63: Why Your Skool Ads Aren't Working (And What to Do Instead)

66- Are we already sick of AI? 5 Takeaways from Social Media Marketing World 2026

Thanks for Listening! Send me your questions-maybe I'll do a special episode for you! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2453242/fan_mail/new] I just got back from Social Media Marketing World 2026 in San Diego, where I spent the week volunteering behind the scenes -- running speakers to the stage, sitting in the speaker room, and watching how one of the biggest social media conferences in the world actually comes together. I only made it to a handful of sessions, but what I did catch was really good. And when I put it all together, five clear themes kept surfacing that I think every woman building an online business right now needs to hear. The biggest one came from two different speakers -- Mari Smith and Shannon McKinstrie- who landed on the exact same word completely independently: connection.  Mari shared that by 2027, an estimated 90% of content online will be AI-generated. Content is becoming a commodity. What AI cannot replicate is a real human relationship. I left that session more convinced than ever that building a community -- whether that's a Skool group, a podcast audience, or even just consistent DM conversations -- is no longer optional. It's the whole game. I also have a humble brag. I went to the ads sessions -- including one from Tara Zirker and one from an agency owner who walked through his entire system -- and I didn't learn anything I didn't already know.  And I want to tell you why that's actually really good news. The top people in the industry are  teaching the same as me: don't touch your ads during the learning phase, let engagement guide your cost decisions, test your creative, and stop changing things too fast or sitting on them too long.  The basics work. They always have. On the platform side -- if you've been wondering whether Meta is worth your time and money -- the numbers from the conference were pretty clear.  In 2025 Meta reported over $196 billion in ad revenue, far exceeding projected linear TV ad spend. They also launched GEM, their new model for ads, which is already delivering measurable conversion increases.  Meta is not going anywhere. The people who stay consistent and learn the system are going to be in a strong position. And the last thing I took away -- which surprised me but shouldn't have -- is that the pendulum is swinging back to the real world. Analog.  In-person. Human. When everything online becomes AI-generated and saturated, what becomes rare and valuable is genuine human connection. The most valuable moments from my entire week at SMMW weren't from sessions -- they were from conversations in the hallways and the speaker room.  Show up in real life when you can. Be a human in an increasingly fake feed. That IS the competitive advantage right now. Join my Free Skool community!  [https://www.skool.com/stacy-4414/about] Grab My Free Checklist to Audit your Ad Campaign [https://socialgenx.com/ads-not-working] Get The Scoop [https://socialgenx.com/yrnh?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=email%20sign%20up] Subscribe to my weekly newsletter for all the news about ads, online business, and some fun surprises added to the mix!

65: Meta Ads Q&A: Boosted Posts, Sales AI, and What Actually Works

Thanks for Listening! Send me your questions-maybe I'll do a special episode for you! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2453242/fan_mail/new] I’m back from Social Media Marketing World and the AI Business Conference, and I’ll share key takeaways next week, but today I’m answering a few quick listener questions.  I explain that how long it takes to build a warm audience depends on what you already have- an email list or a Facebook/Instagram following can count as warm and if you’re starting from scratch, my brand awareness strategy at about $5$10/day can build a solid warm audience in roughly 90 days (sooner with more spend). I clarify that $5/day is enough to start for brand awareness, but you shouldn’t expect overnight sales. I also cover why boosting a post often doesn’t produce sales and how Ads Manager campaigns differ.  Finally, I address AI in Meta ads: I don’t think you should worry, but you should watch for Meta’s auto-on AI settings, turn off what you don’t want, and never give external AI tools access to your Ads Manager. 00:00 Welcome and Updates 00:55 Warm Audience Timeline 02:43 Is Five Dollars Enough 04:01 Boosting Posts Myth 05:37 AI Features in Ads 08:08 Wrap Up and Next Week Join my Free Skool community!  [https://www.skool.com/stacy-4414/about] Grab My Free Checklist to Audit your Ad Campaign [https://socialgenx.com/ads-not-working] Get The Scoop [https://socialgenx.com/yrnh?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=email%20sign%20up] Subscribe to my weekly newsletter for all the news about ads, online business, and some fun surprises added to the mix!

64:The Simplest Meta Ad You Can Run for Your Skool Community

Thanks for Listening! Send me your questions-maybe I'll do a special episode for you! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2453242/fan_mail/new] Most Skool community owners assume running ads means running them directly to their community page.  But there's a smarter first step and it costs as little as $5 a day.  In this episode I talked about what makes a Skool ad actually work, why simple always beats polished, and how to know if your community has real traction before you spend another dollar scaling. * Why the simplest ads almost always outperform the most polished ones * The "show me what's inside" ad what it is and why it works for Skool * How to know if your Skool community has traction before you scale * What $5/day actually buys you in terms of visibility and trust * Why warm audiences change everything  and how to build one first Resources mentioned: * 🎁 Audience Accelerator Playbook → link [https://link.stacycovitz.com/widget/form/e7CD1D8i56on7Tce6FGU?notrack=true] * 🏘️ Free Skool Communit [https://www.skool.com/ads-genx]y link  Enjoying the show? A five star review helps more women find it -thank you Join my Free Skool community!  [https://www.skool.com/stacy-4414/about] Grab My Free Checklist to Audit your Ad Campaign [https://socialgenx.com/ads-not-working] Get The Scoop [https://socialgenx.com/yrnh?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=email%20sign%20up] Subscribe to my weekly newsletter for all the news about ads, online business, and some fun surprises added to the mix!

63: Why Your Skool Ads Aren't Working (And What to Do Instead)

Thanks for Listening! Send me your questions-maybe I'll do a special episode for you! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2453242/fan_mail/new] Stacy Covitz explains why running Facebook ads directly to a Skool community page often fails: cold audiences click an ad and immediately face account creation, creating too much friction before they know or trust the community.  She notes ads can work better for free communities because the commitment is low, but sending cold traffic to a paid tier is especially difficult because it asks strangers to create an account and provide a credit card.  Covitz recommends warming prospects first through brand awareness by running ads to a free community, delivering value, and then inviting engaged members to upgrade to the paid tier as a natural next step.  She previews a future episode on ads that work for warm audiences and references Evelyn Weiss as a technical Skool ads resource. 00:00 Welcome and Series Focus 00:34 Why Ads to School Fail 01:22 Friction Kills Conversions 02:24 Free vs Paid Communities 03:38 Warm Up Funnel Strategy 04:33 Bucket Method Recap 05:02 Next Steps and Resources Join my Free Skool community!  [https://www.skool.com/stacy-4414/about] Grab My Free Checklist to Audit your Ad Campaign [https://socialgenx.com/ads-not-working] Get The Scoop [https://socialgenx.com/yrnh?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=email%20sign%20up] Subscribe to my weekly newsletter for all the news about ads, online business, and some fun surprises added to the mix!

62: Masterclass planning struggles ramblings...behind the scenes

Thanks for Listening! Send me your questions-maybe I'll do a special episode for you! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2453242/fan_mail/new] Join my Free Skool community!  [https://www.skool.com/stacy-4414/about] Grab My Free Checklist to Audit your Ad Campaign [https://socialgenx.com/ads-not-working] Get The Scoop [https://socialgenx.com/yrnh?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=email%20sign%20up] Subscribe to my weekly newsletter for all the news about ads, online business, and some fun surprises added to the mix!