Read Time: 1 min 30 sec
Hey — Ryan To here.
In today's edition:
Where did the e-commerce Facebook Ad gurus go?
Why organic presence increase conversions (on Meta)
+ Real-life examples of consumer brands killing organic socials
In 2014, the e-Commerce gurus were having their moment...
Every brand owner and their mom was making over six figures (in revenue) a month on their Shopify dashboards
The game was simple: find a trending product, launch it on Meta Ads, and see the sales come in
Every guru was selling a “super specific Facebook Ads strategy that no one else is doing”
Where did these ‘internet millionaires’ all go?
Well building a sustainable e-com brand is a lot harder than it used to be
And we’re seeing a slow, painful death of ‘Meta Ads’ brands
Your lack of organic presence is killing your brand
Between 2019 and 2024, the average DTC customer acquisition cost spiked 60%.
Brands that lead with organic have a 41% lower CAC
and a lifetime value ratio 2.4x higher than paid-dominant competitors.
Check out @SantaCruzMedicinals a DTC health & wellness brand, 8-figures with over 900k organic followers
The fix isn't more ad spend. It's better organic.
I’ll give you 3 content series I’d consider doing right now if I was a consumer brand who only makes revenue ($) off of paid ads
Think of it like creating a recurring TV episode but on Instagram.
Check out @submityourick (600k followers) they built a series where the audience submits their dating icks
specific things that make them cringe on dates (for you this can be customer pain points)
and the brand films reactions to them
Why it works:
You're not selling a product.
You're positioning yourself as someone who gets it.
Someone in culture. Not just another solution.
Your competitors have similar products, similar ingredients, similar claims.
Community / word of mouth is what scales.
2. Street Interviews
Easiest to start + doubles as an ad creative.
Check out @ramenonthestreet (199k followers)
They hand diverse demographics a mic on the street
and film their unscripted hot takes.
Why it works:
You're putting real people on camera.
Different ages. Different backgrounds. Different demographics.
The viewer sees someone who looks like them
That's trust you can't manufacture with an ad.
3. The Challenge
Set one big, ambitious goal and document the journey.
Check out @nealkennedy_ (448k followers)
He's trying to make the men's national soccer team
and he's filming every step of the transformation.
For health, wellness, or supplement brands this is a creative angle to show your customers transformation.
meeting celebrities their Gen Z audience watches
& having them taste test their flavored toothpicks
Why it works:
The audience follows for the outcome but stays for the journey.
Every post is a new chapter.
A challenge creates a reason to return.
I hope this gets your creative juices 🍊 going for Monday
If you make content about the world your customers want to belong to you’ll see a lot of success…
P.S. if you’re a consumer brand + creator + early-stage business I’m opening up 1:1 calls for June/July
- How to recruit, hire, and train creators (+ creative strategy roadmap)
- Personal brand / founder content
- How UGC creators & influencer can unlock brand deals
If you’ve been a reader over these 2 years, I’ve never done this. So first come, first serve!
Have a great day ❤️
Ryan
|
Ryan To
Creator (120K+)
@itsryanto
|
|