The 3 Paid Social Media Strategies That Are CRUSHING It In 2025

If you’ve ever run a paid ad campaign, you probably know that feeling.

The one where you refresh your dashboard 47 times in an hour… hoping sales finally start to match your ad spend.

The one where your budget is slowly evaporating…

And you’re left wondering if you should have just bought f*cking Bitcoin instead…

(Or 1/50th of a Bitcoin 😀)

Paid social media advertising has a reputation for being risky  – almost like gambling with your marketing budget.

But when you know how to structure your ads, it doesn’t have to be risky.

Paid ads can SUPERCHARGE your growth, and you shouldn’t be scared of them.

There are a few strategies that are KILLING it in 2025… and you don’t need more than $10-$20 per day to take advantage.

In fact, when you apply the strategies I’m about to show you…

Your ads can fund themselves, grow your email list with actual buyers (not freebie-seekers), and set you up for high-ticket sales.

Strategy #1: The Self-Liquidating Offer (SLO)

Let’s start with the KING of the profitable marketing funnel – the SLO.

So, what is an SLO?

A Self-Liquidating Offer (SLO) is where you sell a low-ticket product that pays for your ads.

You’re basically building an email list of BUYERS for free.

When you’re advertising a free product to grow your list, you’re losing money AND attracting freebie-seekers.

That’s why the SLO is so much better.

And the best thing is…

You’re not just selling a $7 eBook or a $20 mini-course.

The money is made on the UPSELLS.

You’re building a low-ticket funnel that generates buyers, increases order value instantly, and ladders into bigger, high-ticket offers.

Think of it like this:

Freebie funnels attract freebie seekers. Makes sense, right?

SLO funnels attract buyers.

Here’s how to build a profitable SLO funnel:

Step 1: Create a Low-Ticket Product That Solves a Core Problem

The first piece of an SLO is the product itself.

It has to be cheap enough to be an impulse buy ($7–$20 works best) and solve a real, painful problem in your market.

Why $7-$20?

No one loses sleep over 20 bucks. It’s high enough to pay for your ads, and low enough to be in the “impulse buy” realm.

But you can’t just sell anything…

This is not the place for wishy-washy promises like “transform your inner self and achieve supreme success.”

(I have to say it – I see TONS of similar offers online…)

This is the place for hyper-specific outcomes like:

“Set Up Your First Profitable Google Ads Campaign in One Day — $9.”

“The $7 Cold Email Template That Books You 10 Sales Calls a Month.”

“How to Get Your First 1,000 Instagram Followers Without Spending a Dime — $17.”

Do you see how ATTRACTIVE that is?

Are you kind of wishing you could buy these offers right now? I mean, $7 for a template that can change my life? Why the hell not! Who cares if it ends up being bad?

These things feel like a shortcut to something they want BADLY.

Step 2: Make Your Money on the Funnel

Now, don’t get me wrong – the point of the SLO funnel isn’t to make a $7 sale.

The point is everything that comes AFTER that $7 purchase.

Because once someone buys, you immediately show them:

• An order bump (“Want the cold email follow-ups for $12 more?”)
• A one-click upsell ($97–$297 training, DFY version, or workshop)
• Even a second upsell ($497+ for coaching, consulting, or software)

Suddenly, your little $7 product turns into a customer worth $200–$500 before you’ve even sent them a single email.

Not everyone will bite. Of course.

But some people WILL… and it’s enough to make you $100 – $500 per day, just from the low ticket offers.

And here’s the best part:

You’re not paying for those upsells. The same ad spend that brought in the $7 customer is fueling the whole chain.

The ‘big money’ is made in the back end. Once they consume your low ticket offers, selling them your high ticket offers becomes MUCH easier.

Step 3: Set Your Campaign Goal to Conversions

This one’s simple but critical: when you launch on Meta, don’t choose “Traffic” or “Engagement” as your objective.

Choose Conversions.

Why?

Because the algorithm will show your ad to the people most likely to buy, not just click around.

It’s AMAZING that Meta can do this.

It can literally find those most likely to buy and target them with your ads. Perfect.

Step 4: Build a Landing Page That Converts 20–50%

A great funnel cannot be without a great landing page, so let’s look at how to create high-converting landing pages.

Aim for at least 20–30% conversions (and with testing, you can push 50%).

Here’s the formula:

• Headline: Promise a clear outcome (“Build a Six-Figure Roofing Business in 6 Months” or “Get Rid of Back Pain With This Exercise Plan”). There’s a clear outcome for every industry, just think about it. This is NOT just for info-product stuff.
• Pain: Call out what they’ve tried before, why it failed, and how it feels. Explain the mechanism that leads to their pain, and why they THINK they have the problem – versus why they actually have it.
• Dream: Paint the best-case scenario they’re craving. Make it as vivid as possible.
• Bridge: Show how your product is the shortcut.
• Testimonials: With cold traffic, you MUST give tons of proof.
• Urgency: Give them a reason to buy now (limited spots, price going up, or “you can’t afford to wait”).
• Make sure your landing page is long. With cold traffic, you need time to build that pain, desire, and proof. I can’t give a word count to aim for, as it always differs – just make sure to go into detail in every part.

That’s is how you turn cold traffic into buyers on day one.

Strategy #2: YouTube Ads

If you like the camera, a solid youtube ad strategy can work REALLY well.

The beauty of YouTube ads is that you don’t pay unless someone actually watches the first 30 seconds of your ad.

30 SECONDS!

That means wasted impressions don’t cost you a DIME.

But again… it’s not always easy.

YouTube is crowded, and your audience is BOMBARDED with gurus, hacks, and “the one weird trick” ads.

(Doctors hate me for revealing this dirty little secret!)

Step 1: Lean Into Pattern Interrupts

The #1 way to win on YouTube in 2025 is to truly stand out.

That starts in the first 5 seconds.

Ask yourself:

What ads is my audience already seeing? What’s the pattern? Then break it.

If you’re targeting marketers, call it out:

“Yes, this is an ad. And yes, you’re waiting for the fancy hook… but blah blah”

If you’re targeting moms looking for recipes… that would fall flat. They obviously don’t care about hooks.

So think about your market and what they respond to. Think about what they’re seeing all the time…

And test your hook a LOT.

Step 2: Use Story to Build Trust

Remember: people don’t skip after 5 seconds if they’re curious. And curiosity comes from stories.

Share a quick transformation moment:

• “I wasted $2,000 on ads before I discovered this one tweak.”
• “I was stuck at 200 subscribers until I did this.”
• Stack tons of proof, and you’ll get much more authority in the viewer’s eyes.

Step 3: Direct to Your SLO

YouTube ads work best when they lead straight into your SLO funnel.

Same logic as above. YouTube has great targeting, so the leads are often quite good there.

You direct them to a winning landing page… and watch the money rolling in.

Strategy #3: Instagram Ads

A modern Instagram ad strategy is having a cool moment in 2025.

And the various Instagram ad formats are perfect for SLO-style offers.

Step 1: Use Static Image Ads for Impulse Buys

Some of the best-performing Instagram ads right now are dead simple:

• A bold image that catches attention.
• A clear promise that makes people WANT to click.
• A low price tag that compels them to actually check out your landing page.

Remember: Instagram is a scroll-first platform.

If your offer is obvious at a glance, people WILL buy on impulse.

Static ads are working really well in 2025 to get low-cost leads. I think you should try them.

Option 2: Boost Videos for Reach & Email Growth

You can also boost your videos, and that’s really inexpensive.

For just $10–$20, you can push a video post to thousands of people. That means:

• You get more reach, and more reach means more eyes.
• If you have a system to turn these eyes into email subscribers, this becomes VERY powerful.

It’s one of the cheapest ways to build visibility and grow your list.

Step 3: Layer In SLO Logic

Just like with Meta, you want Instagram ads pointing to your SLO funnel.

That way, you’re not just getting likes and follows — you’re getting customers who fund your growth.

Takeaways

Whether you’re running info-product campaigns or social media ads for e-commerce, they don’t have to be gambling. If you structure them right, they can pay for themselves, grow your list with buyers, and set you up for high-ticket sales.

Here’s what to remember:

• Freebie funnels attract freebie-seekers. SLO funnels attract buyers.
• Your $7–$20 product isn’t where you profit — the upsells, order bumps, and backend offers are. That’s how a $7 customer can become worth $200–$500.
• Always optimize campaigns for conversions, not clicks. Platforms are smart enough to find people ready to buy.
• Your landing page should convert 20–50%. That means clear outcomes, vivid pain + dream copy, proof, urgency, and strong CTAs.
• YouTube is powerful because you don’t pay unless people stick around. Stand out with pattern interrupts and build trust with stories.
• Direct YouTube traffic into your SLO funnel for the best results.
• Instagram is killing it right now. Use static image ads for impulse buys and boosted videos for cheap reach + email growth.
• Always tie Instagram ads back into your SLO funnel. Likes and follows don’t pay bills — buyers do.