Is Organic Social Media Marketing Dead?
The Truth About Paid vs. Organic

The Current State of Organic Social Media Marketing

Organic social media refers to content that brands post without paid promotion. This includes regular updates, engaging posts, user-generated content, and community interactions. While organic strategies have been instrumental in brand-building, recent statistics indicate a significant decline in their effectiveness:

• Facebook’s organic reach is now just 5.2% on average, meaning a brand’s post is only seen by a small fraction of its followers.

• Instagram engagement rates have dropped by 44% in the past three years.

Why is this happening? Social media algorithms prioritize paid content, making it harder for organic posts to gain visibility. However, this doesn’t mean organic marketing is dead, it just requires a smarter strategy.

Why Organic Social Media Still Matters

Despite its limitations, organic social media plays a crucial role in:

Building brand credibility – Consistently posting valuable content establishes your brand as an authority.

Engaging with loyal customers – Brands that actively interact with their audience foster stronger relationships.

Boosting long-term growth – Organic strategies, like SEO-optimized content and viral posts, can generate sustained traffic.

Take mathello, a leading abacus and mental math learning platform for kids in UAE. Instead of relying solely on paid ads, mathello focuses on creating engaging, educational content. By sharing success stories, interactive quizzes, and thought-provoking math challenges, they’ve built a loyal online community of parents and students.

The Rise of Paid Social Media Advertising

Paid social media marketing involves promoting content through sponsored posts, display ads, and influencer collaborations. It provides businesses with precise targeting options, ensuring that their message reaches the right audience.

Why Paid Social Media is Dominating

Higher visibility – Paid content bypasses algorithm restrictions, instantly reaching larger audiences.

Better targeting – Brands can filter by demographics, interests, and behaviors, ensuring ads reach the right people.

Faster ROI – Unlike organic strategies, which take time, paid campaigns deliver immediate results.

As a best social media marketing agency, Bestow helped mathello refine its paid social media strategy. By running highly targeted ad campaigns aimed at parents looking for mental math programs, Bestow increased mathello’s website traffic and enrollment rates significantly.

Some posts with highest organic reach we made for mathello:

(Results: 1200+ non-followers account reach for both posts above)

Organic vs. Paid: Which One Works Best?

The best approach depends on your goals. Let’s compare both strategies:

The key takeaway? Neither organic nor paid works alone, businesses need both.

The Perfect Strategy: Combining Organic & Paid Social Media

The most successful brands integrate both organic and paid strategies for a balanced approach.

• Use organic content to build trust – Share informative blogs, behind-the-scenes content, and students & parents testimonials.

• Amplify organic reach with paid ads – Promote top-performing organic posts to reach a wider audience.

• Retarget organic visitors with paid ads – Show targeted ads to users who have already interacted with your brand.

For mathello, this strategy worked exceptionally well. Bestow helped craft an organic content plan featuring engaging math challenges and testimonials , then boosted the best-performing posts through paid advertising . This increased brand awareness, engagement, and lead generation.

Why Work with a Social Media Agency?

Navigating the complexities of social media marketing requires expertise. That’s where a best social media marketing agency like Bestow comes in.

Comprehensive social media management services – From content creation to campaign execution.

Data-driven insights – Optimizing paid and organic efforts based on analytics.

Tailored strategies – Custom solutions that align with your brand’s goals.

If you want to maximize your brand’s impact with the right mix of organic and paid social media, partner with Bestow today!

Get Connected With The Right SMM Agency For Your Project

So, is organic social media marketing dead? Not at all. Instead, it has evolved. While organic reach has declined, its role in brand-building, engagement, and trust remains crucial.

However, the smartest brands use a combination of organic and paid strategies. Organic marketing nurtures relationships, while paid advertising ensures visibility and conversions. With Bestow’s expert social media marketing services, brands like mathello have successfully leveraged both for massive growth.

Want to elevate your social media game? Contact Bestow today!.