Everyone wants to sell more, attract customers and boost in digital. But, does investing in paid traffic solve everything like a magic trick? The truth is that throwing money at ads without a strategy is like filling a bucket with holes: you might see an initial result, but in the end, a large part of the investment goes down the drain.
The numbers are tempting. According to the "Ad Spend January" report from Dentsu, global investment in advertising grows by about 9,2% per year. In 2024, Google Ads estimates that spending on digital advertising has reached $526 billion. However, the question that matters is: is this investment being converted into real customers or just into nice numbers on the report?
Paid traffic is no longer considered a luxury, and is seen as a necessity in the digital world. If your brand does not appear, another appears in its place. However, investing without a strategy continues to be a waste of money.
Everything starts with how companies view paid traffic. Those who see it as a strategic investment are growing. Those who treat it as a magic solution hardly achieve the results they aim for.
What many do not know is that the great trump card in this marketing action lies in continuous learning and full-time campaign optimization. Successful campaigns are adjusted all the time, optimizing segmentation, creative, CTAs (calls to action for the customer) and remarketing strategies.
Furthermore, they must always be based on metrics. Those who invest without analyzing metrics are just hoping for it to work out. Data is essential to ensure a sustainable and scalable investment. Each click and conversion brings valuable data; being, therefore, that ignoring it can be synonymous with, literally, give up growth.
Therefore, paid traffic is not just about investing money to reach more people. It is about analyzing, test and constantly optimize until it works.
Constantly is a good word for this area. Repeatedly also. We cannot forget about "the right way" either. With the right strategies, we managed to reach a significant volume of potential buyers, either creating the need for consumption or reaching those who are already looking for similar products or services, increasing the customer base and continuously enhancing sales.
Furthermore, it is important to keep in mind what to do with the results generated by paid traffic. One of the big mistakes companies have made has not been the lack of advertisements, but the absence of a strategic process to handle the generated contacts.
Reflecting a general trend in the market, where companies are increasingly focused on strategies to drive lead generation and increase conversions, according to a survey conducted by Conversion, 51,7% of companies plan to increase investments in paid media in 2025.
In this way, paid traffic needs to be integrated into a well-structured conversion funnel, that takes the customer from the first click to the purchase decision. What is the point of attracting thousands of people to your site if the user experience is poor, the service is slow or the offer is not clear? This involves everything from the correct segmentation of ads to the quality of service and after-sales support. Those who don't care about this are just burning money.
Remember: the digital does not forgive amateurism. If you want real results, you need to play the right game.
By João Paulo Sebben de Jesus, owner of PeaKX, digital marketing consultancy
