Jason Smith is the Owner and CEO of Spotlight Social Advertising, LLC, a company specializing in creating high-converting social media campaigns on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Founded in 2016, the agency has grown to manage robust campaigns across various social media platforms, primarily focusing on e-commerce clients. Prior to his venture into digital marketing, Jason served as a Los Angeles police officer for 13 years.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

• [2:02] Jason Smith breaks down the top three misconceptions about Facebook ads and marketing expectations
• [4:27] Why most business owners fail at ad testing and the importance of consumer-focused creative
• [6:35] “What is audience overlap syndrome, and how can combining lookalike audiences hurt performance?”
• [9:06] How clumping warm audiences together sabotages ad effectiveness and personalization
• [13:22] Jason explains silly data metrics and why media efficiency ratio matters more than ROAS
• [22:27] Key advantages of hiring an ad agency over building an in-house marketing team

In this episode…

Are your Facebook ads underperforming and not meeting your return on ad spend expectations? Many business owners face the same challenges: pumping money into ads and expecting instant wins. But is the real issue with your targeting, messaging, or something deeper?

According to Jason Smith, a seasoned expert in paid social advertising, the biggest issue is often unrealistic expectations. He explains that many brands expect ads to generate immediate revenue without fully understanding the complexity behind the platform. He highlights how poor testing practices and misaligned audience segmentation lead to wasted ad spend and low engagement. The key to success, Jason emphasizes, lies in deeply understanding your customers’ journey and tailoring creative to meet them where they are. With testing, segmentation, and realistic timelines, ad performance can improve significantly.

In this episode of Truth About Social Ads, Jason Smith, Owner and CEO of Spotlight Social Advertising, is interviewed by Chad Franzen of Rise25, to discuss why Facebook ads underperform and how to fix them. Jason discusses common misconceptions about ad spend, the dangers of audience overlap, and how vanity metrics can mislead decision-making. He also provides insights into media efficiency, ad copy, and when you should hire an agency.

Resources mentioned in this episode

• Jason Smith on LinkedIn
• Spotlight Social Advertising
• Chad Franzen on LinkedIn
• Rise25

Quotable Moments:

• “They just think they’re going to turn on ads and it’s going to be super easy.”
• “You’re talking to somebody who barely knows them the same way you would as someone who added to cart.”
• “You can’t run a business nor scale a business, nor know what’s going on in your business.”
• “If they haven’t interacted with your brand in 30 days, they’ve got to come back through.”
• “Let us do our thing. If we’re not getting you the results after 30 days, micromanage us.”

Action Steps:

• Segment audiences based on funnel stage: Speaking differently to cold leads versus cart abandoners improves personalization and boosts conversions.
• Avoid audience overlap in campaigns: Preventing the same user from being targeted by multiple ad sets reduces competition and lowers ad costs.
• Focus on media efficiency ratio (M.E.R.): Shifting from vanity metrics like ROAS to M.E.R. provides a more accurate view of overall profitability.
• Test multiple ad variations consistently: Running diverse creative combinations helps identify what truly resonates with your audience and drives performance.
• Set realistic advertising expectations: Understanding that social ads take time to perform prevents disappointment and fosters long-term strategy alignment.

Sponsor for this episode

Spotlight Social Advertising is a results-driven digital marketing agency that helps businesses scale with powerful Facebook and Instagram advertising. Their expert team crafts highly targeted campaigns that attract the right audience, boost engagement, and drive real conversions.

Whether you’re a startup looking to build brand awareness or an established company aiming for higher ROI, Spotlight leverages data-backed strategies to maximize every ad dollar.

Ready to grow your business with expert social media advertising? Contact Spotlight Social Advertising today to get started.