Organic vs. Paid Social – Why The Best Strategies Use Both

Studies indicate that businesses achieve a 40% higher ROI when integrating both organic and paid social media efforts. 

Look, social media isn’t choosing a life partner. It’s marketing. And the best marketers don’t waste time arguing about organic vs. paid—they use both. Because if you’re only relying on organic, you’re screaming into the void. And if you’re only running ads, you’re just another brand shoving products in people’s faces.

Why You Need Organic (AKA, Your Brand’s Personality) 

Organic social is your brand’s personality, your voice, your reason for people to care. Without it, you’re just a faceless ad account, and nobody trusts those. Here’s why you can’t ignore it: 

People want real, not robotic. If all you do is sell, you’ll be ignored. If you show up with personality, people will actually want to hear from you. 

It builds credibility. A strong organic presence makes you look legit. When someone checks out your page (which they will), it should be packed with engaging content—not tumbleweeds. 

It keeps the lights on between ad campaigns. Ads get you attention. Organic content keeps it. 

But let’s be honest—social platforms aren’t in the charity business. They won’t push your organic content unless you’re the second coming of Beyoncé. That’s where paid social saves the day.

Why You Need Paid (AKA, Your Brand’s Megaphone) 

Paid social is what gets your brand seen—beyond your existing followers and your mum who likes every post. Here’s why it’s essential: 

It puts you in front of the right people. You can target based on interests, behaviour, location—down to the smallest detail. Basically, you don’t have to hope the algorithm plays nice. 

It gets results fast. Organic takes time. Paid gets you leads, sales, and engagement now. 

You can test what works. Run an ad, see what sticks, tweak it, and do it again. No more guessing.

How to Make Them Work Together 

💡 Test with organic, amplify with paid. If a post is getting great organic traction, throw some ad budget at it. Let your audience tell you what’s working. 

💡 Use paid to warm people up, organic to keep them engaged. Ads introduce people to your brand. Organic keeps them around so they don’t forget you exist. 

💡 Retarget the people who engage. Someone watched your video? Liked your post? Hit them with a follow-up ad. Boom, warm lead. 

💡 Use paid to grow your organic following. More reach, more followers, more people engaging with your content naturally.

The Bottom Line 

It’s not either-or. It’s both. Smart brands blend organic and paid seamlessly, making sure every post, ad, and interaction actually works towards growth. 

Still not sure what’s working and what’s not? 

📌 Let’s sort out your social strategy. Book a FREE call and we’ll take a look at what’s working—and what’s not.