The professional hair and beauty industry has traditionally acquired new stockists in two ways:
a) Cold calling – literally knocking on the doors of prospective stockists and building relationships face-to-face.
b) Exhibiting at trade shows – where brands can showcase their products, meet potential stockists, and create connections in real-time.
These two approaches have long been the strongest sales tactics. There’s something undeniably powerful about being able to touch, feel, and experience a brand in person. But in 2024, something new started to emerge – Meta paid advertising as a tool for stockist acquisition.
The first time I saw an ad like this (mid-doom scroll, mind you), I was shocked. Then intrigued. Wait, what? A professional brand promoting their opening orders via paid ads? Could this actually work? What kind of traction would a tactic like this even get?
Fast forward to last week – I attended a Meta ads workshop, and it really got me thinking, particularly for my corporate clients. The reality is, cold calling requires a serious investment: feet on the ground, a huge amount of time, and skilled salespeople who can navigate the delicate art of pitching and relationship-building. But what if Meta ads could tap into the mass market, allowing brands to test the waters without the heavy resource burden?
From my thoughts, here’s where I’ve landed:
The Pros of Using Meta Ads for Stockist Acquisition
Increases brand awareness – There’s no doubt that everyone (including your ideal stockists) is on at least one of the social platforms Meta owns (Instagram, Threads, WhatsApp and Facebook). Running ads means your brand stays top of mind.
If set up correctly, it’s great for lead generation – Start simple: go broad, offer value, and capture lead data along the way. A well-built funnel can turn passive scrollers into potential stockists.
Perfect for retargeting – If your audience segmentation is set up correctly, Meta ads can target visitors who’ve landed on your website and others who share similar traits.
Lower cost per acquisition compared to traditional sales methods – Running ads can be more cost-effective than employing a full-time BDM to cold call.
The Cons of Using Meta Ads for Stockist Acquisition
You might accidentally target consumers – If your Facebook page is mainly B2C, your ads could end up reaching the wrong audience, making your spend ineffective.
It could target your existing stockists – If not set up properly, your ads could follow current stockists around the internet, essentially wasting budget on people who are already on board.
It requires a decent budget to test and learn – You’re looking at around $3,000 per month for at least three months to gather enough data and optimise performance. Meta ads need time (and money) to learn.
You need efficient backend processes – If leads start coming in, you’ll need a system in place to capture, qualify, and delegate them to the right BDMs for follow-up. Without this, you risk losing them in the abyss.
All in all, I’m not against it. In fact, I might just layer it into some of our Inside Industry clients’ budgets under the test and learn category and see what happens. It is 2025 after all – and if the past few years have taught us anything, it’s that we can’t keep doing what we’ve always done and expect new results.
So, any takers for a little Meta ads experiment? Let’s test it, track it, and see if it’s worth the hype. Reach out if you’re keen!
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