Jack Sparrow’s $0.02 on Facebook Ads & Content

The problem is not the problem; the problem is your attitude about the problem. – Captain Jack Sparrow.

I’ve heard all the paranoia on the death of organic reach, how we now have to “Pay To Play” (I despise this term; plus, it’s an investment provision, not a marketing term) and how people have tried FB & IG ads to no avail.

Here’s something to note: The tool isn’t broken; the user is.

Folks, it’s 2017, and if you want to be heard, refocusing on the content (and resources) you put out on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, LinkedIn, Medium, Soundcloud, et. al., and whatever else has people’s attention at the time, is the summum bonum in this age. However, no amount of money will magically make crap creative into good content (if you beg to differ, I have some ocean front property in Iowa I’d like to sell you. Shoot me an email and let’s chat).

Rather than half-assing your content & communication and throwing dollar bills at it to amplify its distribution, you should be allocating a ton of resources to creating GREAT content (a ton of it). You are a media company now; remember that!

If you’re spending $90k a year on content, I’d amplify it with $40k – just make sure the $90k is spent wisely and not on a few shoots.

Instead of complaining about organic reach, pay serious attention to where your marketing dollars are going; frankly, where they are being wasted. And candidly, I see them wasted on websites, direct mail, apps, banal blogs, bad paid media, and old fashion PR methods that are being done because “we’ve always done that” (death to the Press Release).

Here’s 5 things that will give you a little boost:

1. Don’t go all-in on overproduced content – it baffles me that someone approves spending millions on a 30 second clip of a Land Rover going over a rock. WTF?! Also, we must understand that the client or the creative director doesn’t (really) get to decide the creative, the market does. So, when you go all-in on an overproduced video, it’s just 1 piece of content to test. More creative & more content allows us to get a better pulse of what works for your people. You want more at bats, right?!
2. Stop asking for shit; give value – don’t sell, don’t ask – create conditions people want to buy from & be a part of. That’s it.
3. Try the Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Rule – it’s scaling the unscaleable. When a fan DM’s or Snaps him and asks for an autograph or to show up at their kids b-day, he does it and he documents it on social. The 2-hour allocation of time is not ROI positive, initially, but the earned media, engagement, and depth is.
4. Social Media isn’t (only) for distribution – posts aren’t newsletters, and this isn’t email marketing 2.0. So PLEASE stop pushing out your verbose, robot content that doesn’t belong on that platform.
5. You’re not paying attention to what is going on is this world – Read my blog on recruiting; this should help a bit.

Just be practical, and remember, these are human beings you’re marketing to – not cattle (no disrespect to cattle).

Cheerio.