March 24, 2026
Is anyone still boosting posts in 2026? If you’ve been around here for a hot minute, you know it’s something we don’t do on this channel. In this episode, we explain why you shouldn’t be boosting posts, and what to do instead so you have more control over what you get.
In this episode of Bringing Simplicity Unfiltered, Greta (founder) and Judy (CEO) also walk through real organic posts from people who aren’t running ads, to show which ones would make great reach ads. Judy came up with the idea for this one, so it’s truly unfiltered.
People ask Judy how we can get ads running within days. Don’t they need scripts? Don’t they need to record? No. The golden content that will train your pixel fast and collect data on what to run lead generation ads to is already in your feed. We just look at your current content.
All marketing is testing. But what has worked well for many of our clients is using three or four types of organic posts. If you’re starting a new channel, starting over (maybe you bought followers once, no shade, a lot of people have been there), or just need ideas for what to post, this episode gives you examples.
The purpose of reach ads is to increase visibility. Only about 3% of your organic content even gets shown, and reach ads change that. They work on the know, like, and trust factor. Greta looks for posts that:
You could hit the boost button. But Greta loves data, so we’ve tested boosting posts against reach and awareness campaigns. Here’s what we found.
Boosted posts typically bring a lot of inappropriate profiles because you can’t control your audience to the same level. Boosting now offers some targeting options, but it’s not as robust as Ads Manager. It’s more accessible, which also means it’s missing features.
When you boost a post, there’s no pixel attached. The pixel captures what people do, and that’s what makes your future ads more successful. If you’re going to spend money on posts, have it give you the data you need.
You can spend $5 a day boosting one post, or $5 a day across many posts in a reach campaign. We typically start reach budgets at $5 to $10 a day with around eight posts. Boosting eight posts at $5 each is $40 a day. At that point, you should be running a lead gen campaign.
Judy’s visual: if you had a clothing store, boosting is like only showing people earrings. They walk by wanting jeans or a dress. A reach campaign shows the necklaces, jeans, dress, and shoes all at once.
Our ad method is simple. If ads sound scary, we break them down so they’re attainable. Our VAs set up reach ads. You can do it.
Judy pulled posts from people in different industries who aren’t our clients (though we wouldn’t mind if they were) and aren’t running ads, to see if good content was already out there. It was.
A creator in the healing space shared a reel with text over B-roll about being widowed three years ago, with a long caption. Greta’s notes:
A nutrition and fitness coach shared a “my story” carousel: a beach photo, real-life pictures (vacation shots, mirror selfies), her “bikini era,” her pain, her journey, and hope. It was relatable, not salesy, and ended with “link in bio for coaching.” That’s fine, because she’d built so much story first. It’s not “this is my program, this is my program, bye.”
The catch: carousels with more than 10 slides can’t run as reach ads. Judy pulled this one on purpose to make that point. Keep carousels to 10 slides or fewer, and put the rest in the caption.
An event and video production company posted a founder brand story video you have to turn sideways to watch. It’s visually stunning and showcases their skills. Judy wished it had captions. Greta has never run a sideways one. It would need specific placements, like in-feed only. Since reach campaigns are often set-and-forget, she’d want about four posts with the same format rather than one outlier.
The healing space creator also had a thought leader post on what helped her regulate her body as a mom and a widow. Thought leader content is what people want to save, share, and refer back to. If you couldn’t sleep or sit still, you’d save this.
A dietitian of 20 years (“you immediately know she knows what she’s talking about”) shared a relatable carousel about binge eating, shame, diet culture, and fearing carbs. It had 11 slides, so it would need trimming. Greta loved how it paired with the first coach’s story post. The story post is about her, so you think, “I know her.” The thought leader post lets you see yourself, so you think, “I am her.”
A marketing director for a creative studio showed a day in the life: the spaces, a shoot, and scrolling through results. It shows they don’t just have a plug-and-play studio. Greta loves these. It has lots of visual interest, and the video is long enough to retarget people who watch the whole thing.
Pain point posts will get their own day.
Greta’s wrap-up: your story post is your time to be selfish. It’s about you, so people get to know who you are. Think of it like your introduction at a networking event, but not all business. Thought leader content is about saves and shares: information people want to refer back to that shows you know what you’re doing, because you do.
If you have a story post you’re wondering about for a reach ad, DM us. We might even audit it in a future episode.
We don’t. Boosting posts gives you less audience control, no pixel data, and you pay per post. A reach campaign lets you spend the same budget across several posts and collects data for future ads.
We typically start between $5 and $10 a day spread across around eight posts.
Not always. Carousels with more than 10 slides won’t work, and trending audio can cause problems. Original audio is usually fine.
Story posts that show who you are, thought leader posts people save and share, and posts that speak to your ideal clients’ pain points.
If you want your existing posts working as reach ads, see our services or reach out to us.
Want more? Watch every episode of Bringing Simplicity Unfiltered on our YouTube channel.
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