Social Media Ads: What's Working in 2025

Key Concepts

• Meta Ads: Advertising on Facebook and Instagram platforms.
• TikTok Ads: Advertising on the TikTok platform.
• Ad Spend: The amount of money spent on advertising campaigns.
• Campaign Types: Different objectives for ad campaigns (e.g., interaction, video views, app promotion, traffic, lead generation, sales, awareness/recognition, outreach).
• Funnel Stages: Top of Funnel (awareness), Middle of Funnel (consideration), Bottom of Funnel (conversion).
• CPM (Cost Per Mille): Cost per thousand impressions.
• CPC (Cost Per Click): Cost per individual click on an ad.
• CTR (Click-Through Rate): The percentage of people who see an ad and click on it.
• CPA (Cost Per Acquisition): Cost per acquisition/conversion.
• Retargeting: Showing ads to users who have previously interacted with your brand.
• Organic Content: Unpaid content posted on social media.

Social Media Advertising Data Analysis by Metricool

Data Set and Methodology

• Metricool analyzed over 500,000 campaigns across Meta and TikTok.
• The study included almost 50,000 ad accounts.
• Total ad spend analyzed was over $188 million.

Overview of Findings

• Only 2.5% of brands studied used both TikTok and Meta ad campaigns.
• Meta lead campaigns lasted the longest, averaging 72 days.
• Meta interaction campaigns were the shortest, averaging 25 days.
• 30.8% of interactions on Meta came from traffic campaigns.
• 37% of brands favored interaction ads on Meta.
• 24% of brands favored video view ads on TikTok.
• 34% of impressions came from Meta recognition campaigns and TikTok outreach campaigns.
• App promotion campaigns had the highest average spend: $4,627 on Meta and $2,408 on TikTok.
• Cost per click for app promotion campaigns was 42 cents on Meta and 51 cents for video views on TikTok.

The Importance of Paid Ads

• Targeted Audience: Paid ads allow for precise targeting based on demographics, interests, and location, unlike organic content.
• Instant Results: Paid ads provide immediate visibility and impact, whereas organic content takes time to gain traction.

Funnel-Based Advertising Strategies

• Top of the Funnel (Brand Visibility):
  • Campaign Types: TikTok reach ads, Meta awareness campaigns.
  • Objective: Increase brand recognition.
• Middle of the Funnel (Consideration):
  • Campaign Types: TikTok video views, Meta interaction, Meta/TikTok traffic campaigns.
  • Objective: Encourage engagement and website visits.
• Bottom of the Funnel (Conversion):
  • Campaign Types: Meta/TikTok app promotion, TikTok sales/lead gen/web conversions, Meta sales/potential leads.
  • Objective: Drive sales and app installs.

Top of the Funnel: Price of Being Seen

• Cost per view/impression: 32 cents on TikTok and 33 cents on Meta.
• Brands spend 85% more on TikTok for top-of-funnel content.

Examples of Successful Top-of-Funnel Ads:

• Preply: A language learning app ad that explains its value proposition in a straightforward way, highlighting the benefit of learning from native speakers. The ad was active for over six months.
• Preply: A "seize the moment" campaign launched at the beginning of the year linked to New Year's resolutions.
• Loop Earplugs: An ad that resembles a normal TikTok post, featuring a relatable scenario (hearing damage) and a personal tone ("big sis vibes").

Middle of the Funnel: Attracting Customers

• Cost per click: 1 cent on TikTok, 5 cents on Meta.
• Brands pay 400% more per click on Meta.
• Click-through rates: 4.9% on TikTok, 2.5% on Meta.

Examples of Successful Middle-of-Funnel Ads:

• Five Mind Creations (VR company): Super visual content showing what you can do with the product.
• Booking.com: A humorous ad connecting with a specific audience with a fondness for hiking.
• Adobe Express: A storytelling ad showing how to use the AI feature to remove objects from the background of a photo.

Bottom of the Funnel: Driving Conversions

• Getting shares is 600% more expensive on TikTok than on Meta.
• Acquiring leads on Meta is 62.5% cheaper than on TikTok.
• 19.8% web conversions on TikTok, 61% sales on Meta.

Examples of Successful Bottom-of-Funnel Ads:

• Flow (period tracker): A relatable ad that feels like a normal TikTok post, starting with humor before introducing the product.
• London New Tropics: An aesthetically pleasing ad with a relaxing voice that emphasizes the benefits of the product and how it differs from coffee.

Top Conclusions

• Brands are investing more in TikTok for the discovery phase due to its cultural relevance.
• Meta is unrivaled for sales, generating 61% of total conversions with a CPA up to seven times cheaper than TikTok at this stage.
• Combining both platforms maximizes impact: use TikTok for awareness and engagement, and Meta for conversions.

Metricool

• Metricool is an all-in-one social media tool that enables users to schedule, plan, organize, and analyze posts, and even run ads.
• Metricool offers a free plan and a 30-day free trial of their paid plans using the code "latasha".

Synthesis/Conclusion

The Metricool data suggests a strategic approach to social media advertising that leverages the strengths of both TikTok and Meta. TikTok is effective for brand awareness and engagement (top and middle of the funnel), while Meta excels at driving conversions and sales (bottom of the funnel). By understanding the cost differences, audience demographics, and campaign objectives for each platform, businesses can optimize their ad spend and achieve better results. The key takeaway is that a combined approach, utilizing TikTok for initial exposure and Meta for final conversions, can maximize the overall impact of social media advertising efforts.