Stop Boosting Posts on Instagram and Facebook: Why It’s a Waste of Your Ad Budget and What to Do Instead

If you've ever clicked the "Boost Post" button on Facebook or Instagram, you're not alone. It's one of the most commonly used features on the Meta platform, especially for small business owners and real estate agents trying to expand their reach. It’s simple, fast, and convenient—but here's the truth: boosting posts is one of the least effective ways to run ads on social media.

In this blog post, we’ll explain exactly why boosting posts is not the best strategy for generating leads or meaningful engagement, and we’ll show you a better way to run social media ads using Meta Business Suite.

What Does Boosting a Post Really Do?

Boosting a post may increase visibility, but it does so with limited targeting, poor optimization, and often at a higher cost. Boosting is essentially a watered-down version of running a proper Facebook or Instagram ad. It may give the illusion of growth, but it typically falls short of delivering quality results.

Here’s why you should stop boosting posts today—and what you should do instead.

1. Apple Takes 30% of Your Ad Budget

If you’re boosting ads from your iPhone through the Facebook or Instagram mobile apps, you’re subject to Apple’s in-app purchase policy. That means 30% of your total ad budget goes straight to Apple before your ad even reaches your audience.

For example, if you spend $100 on a boosted post, only $70 is actually going toward delivering your ad. That’s a significant loss for anyone working with a limited marketing budget.

When you use Meta Business Suite (on desktop), you avoid this fee completely and keep every dollar of your ad spend focused on reaching your target audience.

2. Limited Targeting Options

One of the biggest issues with boosting posts is the lack of advanced targeting. You’re often left with broad categories like “people who like your page” or “people in your area”—without the ability to narrow by interests, behaviors, lookalike audiences, or customer data.

This means you’re essentially throwing money at random audiences instead of strategically reaching leads who are more likely to convert.

With Meta Business Suite, you can:

• Target users by detailed interests (home buying, real estate investing, etc.)

• Retarget website visitors, email subscribers, or video viewers

• Create custom audiences based on your CRM or client database

• Use lookalike audiences to reach similar prospects

This kind of precision is what makes a good ad campaign great.

3. Poor Optimization and Ad Objective Control

When you boost a post, you're not able to choose the right ad objective. You’re typically defaulted to engagement or reach, but if your goal is to generate leads, drive traffic to a listing, or get form submissions, boosted posts fall short.

On the other hand, Meta Ads Manager (within Business Suite) lets you optimize for specific outcomes:

• Lead generation

• Website conversions

• Traffic

• Video views

• Messages or phone calls

These advanced ad objectives allow you to build campaigns tailored to your business goals instead of relying on shallow vanity metrics like likes or impressions.

The Better Way: Meta Business Suite

If you're serious about growing your brand and generating real results from social media ads, Meta Business Suite is the tool you should be using.

Here's what you can do with it:

• Upload your database list and retarget past clients and leads

• Target your Instagram followers with conversion-optimized campaigns

• Run ads to your neighborhood farm area for hyper-local reach

• Create lookalike audiences to find similar high-value prospects

• Track real-time ad performance with robust analytics and reporting tools

You’ll also have more control over creative formats, ad placements, scheduling, budgeting, and performance tracking—everything you need to maximize your ROI.

Run Smarter, Not Easier

Boosting posts may seem like a quick and simple way to advertise, but it's rarely the smartest way to spend your budget. With high platform fees, limited targeting, and basic optimization, boosted posts often lead to wasted money and missed opportunities.

Instead, take a little time to learn Meta Business Suite and start running strategic, well-targeted campaigns that actually generate leads, build brand awareness, and help you scale.

Need help getting started with Meta Business Suite? Reach out today and learn how to set up your ads the right way—so you can stop boosting and start building.