiple platforms. We have had huge success with Pinterest for your brand. And Pinterest really has made a solid effort lately to connect with advertisers, to educate and evolve their tools. So if you are advertising on Pinterest there, you know, you'll probably get an email with some sort of rep that you can bounce questions off of and work with to improve your ads. And it's been a really, really fun experience.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah, it was interesting. In our last launch, our Pinterest leads were more affordable than our Facebook ones and they performed very similarly in terms of their purchasing decisions, which to me was incredibly promising and also just exciting because I do feel like, love it or hate it, certain entrepreneurs are kind of over meta and the control that they have over all of the platforms. And so it is helpful to know there are platforms like LinkedIn which works really well for B2B businesses. There are platforms like Pinterest that are amazing Especially if you have any visual aspect of your business or you can visually show whatever it is that you're creating or selling. And so I just think too, don't sleep on the fact that there are many different ways that you can do paid strategies. And we have basically like kind of tried them all in different areas to figure out, like, where are the people that we're trying to connect with and what does that look like? Do you have anything to add to that, Carrie?

[Carrie Sweatman]

I mean, you said it perfectly. It really, you want to think about your customer and if you think about who's on Pinterest versus who is on Facebook or Instagram, it's a different person, you know, and so it does allow you for a more diversified experience and to reach people in different places. And I think it's key to a holistic marketing strategy.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Okay, real talk, you know, when you get served an ad that makes zero sense for you. Like for weeks I kept getting ads for these high tech gaming chairs. Um, hi. I don't even game. I'm a mom. I'm not a twitch streamer. That's what makes LinkedIn ads stand out. They actually get your message to the right people. That's why I love what they can do for business owners. LinkedIn ads gives you access to over 1 billion professionals. That's billion with a B. And you can target your ideal buyer by title, industry skills and even revenue. It takes the guesswork out of who's seeing this and helps you get in front of decision makers who actually are ready to take action. So instead of casting a super wide net, you can be laser focused and let your budget work smarter. LinkedIn will give you a hundred dollar credit on your next campaign. Just so you can try it for yourself. Go to LinkedIn.com goal that's LinkedIn.com G O A L Terms and conditions apply only on LinkedIn ads. This episode of the Gold Digger podcast is sponsored by Mercury, a business banking solution built for the way modern entrepreneurs actually work. Lately I've been exploring new tools to better support my business finances. And when I started asking around, my friend and fellow entrepreneur Hala immediately said, jenna, you've got to check out Mercury. She's been using it for her business and had glowing things to say. So of course I had to look into it it and honestly, I get the hype. With Mercury, you can track cash flow, send international payments, issue virtual cards, and even apply for capital all from one dashboard. Their credit cards come with a 1.5% cash back. And if you're Working with international vendors. Mercury offers free domestic and international wires in US Dollars. So if you're in that same season of figuring out what's next for your business finances, Mercury just might be the partner you've been looking for. Mercury is a technology company, not a bank check. Show notes for details. Deposit $5,000 or spend $5,000 using your Mercury credit card within the first 90 days in order to earn $250 or do both for 500 in total [e-mail] goal that's mercury.com goal Years ago, Drew and I took a month long sabbatical. It was our first real break in a really long time. We rented a little Airbnb on a tropical island. And during that trip, something clicked. We experienced how powerful it can be to walk into a space that's been thoughtfully prepared for you, to rest, to reflect, to make memories and just be. And we started wondering, could we create that kind of experience for someone else? Could we be the hosts that make people feel the same sense of ease? That idea quickly took root. Eventually we found a small property, poured love into every detail, and opened the doors. Over the years, we've had the honor of welcoming hundreds of guests. And it all started because we experienced the magic of being a guest first. Of course, hosting has its own learning curves, especially when your property is far from home. If we'd have had Airbnb's co host network back then, I would have jumped at the chance. It lets you team up with a local co host who can manage bookings, message guests, and handle all the on the ground details so you're not doing it all yourself. It's the kind of support that helps you start small, start smart, and still give your guests a five star experience. So if you've ever wondered if you could host, this is your sign to explore it, find your co host and get [e-mail] host okay, I want to say something that might shock people, but in the eight and a half years that you and I have worked together, how many times have we totally shut off all of our ads? Ads?

[Carrie Sweatman]

I don't think we've ever shut off all your ads.

[Jenna Kutcher]

I don't think people realize that we are constantly running ads. In eight and a half years, I don't think there's been a single day that we have not had a paid ad strategy running. And I think some people's minds were just blown because I think that a lot of times people only turn to ads when it's time to sell something. So let's Talk about the approach we take, because this is about to save people a lot of time, a lot of frustration and a lot of money. So can you tell people what are we running ads to when we're not actively launching something?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Right, so we are constantly running campaigns, evergreen campaigns. So you are 365 days a year generating leads, engaging people. We're setting up these, we just were talking about setting up these new engagement ads for the podcast. I mean, we are constantly engaging new people, reaching out to people, educating, bringing awareness to the brand. And you're right, ads, ads aren't just about selling something, although of course that's the goal, really. They're about building relationships, which is very similar to your organic strategy. When you show up consistently with this engaging content, your audience feels very connected to your brand. And along with a great organic strategy, ads really gives you the power so that you know, whether it's behind the scenes content, customer stories, influencer collaborations, you can nurture a community that feels connected to your brand in this, this really fantastic way to increase brand loyalty while significantly increasing your revenue. And I touched on this. But a solid ad strategy will compound what you're doing well organically, and we've seen that a hundredfold in your business. The two go hand in hand. When you're doing both together and well, it just grows bigger and better. And I have yet to reach any kind of ceiling on that, which is insane.

[Jenna Kutcher]

And I hope that people can see too, like, this is a way. And I will say, let's talk about this, Carrie, because I feel like especially since I became a mom, and you have literally walked with me every single step of that journey, especially since I became a mom, I have such better balance. And when I am able to post reels that say, like, hey, I made this amount of money while at the lake at my family, it is through email marketing. But guess where those leads are coming from? They're coming from Facebook ads, right? And so when I think of people that want to have a more sustainable business, that don't want to be constantly online, constantly posting, constantly creating new content, to me I'm like, if you don't have ads doing that work for you, it's going to be really hard. Let's talk about that a little bit. Because I don't think people always connect all of those dots to really recognize how, like you said, my business is running 365 days a year. That doesn't mean I'm personally running 365 days a year. And I think that's A really important distinction because I know you, the listener is listening, thinking, I don't want to be on 365 days a year. But ads can be like this pseudo employee of your company that is out there marketing for you.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Right. The biggest thing is to shift your mindset around that is to understand and look at it as this long game. You know, we touched on it, but people do think too narrowly. And I find myself thinking like, how can I explain this better so that people understand that it really is a long game and it will benefit you, it will become easier and it will compound. And so you're right. Just like the, the gal that is, you know, has millions of followers, that's never run an ad when you get to a certain level, and even before that, you should start. But. But when you get to a certain level, there's really not a lot else to turn to without, you know, expending more of your own time and resources and effort. So it really, it really does amplify what is already working. And it's so important to just be consistent to consistently do it.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah, I remember talking about this back in our past episode, but I want to bring it up today. And so let's talk about the difference of like the cost per lead for a free resource versus the cost per lead for a paid offer. Because again, I think entrepreneurs, they get excited about ads and the first thing they do is turn on an ad to buy their product and they start to see like, oh, this is expensive. You know, maybe they heard the 40 cent lead back in the day and they're like, this is definitely not working for me. And so the majority of our ads that are running, especially ads that are running year round, are going to free resources. So can you kind of break down and this can be ballpark or you could use numbers from my business. But just so people can understand, if you had, say $200 to put towards ads, I would personally argue put it towards growing your email list and serving that list versus putting it towards buying a product.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Right. And the key, you said is to serve that list. So the alternative to what you're saying is people, you know, put up their sales ads with no kind of nurturing or anything. It's just like, hey, here, buy my $497 product and it's not selling. And they wonder why is the people that put up their lead gen campaign, then they're going, but nobody's buying. And I'm thinking, okay, but what happens after that lead gets on your list? You know, are you Running retargeting ads to push them to the sales page. Are you emailing them? And they're not. You know, they just kind of expect people to find the offer and make a purchase. So it is key to meet people where they are in your sales funnel. For people in our industry, it's a little different for E commerce people, but for people who are coaches and consultants and have, you know, digital offers, it is so important to meet people where they are in the process. So yes, cost per lead. Your cost per leads are across the board. You know, we have, we have one of your courses that pretty much everything in the funnel is just more expensive. And we're always talking about it and what, you know, what to test next and that sort of thing. But for the most part, you know, your cost per leads are anywhere from a dollar or something, which is ridiculously cheap, to, you know, $8 a lead. And then, you know, cost per purchase will also vary. So the, the one that we are always trying to figure out is a more expensive offer. And so it makes sense that the cost per lead and the cost per purchase would be more expensive. But also because it's a more expensive offer, it makes sense. You know, it still makes sense. Dollars and cents wise, we, we can still be profitable with a more expensive lead. So the key is to really know your metrics and to understand, you know, what you can afford to pay for a lead and a purchase.

[Jenna Kutcher]

And I think too, this is such a good place to talk about getting comfortable in knowing some of those numbers because it makes it a lot easier to stomach, say, spending $30 to get a sale if the sale is 300, right? If you said to any listener, give me $30 and at the end of the day I'll give you 300, I'm pretty sure everyone would take that. And so if you don't know what that lead is going to turn into or what the lifetime value of your customer is or opportunities you have to serve them and then cross sell to them, it's going to be really hard for you to put money down with confidence knowing that on the back end. There are so many male entrepreneurs that are in my circle that are bullish when it comes to Facebook ads, ads where they will spend a dollar if they're going to make a dollar and a penny. And they will do that all day long. If there is any scent that is a right side for them, they will go for it. And so it's interesting because they know that the value of that lead in their company is going to turn into hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. And that confidence allows them to spend in that way where the upside doesn't look great on the front end end, but on the back end it proves to be incredibly valuable. And so for people that are listening, I would say start to get comfortable in knowing your numbers. Start to figure out what numbers you can pull out because that will kind of give you the ruler to hold your ads up to and to be able to make confident investing decisions. What's something, Carrie, that you would say in terms of like mindset someone needs to focus on before they go into paid ads or before they scale paid ads? Because I think you probably deal a lot with mindset obstacles as much as you deal with like actual ad objective obstacles.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Right. And it really is that, that long game, people just look at ads way too narrowly. So it really is just shifting your mindset to the long term strategy. You said, you know, we've been doing this for eight and a half years, almost nine years here in a few months, and we've never turned off all of the ads. So that's how people need to view it. It just needs to be part of your ongoing marketing business if you want to compound and grow bigger. You know, that sort of mindset shift. I'm always battling with people. You know, just, just recently a client was saying, you know, let's turn off all of the evergreen ads while we're launching. But I was able to go back to the data and say, hey, look, the last time we launched this, we did run evergreen ads and it was 10k in revenue.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Just because of the momentum. It really just is a long term gain.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah. You know, it's funny because I especially this year, I think more than any other year before, I am so focused on long term results, like not flash in the pan anything. And I think that's where a lot of times I get frustrated with social media because it's like the thing, the monster you need to keep feeding. Right. And so what I love about this is that you as a listener, you want your business to be alive in a year, three years, five years. You wouldn't be here if you didn't. And so this is one of those long term strategies where it's not the flash in the pan of feeding the beast. It allows you to continue that momentum to get that visibility. And I don't know about you, Carrie, but like, I feel like it has never been harder to grow on social media. I feel like, like people that used to be able to easily add you Know, a hundred or a thousand followers a month, everyone kind of feels capped. Like, there's just almost a stagnancy. And so ads are an amazing way to get exposed to new audiences in this culture where it feels really, really hard to grow.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Absolutely. Especially for if you feel like you've hit some sort of ceiling. You know, I see this all the time where people, they do. They have these giant audiences, and there's kind of. It feels like there's nowhere else to go. You're right. That the social stuff is. Is. It can be very frustrating. And. And even though it feels counterintuitive, ads does give you more control over that kind of growth. You can look at your historical data and figure out what to do next so that you can continue to grow. We are always focused on bringing new people into the fold.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah, I love that. One thing we should talk about is targeting. Like, what is targeting? What are the best ways to find the right audience in 2025? Have there been any major shifts in this area of ads?

[Carrie Sweatman]

Yeah, I mean, ad platforms, they give us insanely detailed targeting options. You can reach your ideal customer based on everything from their interests and demographics to behaviors to locations and even past purchase habits. For Pinterest, for example, you know, they offer targeting. This is something that you talk a lot about based on search behavior, meaning your ads are shown to people who are actively looking for content or products like yours. It's. It's really, really powerful. We went through kind of a major shift in 2020 with data privacy laws and. And the COVID and all that. And so it really has come back around. There's a lot of targeting options were REM and it was, you know, it was interesting there for a while, but really what the platforms themselves have done is to adjust their algorithms such that we can continue to have these really valuable and helpful targeting options. To me, you know, there are three major categories of targeting you want to do. Your warm audiences, which are the people closest to you. They are your followers, your email list, your website visitors, everybody that's already familiar with you some way. And then there are lookalike audiences, which are my favorite audience. And we can take those warm people. We can upload a list of purchasers and create what's called a lookalike audience for all of the different platforms. And the platform will find you people who look like or who behave like your customers or who those warm people are. And then, of course, there's cold targets, which we also want to reach and bring them into the business and make them aware of the brand. So three different options and it's really, really powerful and it just continues to get better and better.

[Jenna Kutcher]

And when we're in a launch, you're hitting all of those buckets, right? The warm, the lookalike, and the cold.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Depending on what phase of the launch. Absolutely, yeah. When we're at the top of a launch, we're. We're targeting all of those people and they all work.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Yeah, that's pretty amazing. I think too. A lot of times, you know, we're talking about using ads to kind of get, get people that aren't aware. But there's so much goodness of the people that already know, like, and trust you of, like, reminding them and getting your offers in front of them. Because I feel like one of the greatest mistakes that we all make is that we feel like we are constantly talking about our offers and what's available and the way that the algorithm is organically. Now we're missing like our own sister's content. Right? Like, we're not seeing it anymore. And so even if you feel like you're talking until you're blue in the face about that thing, I recently just had a friend who I had like, texted, and then she's like, sorry, I've been so busy. I've been launching this thing. And I was like, I am like one of your best friends. I follow you religiously. I had no idea this was going on. And so I think it's also just such a great strategy of like, getting your actual offers in front of people. And it also just makes it so that you can actually focus more on the organic content and not feel like you're constantly having to sell on the organic. Organic places. You get to more show up and serve and connect, which I think is ultimately what people are creating more of. Would you agree?

[Carrie Sweatman]

100%. It's so wild how the organic stuff works and that algorithm works. And it is wonderful to have the opportunity to pay, to have awareness, constant awareness. And that is a strategy in and of itself. We, we, we do that as well. We are paying to get in front of your already genified audience so that, you know, we, we are top of mind. It's very strategic.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Is there any final tips that you have for somebody who is navigating the paid ad landscape this year?

[Carrie Sweatman]

My best advice is to stay with it and to know the numbers and to constantly glean what you can, any insights and then feed that back into your marketing, across the board, into your emails, into your paid strategy, test different things and get that information. Loop it back in.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Amazing. Where can everybody find you, connect with you, learn more about you? Obviously, I'm your biggest fan. I'm so grateful to not just work with you, but to literally do life with you. And the fact that we are going to be coming on a decade is kind of insane. You have been such a constant in my life. So where can everybody find you and connect with you?

[Carrie Sweatman]

For sure. I was thinking about that this morning, about what we've seen each other go through in the last almost nine years. It's just, it's such a blessing to me. I love you so much. And my website is system envy. So it's all one word, systemenvy.com and then really I'm most active on Instagram and that is just carry love. L O V E. All one word, Carry love. K E R R Y L O.

[Jenna Kutcher]

V E. Thank you for being here and thank you so much for sharing. I'm so excited for our listeners to take action, whether big or small, in getting closer to these results because it is such an amazing way to help you sustainably scale your business and to get in front of the people that you're creating for. So thank you for helping me do that.

[Carrie Sweatman]

Thank you for having me.

[Jenna Kutcher]

Me. I can't even tell you how much I love my team. My team is filled with brilliant, incredible women like Carrie. And it's just crazy to me to think of how much life and business and experiences we've walked through together in our nearly nine years of being teammates on this journey. She is absolutely brilliant and I think for a lot of us, we can feel the landscape shifting. Maybe you've never done ads before, but after today's episode, you are determined to figure out what is your funnel and what is the data that you need to confidently invest. Or maybe you've been running ads and you're feeling frustrated with the ever changing algorithm and frustrated that the old stuff, what used to work, isn't working anymore. I hope today's episode gives you excitement around paid ads and also gives you perspective into what is helping me run this type of business in the way that I'm running it. Because I can tell you, if you want to have a business that can run 24-7365 and you don't personally want to, I would argue that paid ads are the way to do that. And in order to get to the place to invest in those ads, you've got to have a proven system that works. And I hope that all my content out there on the Internet can help you create that system. Thank you so much for listening to this episode of the podcast. If you know someone that could benefit benefit from this show, please send it to them. I would absolutely love for you to share it. And if you haven't yet, take a quick second to rate and review the show. It would mean the absolute world to me. I'm so grateful you spent this time with us today. Until next time, Gold Diggers, keep on digging your biggest goals. Thanks for pulling up a seat for another episode of the Gold Digger Podcast. I hope today's episode fueled you with inspiration, gave you information, information that you can turn into action, and realigned you with your true north in life and business. If you've enjoyed today's episode, head on over to gold diggerpodcast.com for today's show notes, discount codes for our sponsors, freebies to fuel your results, and so much more. And if you haven't yet, make sure you're subscribed so that you never miss a future show. We'll see you next time, Gold Diggers.