Recently the internet has been flooded with claims that running your own digital ads is “so simple, even your nan could do it!”
Platforms like Google, Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc), TikTok, and so many more have made running ads accessible, easy and reasonably affordable to run. There have also never been more “internet gurus” and self proclaimed “experts” on these platforms pushing “simple” courses to teach even the most tech-impeded individuals how to do their own digital advertising quickly, easily and with astronomic sales results. Some of these people even claim that agencies are gatekeeping information and deliberately giving you poor results. To what end, we can’t quite decipher. So lets have a look into how it all works and why, try as you might, your results just don’t seem to be as good as everyone else.
Creating and running an ad is easy. This is no secret, no one is pretending it’s difficult. However, running the ad is only the tip of the iceberg. What is not so simple is getting results from your ads.
The Easy Part: Setting Up a Campaign
Creating and running an ad is easy—platforms have made sure of it. But that’s only the beginning. Behind every successful ad lies a series of choices and optimisations that make all the difference in whether an ad will achieve your goals. Here are some key steps in campaign setup that most internet “gurus” may gloss over but which can make or break your results:
- Target Audience Definition: Knowing your audience deeply is crucial. Who is your customer? What are their demographics, interests, and pain points? Each platform offers tools to help narrow down these specifics. Google Search Ads, for example, use keywords to reach users searching for terms relevant to your product or service. Meta’s platforms use detailed interest and demographic targeting. Failing to define your audience precisely can lead to wasted ad spend on irrelevant clicks.
- Location Targeting: Think of location as the lens through which your audience sees your ad. Defining an appropriate geographic area ensures that your ad reaches people where they are most likely to engage with your brand, whether that’s within a specific city, region, or country.
- Conversion Goals: Your goal—whether it’s driving sales, capturing leads, or increasing brand awareness—will determine your approach. Conversion tracking is essential for measuring success. Google Ads now refers to these conversions as “Goals,” while Google Analytics calls them “Key Events.” For each objective, different metrics apply: tracking purchases for sales, form submissions for leads, or impressions for brand awareness. Choosing the right goal is essential to know if your ad is really working.
- Budgeting and Bidding: Determining your daily budget and how much you’re willing to pay per click or impression can impact the performance of your ads. Overspending is as risky as underspending, and finding that balance takes strategic planning and regular monitoring.
Each of these steps requires more than a basic understanding of how digital ads, the platform in question and the target market operate. Getting these elements right demands not only time and research but also experience with the nuances of each platform.
The Hard Part: Driving Results and Making Sense of Data
The endlessly difficult part of running ads is getting measurable results. Just as a watch relies on precise internal mechanics to function correctly, digital campaigns rely on the implementation of data insights to succeed. Without understanding the data, a campaign can easily drift off-course, wasting ad spend and missing the mark with potential customers.
When running an ad, you’re constantly receiving data—click-through rates, conversion rates, cost per click, audience engagement metrics, and more. Deciphering and acting on this information can be overwhelming if you’re not familiar with interpreting it or knowing which changes will have a positive impact. For example, a low click-through rate might mean your ad isn’t resonating, while a high bounce rate could indicate that users aren’t finding what they expected on your landing page. Adjusting your creative assets, modifying targeting, or reallocating budget can all drive better performance, but only if you know how to read and respond to your data effectively.
Why Experts (Not Gurus) Matter
Just as you’d turn to a trained watchmaker to repair a watch, working with experienced marketers can mean the difference between an ad that ticks away in the background and one that helps you grow. In digital marketing, these experts are often found in agencies. Agencies live and breathe advertising across platforms, working daily with the most current tools and trends to drive real results.
Moreover, many agencies are far from “gatekeeping” knowledge. On the contrary, a good agency welcomes its clients into the process. They often provide workshops, masterclasses, and insights to help you understand the tools and strategies they use. Why? Because agencies know that empowered clients make for better collaborators. When clients understand the value of data and the reasons behind each strategy, it fosters trust and builds lasting relationships.
Great agencies don’t withhold information—they share it because they know that your success is their success. Their reputation depends on delivering measurable results for clients, not just selling easy promises. Working with an agency is not just about buying expertise; it’s about buying the peace of mind that your investment is guided by people who know how to navigate the complexities of digital advertising.
Achieving Results is Worth the Effort
Running an ad may be simple, but running an ad campaign that gets results takes skill, time, and ongoing optimisation and learning. It’s tempting to believe in the instant-success stories pushed by “internet gurus,” but the reality is that advertising platforms are complex machines that require thoughtful setup, optimization, and maintenance. With the right guidance, however, those complexities can be managed in ways that make a real impact on your business.
Whether you decide to enlist the expertise of a trusted agency or not, keep in mind that digital advertising is an investment. To get the returns you’re hoping for, you need to go beyond the basics. So yes, running ads is easy—but making them effective is where the real work (and value) lies.
