Photo by Kanhaiya Sharma

If you’ve been running a business social media account for any length of time, it’s likely you have seen the “boost post” button pop up on your screen. If you’re just starting out, or even if you have been posting for a while, it might seem very tempting to try it out – and honestly, sometimes you should! 

But before you click and commit, there are a few things you should consider.

 

What Is Boosting? 

To understand if boosting is the right move, you need to first understand what boosting is. In simple terms, boosting is one of the easiest ways to advertise on social media. It takes organic content you’ve already created and distributes it to a larger or more targeted audience. 

On platforms like Facebook and Instagram, you can boost directly from your page—no need to dive into the more complex world of Ads Manager. In those cases, boosting truly couldn’t be easier. Which is kind of the point… and kind of the catch. 

 

What Are Your Goals? 

Before you launch any kind of advertising effort, it’s important to define your goals. Some common reasons businesses choose to boost a post include:

• Increasing engagement (likes, shares, comments)
• Raising brand awareness
• Driving website traffic / boosting click-through rates 
• Growing your follower base 
• Attracting new customers 

These are just general examples to get the wheels turning. Before launching an actual campaign, take time to turn your goals into SMART goals —specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. (Yes, this is the part where I remind you that wishful thinking is not a strategy.) 

You’ll also want to get clear on your budget—not just the total amount you’re willing to spend, but how that breaks down over time (per day, per week, per month). Most platforms present boosting costs on a daily basis, so having that number in mind will make budgeting much smoother.

 

Which Platforms Offer Boosting? 

Most social media platforms now offer some form of post promotion or boosting. Which one you choose depends on your goals—and more importantly, where your audience is spending their time. Here’s a quick breakdown: 

• TikTok: Great for increasing brand visibility, gaining followers, or creating viral momentum. If you’re aiming for a wide reach, this could be the spot. 

• LinkedIn: Best for business professionals, B2B marketing, and thought leadership content. 

• Facebook: Currently the largest social media platform in the world. With so many users and abilities to target specific audiences, it offers many opportunities for businesses looking to promote their posts. 

• Instagram is also run by Meta, and makes it super easy to run campaigns on both platforms. 

• X: Runs “Promoted Ads” as well as “Quick Promote” for their premium users, with the latter offering slightly less specific audience targeting but more convenience. 

 

Boosting vs Straight Ads 

As convenient as promoting a post that already exists may be, that simplicity comes with trade-offs. As hinted at earlier, there is much less specific audience targeting, but it’s more than that. If you’re boosting something that already exists, you can’t modify the headline, copy, or image. Using paid social ads, or ‘straight ads’, allows for much more customization, a wide variety of advertisement types (video, image, carousel, etc), a deeper understanding of analytics, and a much wider range of goals than what was listed above. 

 

What Kind of Content Should You Boost? 

If you’ve decided that boosting your post is the ad route you want to follow, what kind of content should you be promoting? You want to make sure it’s quality content, but here are some specific examples: 

• Time Sensitive: This can be about the industry in general, or your business specifically, but people like to interact with content that is current and relevant. If your business has an event coming up, this would be a great example of timely content to boost.

• Sales and Discounts: People love a sale. A great way to attract new business and increase clicks (if that’s your goal – remember, the one you set earlier?) is by boosting a post about a new discount or coupon code.

• Call to Action: Whatever you do, make sure people are aware of what steps they should be taking after seeing your post. Checking out your profile? Your website? Liking the post? Make it clear and obvious!

Boosting can be a great tool when it’s used with intention. It’s quick, it’s user-friendly, and for the right content and goals, it can absolutely make an impact. But like everything in social media, success starts with knowing what you’re trying to achieve. 

So go ahead—boost that post. Just make sure it’s worth boosting first.

 

Author Bio: 

Cassandra Hultgren is an intern at the National Institute for Social Media, where she’s working toward her Social Media Strategist certification. She graduated from Luther College in 2024 with a degree in Communications and French, which means she can explain a branding campaign and order croissants correctly. Now based in sunny Arizona, when she’s not crafting content or juggling hashtags, she runs a coloring book business and explores her love for all things visual communication—markers and metrics included.