We sat down with Ryan Metcalfe, Mabo's Senior Social Account Manager, to talk about the research behind Mabo's latest whitepaper. Like many marketers, we'd long suspected that increasing investment in Paid Social was having a positive effect on PPC performance, but we couldn't prove it.
Rather than relying on assumptions, Ryan set out to investigate the data. What followed was a detailed analysis that not only validated the theory, but uncovered measurable patterns in how the two channels work together.
Here's what Ryan had to say.
What first made you think there was something worth investigating?
Answer: We weren't actually investigating to create a whitepaper. We were looking at growth.
We wanted to understand what was driving performance across our client accounts, so we started pulling together paid social and PPC data to look for patterns. At first, it was a fairly simple exercise, comparing month-on-month and week-on-week performance across a large number of accounts.
The more we looked, the more interesting it became.
Eventually, we realised we needed to analyse the data on a daily level so we could see exactly what happened when paid social spend increased and how PPC responded over time. We deliberately focused on spend, ROAS and a handful of meaningful metrics rather than getting distracted by clicks or seasonal fluctuations.
We'd always believed paid social had a positive impact on PPC performance, but we'd never had the evidence to back it up. This wasn't about proving ourselves right; it was about understanding whether the data supported what we'd been seeing in practice.
Once you started digging into the data, did anything surprise you?
Answer: One of the biggest surprises was seeing just how predictable the delay between the two channels actually was.
When paid social spend increased, PPC often saw an influx of new traffic. Initially, that could cause ROAS to dip slightly as Google's algorithms learned which of those new users were most likely to convert.
Historically, it's easy to see why a PPC manager might react by reducing spend at that point. On paper, performance appears to be declining.
What our research showed, though, was that if spend wasn't reduced, performance typically recovered and often strengthened after a period of time. Google had more data to work with, it learned from that increased traffic, and campaigns became more efficient again.
That delayed effect was something we'd expected might exist, but seeing it emerge so clearly in the data was incredibly interesting.
Were there any assumptions that turned out to be wrong?
Answer: We didn't really go into the research with assumptions we wanted to prove. Our goal wasn't to find evidence that supported an opinion. It was simply to understand what was happening.
In the end, the proof came naturally because the data consistently showed the same patterns. I think that's an important distinction. We weren't trying to make the data fit a narrative. We were following where the evidence led us.
What was the biggest pattern you uncovered?
Answer: The biggest takeaway was that increasing investment in paid social consistently led to increased PPC activity, but that didn't mean PPC performance suffered in the long term.
Initially, you might see ROAS soften slightly while Google's algorithms adapt, but given time, that additional traffic provides valuable learning. Once Google's machine learning has had the opportunity to optimise, performance stabilises and often improves.
It's another reminder that marketing channels don't operate independently. Activity in one channel can directly influence the performance of another.
Did every client benefit in the same way?
Answer: Not necessarily.
The relationship was visible across lots of different accounts, but the strength of the impact varied depending on the business.
We found it was generally more influential for higher-ticket products and considered purchases, where customers naturally take longer to make a buying decision. Paid social helps build awareness, which then feeds into stronger search intent later in the customer journey.
For lower-cost, impulse purchases, that effect still exists, but it's often less pronounced because customers are already more likely to convert quickly.
How long did the research take?
Answer: The actual analysis probably only took a few hours, but the project itself took around a month.
A lot of that time was spent gathering the right data, making sure we were analysing it correctly and validating every conclusion.
What do marketers miss when they measure channels separately?
Answer: The biggest thing they miss is the bigger picture. Too often, channels are judged in isolation, when in reality they influence one another all the time.
If a PPC campaign has plateaued, the answer isn't always to keep tweaking the PPC campaign. Sometimes another channel, like paid social, is the lever that unlocks further growth.
That's what this research really demonstrates. Marketing channels aren't competing against each other. They're working together.
How should businesses think differently about attribution?
Answer: Attribution has always been a challenge because multiple channels often contribute to the same conversion.
One platform might claim the sale, another platform might also claim credit, and the client is left wondering how both can be true.
What this research reinforces is that those channels aren't working independently. Without one, the other often isn't as effective.
Instead of asking which channel deserves the credit, businesses should be thinking about how their channels support each other throughout the customer journey.
“One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is evaluating Paid Social and PPC as completely separate channels. In reality, they're often supporting different stages of the same customer journey. Social helps create awareness, interest and consideration, while PPC captures the intent that follows. When teams work together and share insights, both channels become more effective.”
Adam Green, Head of Social at Mabo
What's the biggest mistake companies make when judging paid social?
Answer: Looking at it in isolation.
If you're only measuring the direct return from paid social, you're missing the wider impact it can have across your marketing activity.
Performance doesn't always come from a single platform working harder. Sometimes it comes from multiple channels working together.
If readers only take one thing away from the whitepaper, what do you hope it is?
Answer: I'd like people to stop thinking about marketing channels as separate entities.
The strongest results come when channels work together, not when they're judged independently.
If you're only looking at one platform at a time, you're only seeing part of the picture. Our research shows that understanding how channels influence one another can unlock opportunities that might otherwise be missed.
That's the conversation we hope this whitepaper starts.
See the research for yourself
Ryan's analysis goes much deeper into what happens when Paid Social investment increases, how PPC performance responds over time and what that means for businesses trying to make better decisions across both channels.
Read the full whitepaper to explore the findings, see the data behind them and understand what they could mean for your Paid Social and PPC strategy.
August 28, 2026
