Instead of selling to high-value local clients, start a town-focused podcast and invite them as guests. This leverages their ego, builds a genuine relationship, and naturally leads to business opportunities without a hard sell, turning a cold pitch into a warm connection.
Let the market validate your ad creative. Post content organically and when a video goes viral, repurpose it for paid advertising. Tweak the validated creative by adding a direct call to action, like a price overlay, to convert brand awareness into sales performance.
Gaining initial sales from publicity is common but dangerous. It creates dependency on an uncontrollable source. Founders must recognize this as temporary and immediately build a sustainable, controllable marketing engine, like organic social media, before the press-driven sales dry up.
Despite TikTok's reach, Facebook's ad platform remains superior for many DTC brands. Its ad product is more refined, its older demographic has higher buying propensity, and its historical efficiency means that even mediocre ad creative can be profitable, unlike newer platforms.