What You Need in Place Before You Spend a Dollar on Paid Ads

Running a Meta ad is easy. Running one that actually works? That takes a little more preparation.

If you've ever thought about running paid ads for your small business but had no idea where to start, you're not alone. It's one of the most common questions small business owners ask — and one of the areas where money gets wasted the fastest when the foundations aren't in place.

In this episode of Market This, I sat down with Melissa Litchfield, founder of Litchfield Media and an ads and conversion strategist who's been running her agency since 2019. We broke down what a paid ad actually is, what needs to be working before you run one, and how to make the most of even a small budget. Here's what you need to know.

What Is a Paid Ad, Really?

If you're using social media to market your business, you're already familiar with organic reach — the people who see your posts without you paying for it. A paid ad (or sponsored ad) is simply paying Meta to show your content to a specific audience beyond the people who already follow you.

The goal is to put your business in front of new people — what's called cold traffic — and guide them toward becoming a client or customer. That might mean getting them to visit your website, fill out a form, book a call, or send you a DM.

The key word there is "guide." An ad without a clear next step is just a post you paid for.

Your Website Has to Convert Before You Run Ads

This is the part most people skip, and it's the part that costs them money.

If your website isn't already converting organic visitors into inquiries, leads, or sales, sending paid traffic to it won't fix the problem. It'll just put a spotlight on it. You'll be paying to send people to a site that doesn't give them a clear reason to take action — and that's money down the drain.

A high-converting website doesn't mean a flashy or expensive one. It means a site where the messaging is clear, the copy speaks directly to your ideal client's problem, and there's an obvious call to action — book a call, fill out this form, send a message.

Your website is your online storefront. When someone lands on it from an ad, you're not there to greet them in person. Your words have to do the selling for you. If the copy isn't clear about what you do, who you help, and how to take the next step, the ad won't save you.

Set Up Tracking Before You Spend Anything

The other piece of tech you need before running ads is tracking — specifically, Meta's tracking pixel.

Think of it like a trail of digital breadcrumbs. When someone clicks your ad and visits your website, the pixel tracks what they do: which pages they visit, whether they click a button, whether they fill out a form. Without it, you're spending money with no way of knowing whether your ads are actually working.

The pixel also lets you retarget people. Someone visited your services page but didn't book a call? You can show them another ad later. Someone added a product to their cart but didn't check out? You can follow up. That retargeting capability is one of the most valuable things about paid advertising, and it only works if you've installed the tracking code on your site first.

The Bath & Body Works Funnel

If the word "funnel" makes your eyes glaze over, this analogy will help.

Think about walking past a Bath & Body Works store. The promotional signage in the window catches your eye — that's the top of the funnel. It's how they attract you. In your business, that's your ad or your social media content drawing someone in.

You walk inside. You start browsing, smelling candles, trying hand sanitizers. A staff member hands you a bag so you can start collecting items. That's the middle of the funnel — the consideration phase. Online, this is your website doing its job: helping a visitor understand your services, building trust, answering their questions.

Then you get to the cash register at the back of the store. You pay. That's the bottom of the funnel — the conversion. In your business, that's the moment someone books a call, fills out your inquiry form, or makes a purchase.

The whole journey — attract, nurture, convert — is what people mean when they talk about a funnel. It's not complicated. It's just a path from "I've never heard of you" to "take my money."

What to Do With a Small Budget

You don't need thousands of dollars to start with ads. But if you've only got a couple hundred dollars a month, you need to be strategic about where that money goes.

The smartest first move for a small budget? Retarget people who already know you. These are people who follow you on social media, have visited your website, or have engaged with your content. They already have some level of trust. Getting them to take the next step costs significantly less than trying to convert a complete stranger.

A great low-budget ad to start with: take a client testimonial — even just a text screenshot or a short quote in a Canva graphic — and run it as an ad with a simple call to action like "Send me a DM if you want results like this." Testimonials are one of the most underused assets small business owners have, and they make incredibly effective ad creative because they let someone else do the selling for you.

If you want to test what works, try running two or three versions of creative at the same time — maybe a static testimonial image, a short video, and a before-and-after graphic. See which one gets the most clicks or engagement, then put more budget behind the winner.

Give It Time

One of the biggest mistakes with paid ads is pulling the plug too early. If you're spending a dollar a day and expecting a flood of bookings by tomorrow, you're going to be disappointed.

The timeline depends on what you're asking people to do. Sending someone to your Instagram profile is a small ask — that can show results relatively quickly. Asking someone to click a link, read your website, and book a call is a much bigger ask, especially from a cold audience. Higher-ask campaigns need more budget and more patience.

For service-based businesses, especially those selling higher-ticket offers, the sales cycle can be anywhere from a few weeks to several months. That's normal. The ad's job is to start the conversation — not close the deal on the spot.

The Bottom Line: Fix the Foundation First

Before you spend a single dollar on ads, make sure these pieces are in place: a website with clear messaging and a strong call to action, tracking installed so you can measure what's working, and a plan for what happens after someone clicks.

Ads amplify whatever's already there. If your foundation is solid, ads will accelerate your growth. If it's not, they'll just accelerate the waste.

Get the messaging right. Get the website converting. Then turn on the ads.

 Melissa Litchfield is the founder of Litchfield Media, an online marketing agency specializing in ads and conversions. Find her on Instagram and Threads at @litchfieldmedia or at litchfieldmedia.org.