How much does it cost to advertise on social media?
Billions of people use social media globally and nowadays, social media plays a vital role in the world of business marketing.
Why use social media for advertising?
Over the years, social media platforms have shifted from being online outlets for simply communicating with friends and family and sharing holiday snaps. Companies are leveraging the ubiquity of social media to reach and engage with new audiences, advertise their products and services, drive website traffic, provide omnichannel customer support and more.
If you’re new to social media marketing, you’ll likely have a few questions about the expenses involved. It can lead to significant investments and if you want to make the most out of social media advertising, it’s important to get an idea of the costs involved to ensure you’re using your budget wisely.
Costs will increase depending on various factors, such as how many social media platforms you choose to advertise on, the goals of your campaigns and more. Today, we explore the costs of social media advertising and the variables involved to give you a better understanding of how to make the most out of the services you choose.
Why is content marketing and social media spend important?
Content marketing and social media marketing go hand in hand. Sharing different forms of social content is all part of the strategy and can be used to advertise your business to new customers, nurture existing ones and engage with the community.
The amount you decide to spend on this, and how you spend it, can drastically affect the results you see at the end campaign. No matter if you operate a small business or an enterprise, there are ways to ensure you’re getting the most out of your efforts on social networks.
How much does social media advertising and marketing cost
According to Hootsuite, social media is the second-largest section of the digital ads market, with this accounting for a third of spending. Overall expenditure in this space is expected to reach Total spend on social media advertising is projected to reach $219.8 billion in 2024 – an increase of 6.1 percent year-on-year. Most businesses spend between $200 (£165) and $350 (£290) per day on social media advertisements, which equates to approximately £5,000-£8,700 per month.
However, this is just a ballpark figure and it all depends on the size and motivations of the organisation in question and the number of active users they hope to reach. For instance, an enterprise will likely have a much higher social media marketing budget than a small-medium sized business.
For growing firms, it can be challenging to identify the right budget for social media marketing. Therefore, let’s take a look at the different considerations that need to be accounted for when setting a social media budget.
Your social media marketing budget will likely be divided between how much you spend on paid social advertising and how much you spend on social media content. First of all, social media marketing cost depends if you choose to manage it yourself, hire a digital marketer to do it in-house or outsource it completely to a digital marketing agency.
To build and manage your social media marketing yourself requires significant investment both financially and in terms of other resources like time. You’ll have to invest in social media management tools like Hootsuite or Sprout Social. Perhaps more importantly, it will require a large time commitment.
You’ll need to come up with a social media marketing strategy, create your content, manage regular posting, network with influencers, engage with your audience, track your paid social efforts and more. For growing businesses, this time investment can take away from other aspects of your business that require your attention.
Alternatively, you can hire someone to work in-house with you or a freelancer to manage your socials. However, this is costly and a method that’s typically reserved for larger organisations with more budget to spend on social media marketing.
That’s why most small and medium businesses opt to work with a digital marketing agency. The agency takes care of the strategy, content creation, paid advertising and social media management so you can focus elsewhere. An agency specialised in social media marketing is made up of a team of professionals with the skills and expertise to execute campaigns that get results and bolster your followers, engagement metrics and audience reach.
Social media advertising costs vary depending on the platform you choose. Most businesses won’t just advertise on one social media platform, so it’s important to assess the costs of each to see which ones will work best for your business and its budget.
Here are some things to consider when assessing the cost of advertising on different social platforms:
- Click costs can vary depending on the industry your business operates in. For instance, click costs for a fashion brand are likely lower than a tech company serving a B2B audience. The average Instagram ads cost per click (CPC) is around £0.35 to £0.75, but this can grow to £2.70 in more competitive industries.
- The CPC for Instagram ads is typically higher than on Facebook, even though they’re both owned by Meta.
- Twitter is one of the more affordable social media platforms for advertisers, which means it’s often more profitable.
- LinkedIn is the most expensive social network for advertising. This is because it targets a professional audience and allows businesses to be seen by other companies and decision-makers.
According to Hubspot, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are the most common social media platforms used by marketers. There’s a lot to think about when choosing which social networks to market your brand on, and the cost of each is different.
In addition to the most popular one mentioned above, other channels like LinkedIn, Snapchat, YouTube, Pinterest, TikTok and even WhatsApp should be considered. Factors to assess when choosing the best platforms for your business include:
- The cost of social media advertising on each platform.
- The type of audience they are most used by. Instagram and TikTok are more popular among millennial and gen Z audiences, for example.
- Ad types that are supported on the platform. For instance, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube provide good opportunities to tap into the potential of video content, and Twitter ads can be promoted ads or follower ads.
- Metrics and reporting functions so you can track the success of your campaigns.
- Best practices when marketing on each network.
If you plan to advertise across different platforms, you should expect to spend more than if you are just focused on a select few.
How to maximise your social media marketing budget
If you’re trying to maximise your social media marketing budget, it might seem counterintuitive to hire an agency to do it for you. However, doing so can reduce your digital marketing spend as you can guarantee they know what they’re doing.
There are different kinds of digital marketing agencies. Some will offer services specialised in social media marketing and advertising. In contrast, others will provide businesses with a full suite of digital marketing services including a range of creative and campaign services. These services are often well-suited for small and medium-sized businesses as you typically pay on a monthly or quarterly basis, which minimises unexpected expenses.
Working with a digital marketing agency that offers social media services is a great way to make the most out of your budget. You can access a team of professionals with the skills and creativity to ensure your social ads and content reach the right audience with the most appropriate message.
The agency will get to know your brand and the values that underpin it, as well as develop an understanding of your target audience’s needs and expectations. Moreover, they’ll know how to use tools like Google Analytics and platform-specific reporting to measure the success of campaigns. This way, you can ensure that your social media efforts are being carried out in the most effective way.
How much should I budget for social media advertising?
There’s no set answer to this question. When determining how much social media advertising will cost for your business, it’s important to assess your unique needs first.
Ask yourself questions such as:
- Which type of audience do you want your social media ad to reach?
- Do you have the capacity to create great quality content in-house?
- Do you want to focus on one platform, such as Facebook advertising, or take a multi-channel approach to paid social media advertising?
Once you have a few answers, you can begin to research the costs involved to decide whether you want to try your hand at social media advertising or outsource to a dedicated digital marketing agency.
How much does outsourcing social media advertising cost?
The cost of working with a social media advertising agency can vary dramatically and they can charge anywhere between £500 and £50,000 per month for the different services they provide.
When choosing to work with an agency, it’s important to keep your business goals and budget in mind. This will help you narrow down the options to ensure you’re making the most out of the services you’re paying for. It’s also important to note that you’ll typically get what you pay for, so working with the cheapest agency you find isn’t necessarily the best option even if you are on a budget.
The average cost for outsourcing a social media marketing campaign to an agency in the UK is £266, or £587.50 if you want to secure on ongoing monthly retainer. This all depends on the agency you work with, the nature of the campaign you want to run, and which social media platforms you wish to advertise on.
It’s a good idea to focus on the value you are likely to receive from the agency in question, rather than the amount you are going to spend. Be sure to check the testimonials section of their website to see what previous customers thought about working with them. Have a look at past work they’ve done and see if this aligns with your ideals.
Working with a full-service digital marketing agency like Axonn guarantees you’ll get the most out of your social media marketing efforts. With a team of skilled experts on your side, Axonn can help you develop a social media strategy that boosts brand awareness, attracts leads and drives engagement among your audience.
Still have questions about how much social media advertising costs?
A full service digital marketing agency like Axonn can take care of all your social media needs, from developing and executing paid social campaigns that drive traffic and sales to ideating and creating great content that aligns with the needs of your target audience – it’s all taken care of. Moreover, the team at Axonn knows how to manage strategy and analytics to ensure you’re making the most of your ad spend and content marketing strategy.