Just blew $2k on a 'viral' TikTok ad package that got me 12 sales

The agency promised a trending sound and creator shoutouts, but the views were all bots and now I'm debating if any paid social is worth it versus just building an organic community, what's your take?

3 comments

3 Comments

riverwhite1mo ago

Yeah, I read a case study about this. Paid ads can work, but you need way more control over the targeting and creative than those packaged deals give you. Building a real audience is slower, but it doesn't vanish when the ad budget does.

jade6391mo ago

Honestly that "vanishes when the ad budget does" part feels a bit dramatic. Most people see an ad and just move on with their day anyway. It's not like you're losing some deep bond.

keithward1mo ago

Remember that guy who bought a billboard on a country road because it was cheap. He got a million "views" from cows. Paid social feels like that sometimes. You're buying a billboard in a bot farm. Organic is just talking to people at the town diner. It's slower, but at least the people are real.