Organic Social vs. Paid Social: Where Should You Focus First?

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According to Martech Zone , Instagram organic reach dropped to about 4% in 2024—that means fewer than 1 in 25 followers see most brand posts without paid help.

If you pour time into posting, only to see little traffic or engagement, you’re not alone. Many small business owners wonder: Should I build up my organic presence first, or invest in paid social now? The answer depends on your goals, budget, and how fast you need results. Here’s a detailed guide to help you decide—and how to get the best from both.

What are organic vs paid social — quick definitions

  • Organic social means posting content for free on your social media profiles: status updates, reels, photos, stories, etc. No boost, no ads.
  • Paid social means promoting content or running ads to reach more people, or reach people you don’t already reach via your unpaid posts.

Organic builds trust and community over time. Paid can deliver fast visibility and traffic when done wisely.

The changing landscape: reach is getting harder organically

To see where to focus, you need to understand what’s happening:

  • Many businesses report steep drops in organic reach. On Instagram, organic reach fell ~18% year over year; some posts now reach only ~4% of followers. (ADdictive Digital)
  • Facebook Page posts often reach 1-2% of followers unless boosted. (Karlmission)
  • Platforms push content with high engagement, video, or short-form formats more than static or link posts. If users don’t engage quickly, algorithms reduce visibility. (Hootsuite)

In short: organic reach still works, but the cost (in time, effort) to get visibility is rising steeply.

When organic social is the better first choice

Here are situations when you should build organic social first:

  1. You have tight budget and need low cost acquisition
    If you can’t spend much or want to keep costs low, organic is your starting point. Your time is the investment.
  2. You want long-term branding, trust, and community
    Organic content builds relationships. People who follow you from organic content are often warmer leads. If you show up regularly with value, you build credibility.
  3. You want content experimentation and feedback
    Organic lets you test what works—post formats, content types, tone—before you boost or run ads. For example, test two types of posts (video vs image) and see which gets more comments and shares.
  4. You have content you can reuse for email, SEO, or owned channels
    A blog post, video, or guide you post organically also helps with search (SEO), email marketing, etc. So your content investment pays off in multiple places.
  5. You are in a niche where audience is reachable organically
    Some niches (local businesses, crafts, personal brands) still have good engagement organically, especially on platforms like LinkedIn or where community builds strong ties.

When paid social should come first—or at least early

Sometimes you need results faster or want to reach people outside your current audience.

Here are when paid social becomes important:

  1. You need fast leads or sales
    If you need to drive traffic or convert quickly (e.g. launch, promo, limited time offer), paid ads often produce results sooner than waiting months for organic growth.
  2. Your organic reach is too limited
    If your organic posts barely reach your followers—because of platform algorithm changes or content fatigue—paid boosts can open visibility.
  3. You have budget to test and learn
    Paid social offers more precise targeting. You can test different audiences, creatives, messages. What works paid can help inform better organic content.
  4. You want to scale content that already works
    If a post or video goes well organically, boosting it or running an ad version can expand its reach and get more traffic or leads.
  5. You want to support other channels
    Paid social can feed into email list growth, retargeting audiences, or brand awareness that increases SEO branded searches. It can enhance your overall digital marketing strategy (see How to Create Your First Digital Marketing Strategy).

How to balance organic + paid to get the best of both

You don’t need to choose one forever. A hybrid approach often gives the best results.

  • Start with organic testing. Create several pieces of content. Identify which formats, messages, visuals work well.
  • Boost what performs. If a post gets good engagement, spend a little to increase its reach.
  • Use paid for awareness + retargeting. Let paid social bring people in. Then retarget engaged visitors with more content or offers.
  • Repurpose content across formats. A high-performing organic video can become an ad, a reel, or a short clip.
  • Track results carefully. Metrics to watch: reach, engagement, cost per click, conversion rate. See which strategy (organic or paid) leads to better return on your time and money.

A Case in Point: a freelance graphic designer’s plan

Let’s say you are a freelance designer starting with zero budget.

  1. Organic phase (first two months):
    • You post twice a week on Instagram and LinkedIn using carousels, client work, behind-scenes.
    • You engage heavily: reply to comments, DMs; collaborate with peers.
    • You collect leads via email form in profile.
  2. Measure what works:
    • You see that reels get more reach than carousels.
    • LinkedIn posts with case studies get good saves and shares.
  3. Introduce paid social:
    • Use a small budget to promote top reel to new audience.
    • Run ads on Instagram with your case study content targeting local businesses.
    • Retarget people who visited your site via those ads with an email or offer.
  4. Optimize over time:
    • Drop paid campaigns and content types that cost more per lead.
    • Keep organic growing by reusing best content.

Key metrics to compare organic vs paid

When you test, use data. Here are what to track:

  • Reach: How many people saw your post (organic vs boosted/ad).
  • Engagement: Likes, comments, shares.
  • Click-through: How many clicked to your website or link.
  • Cost per acquisition or lead (for paid).
  • Conversion: For paid, you often track sales or signups. For organic, see which content drives traffic or leads over time.
  • Lifetime value or loyalty: Paid may bring one-time buyers; organic followers may convert repeatedly.

Common mistakes and what to avoid

  • Relying only on organic when reach is almost nil. You waste time.
  • Spending paid budget on content that is untested or low quality.
  • Not tracking performance properly. If you don’t know cost per lead or which content type works, you’re guessing.
  • Posting content randomly rather than according to a plan. (Refer to How to Build a Social Media Content Plan That Actually Gets Results)
  • Ignoring your audience’s feedback. Organic gives you that feedback; paid should amplify what resonates.

What the data suggests for 2025

  • Organic content reach per post on Instagram is ~4% of followers. (Martech Zone)
  • For Facebook pages, organic reach often falls to ~1-2%. (Karlmission)
  • Paid social ROI remains strong: campaigns often see 250% return (i.e. $2.50 for every $1 spent) in many sectors. (Amra and Elma)

These numbers show organic alone often has low visibility, but paid can deliver returns if well executed. Still, paid doesn’t replace organic; it enhances what you build.

What you should focus on first (practical recommendation)

If you’re starting:

  1. Begin with organic social to build your voice, test content, discover your audience.
  2. Choose one paid campaign only after you identify high-performing content. Use paid to boost or scale that content.
  3. Allocate a small percentage of budget to paid early to learn, but keep the bulk of daily effort on organic content and community.
  4. Over time, aim for a hybrid strategy: organic for trust, branding, and engagement; paid for reach, lead generation, or sales bursts.

Final insight & challenge

Organic social builds community. Paid social drives fast growth. The strongest strategies combine both.

Challenge for you this week: Choose one organic post you think has performed well. Boost it with a small budget. Compare its reach, clicks, and cost per lead to your usual organic results. Note what changed. Use that insight to repeat the approach or refine for future content.