Before you open an ads account or spend a single dollar, you need to answer two questions about your own business. These two answers determine which platform you should use, what your ads should look like, and even how long it'll take to see results.
Question 1: Who buys from you?
B2C — Business-to-Consumer
You sell directly to individual people, for their own personal use. Think clothing, gym memberships, meal kits, or a local hair salon. The goal with B2C is usually fast, emotion-driven purchasing — someone sees your ad, feels something (excitement, FOMO, relief), and buys within minutes or days.
B2B — Business-to-Business
You sell to other companies, not individual consumers. Think payroll software, commercial cleaning contracts, or wholesale supplies. The goal with B2B is lead generation and trust-building — the sales cycle is longer, often involves several people signing off on the purchase, and rarely closes from an ad alone.
Question 2: What are you selling?
Product-based
You sell a physical or digital item — something a customer can see a picture of and immediately understand. Ads for products rely heavily on visual demonstration: showing what it looks like and how it works is often enough to drive a purchase, especially for impulse buys.
Service-based
You sell an outcome or expertise rather than a physical thing — consulting, plumbing, legal advice, marketing. Since a service is invisible until it's delivered, ads need to build credibility first, usually through case studies, client testimonials, and educational content that proves you know what you're doing.
Why this matters more than picking a platform
Most beginners start by asking "should I advertise on Instagram or Facebook?" That's actually the second question. The first question is always what you just answered above — because a B2C product business and a B2B service business need almost opposite advertising strategies, even if they happened to pick the exact same platform.
Tool: Business Model Finder
Who buys from you?
What are you selling?
Your model: B2C + Product
You sell directly to everyday consumers, and what you sell is something people can see, hold, or use right away. This is the easiest combination to advertise — buying decisions are fast and often emotional, so the visual, scroll-stopping platforms tend to work best.
Keep your answer in mind — the next module uses it directly to match you to the right platform (or platforms) for your business.