Our team of experts discusses the right time to pay for advertising and the important steps that lead up to this moment.   The Episode: When To Pay For Advertising   It is a relatively common mistake for online business owners and coaches to start throwing money into advertising in order help or save their business. We are here to give you a simple message with regards to your advertising budget, spending money on advertising can add fuel to the fire, but is not a substitute for putting in the important work that starts a business. You need to get clear on your messaging and your target market before even thinking about spending on paid ads! The main idea here is that advertising can help you and your business, but will not save something that is failing otherwise.   In This Episode Using the power of paid advertising correctly [0:17:28] Ads on social media can be very effective for reaching your audience [0:22:51] Alterations to online platforms and their algorithms [0:26:08] Will paying for an ad help you to connect? [0:30:05] Spending money on advertising is not the first step! [0:32:12]   “I have found, in my experience, that a lot of people seem to jump to paid advertising far earlier than they should because it is a way to avoid doing the actual hard work.” — Jonathan Goodman   Building a Strong Foundation There is definitely a place for paid advertising for many businesses, but when is it appropriate and when is it most effective? The simple answer is after you have your messaging figured out and then you can add fuel to the fire by spending some money. We have seen how ads do not work without that strong foundation, and you cannot avoid putting in the hard work and getting things in motion before throwing money at it. If you can build a small and strong customer base first, then when you spend some funds on advertising it will have a great jumping-off point!   The Efficacy of Advertising on Different Platforms The truth about social media advertising is that it can be highly effective, but can also get expensive very quickly! If that strong customer base is in place, then you are able to reach that target audience in an engaging and powerful way. Remember, the online advertising space is a highly competitive environment where you are bidding against others for digital real estate. Pouring money into ads for the sake of it is to be avoided.   Tips for Better Advertising Posts When formulating ads or posts, you need to assume that the audience has no context for your content, this will help you be more effective in your messaging. We really recommend refining your copy with free social media posts before venturing into the paid territory, so that you can make the most of your budget when you do take the step. Another important tip is to keep your language simple and approachable, in order to cast the widest net.   Already at $1,000/month online and want to scale? Apply for OTA 2 here: www.thePTDC.com/OTA2   SPONSORS Get started TODAY with the world leading certification and business development program for personal trainers, nutrition coaches, and gym owners – The Online Trainer Academy:http://onlinetrainer.com/ota   Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/feed/id1468193055 Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jon-goodman/its-possible-conversations-with-successful-online-trainers Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/20veRnzFOvUn6fTy9ud8jm?si=zMWTLmtISMm1XrU-4Q8oxA YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/JonGoodmanPTDC