Social Media Paid Ads Agency vs Boosting Posts: Why the Results Are So Different

Most business owners in Shrewsbury have boosted a post at least once.
It’s quick.
It’s easy.
And Meta makes it feel like the right thing to do.

But here’s the truth no one tells you:
Boosting posts and running proper paid ads are not the same thing -not even close.

In 2025, the gap between the two is bigger than ever, and it’s the reason why businesses across Shropshire are now working with a dedicated social media paid ads agency (yes - like Evolve My Media, the leading marketing agency Shrewsbury businesses trust).

If you’ve ever boosted a post and wondered why nothing really happened… this blog will explain exactly why.

⭐ What Boosting a Post Actually Does (and Why It’s So Limited)

Boosting is designed to look simple - because it is simple.

It gives you a small handful of options:

• Choose a post
• Set a budget
• Select a basic audience
• Press "Boost"

The problem?
Boosting uses ultra-surface-level targeting, restricted objectives, and minimal optimisation.

It’s the equivalent of putting a spotlight on a post without telling Meta what outcome you want - so Meta does the only thing it can: shows it to the easiest people to reach.

Boosting prioritises:

• Likes
• Comments
• Follows
• Low-intent engagement

And while engagement looks good, it rarely turns into customers.

According to Meta's own documentation, boosted posts can’t compete with Ads Manager campaigns because they lack proper optimisation paths, conversion events, audience refinement tools, and split-testing functionality.
(Source: Meta for Business, 2024)

In other words: boosting = visibility, not performance.

⭐ What a Social Media Paid Ads Agency Actually Does

Now let’s compare that to the tech, tools, data, and strategy a paid ads agency uses.

This is where the difference becomes night and day.

A proper paid ads campaign can optimise for:

• Lead generation
• Sales
• Website conversions
• Add-to-cart behaviour
• Video views to warm high-intent users
• Retargeting
• Location-based conversions

A boosted post can’t do any of that.

A paid ads agency also uses:

• Full funnel strategies
• Advanced audience segmentation
• Lookalike audiences
• Custom events
• Dynamic creative
• Split-testing
• Performance analytics
• Real-time optimisation

This is why so many Shropshire businesses now outsource paid social to agencies like Evolve My Media, rather than relying on boosting alone.

You’re not paying for someone to “run ads”.
You’re paying for someone who knows how to engineer predictable outcomes.

⭐ The Maths: Why Boosting a Post Rarely Pays Off

Boost a post for £30.
You might get:

• 200 likes
• A handful of comments
• A few profile visits

What you won’t get is high-intent traffic - because boosted posts show your content to people who are most likely to engage, not buy.

A Harvard Business Review study found that less than 5% of social engagement leads to measurable business results when not paired with structured advertising.
(Source: HBR, “Brand Engagement & Sales Impact”, 2024)

Paid ads, however, use data to target people who are already showing behaviours consistent with buying.

That’s the difference between impressions and impact.

⭐ Case Study: How Budgen Motors Proved the Power of Proper Paid Ads

One of the clearest examples of this difference comes from Budgen Motors - one of the region’s best-known dealership groups.

Before working with Evolve My Media, Budgen’s social media activity was sporadic and leaned heavily on boosted posts. They saw nice engagement… but nothing that materially moved the business forward.

When they switched to a structured paid ads and content strategy, everything changed.

In just six months:

✅ 1,300+ leads generated
✅ Consistent monthly performance growth
✅ Higher-quality enquiries
✅ Immediate improvements across all Meta campaigns

This wasn’t from “posting more”.
It wasn’t from boosting content.

It was the result of:

• Strategic creative
• Clear funnel structure
• Data-driven optimisation
• Real retargeting
• Proper conversion campaigns

This is exactly why businesses across Shrewsbury now work with Evolve My Media - because boosting posts simply can’t produce these results.

⭐ Why Businesses Rely on Paid Ads Agencies

Business owners know how to run businesses - not Meta’s algorithm.
Paid ads have become too complex, too technical and too competitive for guesswork.

Here’s why brands are shifting away from boosts and toward agencies:

1. Competitive advantage

In 2025, more UK businesses are running paid ads than ever before (Statista, 2024).
To stand out, you need strategy, not hope.

2. You get a whole team, not one button

A boost button can't replace:

• A strategist
• A videographer
• A copywriter
• A data analyst
• An ads specialist

Agencies bring all of this together.

3. Boosts don’t build funnels

Paid ads agencies build:

• Awareness
• Consideration
• Retargeting
• Conversion
• Lead generation
• Scale phases

Boosting is just a megaphone - paid ads are a machine.

4. Boosting wastes money

The CPM (cost per thousand impressions) for boosted posts is significantly higher because the targeting is broad and unrefined.
AdEspresso found that proper campaigns outperform boosted posts nearly 70% of the time in both cost and conversion efficiency.
(Source: AdEspresso Benchmark Report, 2024)

⭐ So… Should You Ever Boost a Post?

Yes - but only for specific, low-stakes reasons, such as:

• Promoting an event
• Giving a strong organic post a slight push
• Reaching warm audiences
• Testing content concepts

Boosts are fine as “top-up visibility.”
They are not fine as your entire marketing strategy.

If you want leads, sales, bookings or enquiries… boosting won’t get you there.

⭐ FAQ

Are boosted posts the same as Facebook ads?

No - boosted posts are simplified, limited visibility tools. Facebook ads are full-funnel campaigns with advanced optimisation.

Is boosting posts a waste of money?

Not always - but it’s not cost-efficient if your goal is conversions, leads or measurable results.

Do small businesses in Shrewsbury really need proper ads?

If you want predictable enquiries and growth, yes. Competition is rising - boosts alone won’t cut it.

What does a paid ads agency actually do?

They handle strategy, creative, audiences, optimisation, analytics, retargeting and performance - things boosting cannot achieve.

⭐ Final Thoughts: The Difference Is Strategy, Not Spend

Boosting posts is easy - but easy doesn’t mean effective.

If you want genuine results from your social media marketing, proper paid ads are non-negotiable.
And that’s why more businesses choose Evolve My Media - a trusted partner for paid social, content strategy, and scalable growth across Shropshire.

Boosting gets you seen.
Paid ads get you results.

Ready to see what proper ads could be doing for your business?

If you’re tired of boosting posts and hoping for the best, it might be time to explore what a strategic paid ads system could achieve for you.

At Evolve My Media, we help businesses across Shrewsbury and Shropshire turn social media into a predictable growth engine - not a guessing game.

Book your free discovery call and let’s talk about:

• Why your current posts aren’t converting
• What paid ads could realistically deliver
• How your competitors are using Meta right now
• The steps to build a profitable ad strategy in the next 30 days

No jargon.
No pressure.
Just clarity - and a smarter way forward.

Click here to book your discovery call with Evolve My Media.

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