A viral conservative video about the Minnesota fraud scandal registered 160 million views (impressions) on X after being promoted by Elon Musk, but only 1.7 million actual views on YouTube. This stark difference highlights how X's metrics can create a misleading perception of a story's true reach and impact, while platforms like YouTube provide a more accurate measure of genuine engagement.

Data shows that adding brand marketing to a performance-driven engine can increase median ROI by 90%. The persistent tension between brand and performance stems from short-termism and the allure of easily measured clicks, creating a false dichotomy between two essential functions.

Opting out of social media is not a neutral stance in business. To potential buyers, it signals that you are not current, not relevant, and unwilling to engage on the platforms where they operate. Your absence communicates negative volumes about your adaptability.

Brands over-invest in TV, mistaking ad placement for consumer attention. Viewers are distracted during commercials. Social media ads, integrated into feeds, capture actual attention more effectively and provide better ROI, even for older demographics who are heavily on platforms like Facebook.

Unlike traditional media, social platforms are financially incentivized to maximize user engagement and retention. This will likely lead them to programmatically stop running, or even reject, ad spend for low-performing creative that causes users to leave their platforms, protecting the overall user experience.

A key to Twitter's early business success was making its ad and content formats the same: a tweet. This design choice made ads feel native and relevant, allowing brands to participate in real-time cultural moments. The model also seamlessly translated to mobile, avoiding Facebook's initial struggles.

Data shows that while combining brand and performance is best, adding brand advertising to a performance-only strategy provides a significantly larger ROI lift than adding performance to a brand strategy. This suggests most marketers are over-invested in performance channels.

Spreading efforts thinly across all platforms is a mistake. It is better to dominate one relevant platform. A minimal, inactive presence on multiple channels can be a negative signal to customers, suggesting your business is out of touch or struggling.

Twitter (X) has historically struggled to capture the value it creates because users treat it as a "watering hole" for news and discussion. This mindset is fundamentally different from Meta's platforms, where users are in a "shopping" frame of mind, making them far more receptive to product ads and e-commerce integrations.