Is Your Beauty Brand Ready for Meta Ads? Answer These 3 Questions First

Hey Beauty Founders,

Meta ads can work wonders for scaling your brand, but before you take the leap, it’s crucial to understand if your business is financially and strategically ready. Starting too early or without a clear plan could mean lost pounds and frustration you could avoid with the right preparation.

This edition is all about helping you decide if now is the time to invest in Meta ads and ensuring you do so wisely.

3 Questions to Ask Before You Start Meta Ads

Jumping into Meta ads without a clear plan (and the right timing) can negatively impact your brand’s growth, so pause and ask yourself these critical questions first.

1️⃣ Is your brand profitable enough to afford meta ads?

Before you throw your hard-earned money at Meta’s ad machine, take a good, honest look at your margins. Meta Ads can be powerful, but they’re not a magic wand - they’re a megaphone. If you’re not making enough profit per sale, paid ads will only amplify your losses.

Start by understanding how much you can actually afford to spend to acquire a customer - this is your break-even Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC).

Here’s a simplified breakdown to help:

Let’s say:

• Your average order value (AOV) is £40

• Your cost of goods sold (COGS) is £10

• Shipping and packaging costs are £4

• You’re left with £26 in gross profit per order

But not all of that is available for ad spend. You’ll need to factor in operational costs (team, platform fees, tools, etc.) and ideally keep some profit in the business. Let’s assume you’re comfortable allocating £10–15 of that profit to acquiring each customer.

Now let’s talk ad metrics. On Meta, cost-per-click (CPC) in the beauty space can range from £0.30 to £1.50, depending on competition, creative quality, and targeting. But more importantly, you should be looking at your cost per purchase (CPP) — how much it costs to get someone to actually buy.

If you’re seeing a CPP of £12, and you’re only making £10 profit per sale… you're in the red.

💡 Pro tip: Reverse-engineer your numbers. If your break-even CAC is £15, you need your Meta ads to consistently bring in customers for less than that. If that’s not happening - either improve your conversion rate, increase your AOV, or revisit your pricing strategy.

So before you pour cash into Meta Ads, ask yourself:

If the answer is yes - go forth and scale (strategically).
If not - it’s time to optimise your foundation first.

2️⃣ Do You Have a Clear Strategy (and Understand the Marketing Funnel)?

Meta Ads aren’t just “buy now!” buttons. They’re part of a bigger picture - your marketing funnel. If you're going to spend on ads, you need to know where your audience is in their journey with your brand and serve them the right message at the right time.

Here’s how it breaks down:

• Top of Funnel (TOF) – Cold audiences who don’t know you yet. You need thumb-stopping creative that educates, entertains, or emotionally hooks. Think: “Here’s why your skincare routine isn’t working.” or “Meet the serum that saved my sensitive skin.”

• Middle of Funnel (MOF) – They’ve seen your brand, maybe followed you or clicked before, but haven’t purchased. Here, it’s all about building trust: reviews, behind-the-scenes, before/afters, and founder story content.

• Bottom of Funnel (BOF) – Warm, ready-to-buy audiences. These are the cart abandoners, the product page visitors. Hit them with urgency, offers, or FAQs that overcome objections: “Free shipping ends tonight” or “Still wondering if it works for oily skin?”

Understanding where your customer is in this funnel - and what they’re thinking and feeling - is key to writing ad copy that converts.

Remember: Your ads aren’t about your product. They’re about your customer’s problem - and how your product solves it.

✨ If you’re just running a few random product photos with “Shop Now” - you’re not scaling, you’re gambling.

Ask yourself:

If not, it’s time to revisit your brand messaging, your customer journey, and your funnel strategy before turning on the Meta Ads machine.

3️⃣ Is Your Website Ready to Convert Clicks Into Customers?

If your website doesn’t do its job, Meta Ads will only expose the cracks faster (and more expensively). Think of it like this:

So, what makes a beauty website high-converting?

Here’s your go-to checklist:

✅ Mobile-First Design

80%+ of your traffic from Meta will be mobile. If your site’s clunky on a phone, you’re instantly losing sales.
Ask yourself:

• Does it load quickly on 4G?

• Is the CTA (add to cart/buy now) always visible?

• Is navigation intuitive?

💡 Hot tip: Use Google PageSpeed Insights to test load speed — under 3 seconds is your goal.

✅ Clear, Compelling Product Pages

Your product pages are the moneymakers. Treat them like mini landing pages - not just a stock photo and “Add to Cart.”

What they need:

• High-quality imagery from multiple angles (bonus points for user-generated content)

• Product videos or demos

• Short, scannable bullet points explaining what it is, who it's for, how it works, and what results to expect

• Social proof: Reviews, press features, influencer quotes

• Benefits > Features: “Calms irritated skin in 30 minutes” is more powerful than “Contains chamomile extract”

✅ Strong Branding & First Impressions

Meta Ads drive curiosity - your website seals the deal. When someone clicks through, they should immediately get the vibe:

• Who’s this for?

• What does this brand stand for?

• Why should I care?

Your site should scream:
✨ “This is for YOU. You belong here.”

Is your copy confident and aligned with your brand voice? Is your USP clear above the fold? Are you telling a story or just listing SKUs?

✅ Analytics in Place

You can’t optimise what you don’t track. Before you launch Meta Ads, make sure:

• Meta Pixel is installed and tracking events properly (especially Add to Cart, Initiate Checkout, Purchase)

• Google Analytics (GA4) is set up

• You’re monitoring conversion rate by traffic source (paid vs. organic vs. direct)

💸 Pro tip: Aim for a minimum 2% conversion rate from paid traffic. If you’re below that, your site might need refining before scaling ad spend.

🚨 The Risks of Scaling Meta Ads Too Soon

If you jump into Meta Ads without the right foundations, it can do more harm than good. Here are a few quick (and painful) truths to keep in mind:

• Burning budget with no return – If your messaging, website or offer isn’t ready, you’ll spend a lot for very little.

• Unreliable data – Ads can’t give you clear insights if you don’t have enough conversions or proper tracking set up.

• Damaged confidence – When ads don’t work, it’s easy to think “ads don’t work for me” — when really, the strategy just wasn’t ready.

• Wasted time – Without a plan, you’ll find yourself in a constant loop of tweaking ads instead of building a brand.

• Over-reliance on paid – If you scale without building organic or retention channels, your brand becomes addicted to ad spend.

💬 Ready to Grow the Smart Way?

If you're thinking about running Meta Ads - or wondering what to do first to set your brand up for success - don’t go it alone.

I work 1:1 with beauty founders to help them grow their brand the smart, sustainable way. Whether you're preparing to launch, ready to scale, or need clarity on your strategy, I’m here to help you turn scrolls into sales (without burning budget on guesswork).

👉 Book a free discovery call with me 
Let’s map out your next steps and make sure your brand is ready to glow and grow.

Your dream brand deserves a strategy that works — not just pretty ads.

✍🏻 Work with me

Website: elixirbrands.co.uk

Email: [email protected]