Stop Fighting for the Same Budget: A Collaborative Approach to Paid Media Planning

The age-old battle between Paid Search and Paid Social for budget supremacy is not just a tired trope; it's a roadblock to maximising your advertising potential. In today's dynamic digital landscape, a collaborative approach isn't just a nice-to-have, it's essential for brands looking to truly connect with their audience and drive meaningful results. 

It's time to stop fighting for the same budget and start working together, focusing on a shared budget that dynamically shifts based on user behaviour and business goals. At FORJ Digital, we take this a step further: we don’t believe in separate silos. We operate as a unified Paid Media team where the same specialist manages both Paid Search and Paid Social to ensure total funnel synergy. 

The Problem with Silos: Why Fixed Budgets Hold You Back

Traditionally, marketing departments often operate in silos. Paid Search teams have their budget, Paid Social teams have theirs, and each is tasked with proving their own ROI. While this might seem like a clear way to measure individual channel performance, it often leads to:

• Internal Competition: Different teams or agencies competing against each other for ‘credit’ rather than collaborating towards a common goal.

• Missed Opportunities: The inability to quickly shift budget to where it's most impactful, especially when user behaviour or market conditions change.

• Suboptimal User Journeys: A disjointed experience for the customer, as each channel operates independently without considering the full funnel.

The FORJ Advantage: One Specialist, Two Worlds

The reason FORJ Digital works as a single, unified Paid Media team is simple: data shouldn't have to travel between departments. When the same person manages both Paid Search and Paid Social, the ‘walls’ disappear. If our specialist sees a creative performing exceptionally well on Meta, they can immediately adapt that messaging for Search ads or amend bid strategies to capture the resulting brand interest. This holistic view ensures that your budget follows the user, not a spreadsheet.

The Power of Synergy: Paid Search and Paid Social as Allies

Instead of viewing Paid Search and Paid Social as adversaries, we treat them as powerful allies, each playing a crucial role at different stages of the customer journey.

Paid Social (Upper Funnel): Excellent for brand awareness, generating interest, and reaching new audiences who might not yet be actively searching for your product or service. Think captivating video ads, influencer collaborations, and engaging content that introduces your brand.

Paid Search (Lower Funnel): Perfect for capturing existing demand, targeting users with high intent who are actively searching for solutions your brand provides. This is where you convert interest into action.

The key is to integrate their efforts and, critically, their budgets.

Dynamic Budget Allocation: Adapting in Real-Time

The solution lies in a shared, flexible budget that dynamically shifts based on your immediate business goals. Because our specialists oversee both channels, we can pivot instantly:

• Awareness Phase: We allocate a larger portion of budget to Paid Social to broaden reach and introduce your brand to new prospects.

• Consideration Phase: As users move down the funnel and start researching, we move budget to a more balanced split, utilising traffic campaigns on Social and tactics such as Demand Gen or broader keyword targeting on Search.

• Conversion Phase: When intent is high, a larger portion of the budget moves into Paid Search to capture those ready-to-buy customers, while Social handles retargeting.

This dynamic approach allows us to be agile and responsive to user behavior and market shifts.

Introducing the ‘Test and Learn’ Budget Split

Instead of rigid, fixed budget silos, we embrace a ‘test and learn’ methodology. This involves:

1. Shared Budget Pool: We consolidate your Paid Search and Paid Social budgets into a single, overarching pool.

2. Hypothesis-Driven Allocation: Based on your current business goals and audience insights, we propose an initial budget split. For example, "we hypothesise that a 60/40 split (social/search) this quarter will maximise new customer acquisition."

3. Continuous Monitoring and Analysis: We closely monitor the performance of both channels in relation to your shared goals. Data-driven attribution is paramount when reviewing the role each channel plays.

4. Agile Adjustments: We’re prepared to shift budget allocation weekly or even daily based on performance data. If Paid Social is driving incredible top-of-funnel engagement and new leads, we might temporarily increase its share. Conversely, if Paid Search is seeing a surge in high-converting queries, we can lean into that momentum immediately.

Breaking Down the Walls: Practical Steps for Collaboration

• Shared KPIs: We define overarching business goals that each channel can contribute to. This could be overall revenue, customer lifetime value, or specific lead generation targets.

• Integrated Reporting: We move beyond channel-specific reports. Developing integrated dashboards that show the combined impact of your Paid Media efforts across the entire funnel.

• Cross-Channel Campaign Planning: We plan campaigns holistically. How can Paid Social prime the audience for Paid Search? How can Paid Search data inform social creative choices?

• Attribution Modeling: We explore more sophisticated attribution models that give credit to all touchpoints along the customer journey, not just the last click.

Conclusion

The future of Paid Media isn't about one channel winning over another; it's about seamless collaboration and intelligent budget allocation. By having a single specialist manage the full funnel, FORJ Digital ensures your ad spend is optimised, your messaging is consistent, and your business results are stronger.