At 2TON, smart strategy is where it all begins, and Paige knows how to make it count. As our Digital Marketing Specialist, she knows how to find what works, cut through the noise, and help brands get real results with their ad campaigns.
1. Thank you for joining me! Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
My name is Paige Breithart, and I’ve been working on the digital marketing team at 2TON for nearly two years. I oversee 15-20 clients at any given time, which means I have a lot of experience across various industries and projects. One of my favorite parts of the job is giving new clients a crash course on what digital ads can (and cannot) do for their business. I believe that’s a vital part of setting the right expectations and seeing success in the digital ad space.
2. What’s the first step you take when developing a digital ad campaign?
The first step I take is getting a complete understanding of the client’s services, internal challenges, target audience, and their expectations from running ads. The best strategies come from having a holistic, full grasp on the client’s capabilities and how we can best align with their objectives.
3. How do you define and refine your target audience, especially when competition is fierce?
All the main ad platforms have smart tools for demographics and behavior insights, and we use that when we are shaping our strategy. We really try to get inside the consumer’s head and target from there. After the ads go live, we keep testing new messages, creative formats, and audience groups to make sure we’re staying ahead and standing out in a crowded market.
4. How do you stay ahead of trends and platform changes?
I oversee each of my digital retainer clients on a weekly basis, using that time to research ways to optimize their accounts. Constant monitoring helps to make sure I’m always aware of new trends and platform updates. I also have weekly syncs with my digital team where we share info, talk strategy, and discuss any key trends we’re noticing.
5. What metrics matter most to you when evaluating campaign performance?
For lead-generation campaigns, I focus on the growth of conversions. Conversions are the specific actions set up at the beginning of a campaign, such as calls, form submissions, checkouts, etc. Essentially, any key action on the website that could “lead” to a potential customer.
For awareness-based campaigns, I measure success by impressions and clicks. This tells me how many people we’re reaching with the ads, where they’re being placed, and how many users are clicking through to learn more.
6. What’s one surprising obstacle you’ve faced in a campaign, and what did it teach you?
Often, obstacles turn into my greatest learning experiences. Many of our clients transition from other agencies, which requires a lot of administrative handoff in the beginning. Recently, I was locked out of accessing a key platform for nearly two months. While I worked diligently to regain access, I also used the opportunity to reevaluate where I could be reallocating those ad dollars. This led to testing new strategies I might not have otherwise considered. Eventually, I gained access to the platform, but I also gained confidence knowing I had alternative strategies ready if things didn’t work out. While it was a frustrating experience, I’m ultimately more adaptable as a result.
7. How do you collaborate with the creative team to ensure messaging and visuals are perfectly aligned for campaign success?
I think the best part about working at an agency is the magic that happens when team members from different areas come together to brainstorm. For that reason, we set up cross-department syncs to allow for collaborating at several points during the strategy process. As a rule of thumb though, I like to provide a high-level outline and vision for the creative team, while giving them enough freedom to do what they do best, and then we go through a few versions of edits (internally and with the client) to arrive at the final result.
8. What’s your favorite recent campaign you've worked on, and what made it successful?
One of my favorite recent campaigns involved a client who had been disappointed by their previous agency, leaving them understandably skeptical about us. Despite the challenges, we were able to salvage their existing work, refresh and update their website to align with our new ad strategy, and launch ads that brought in quality leads. The client was quick to respond to those leads, allowing us to fine-tune and optimize the ads for the best results, all while staying within their smaller budget. The key to our success was the continuous feedback loop between our agency and the client, and it's always so rewarding to turn a tough situation into a positive outcome.
9. What is a common mistake that brands make in digital advertising? How do you recommend avoiding it?
A common mistake I see is brands depending too heavily on digital ads to do all the work. I prefer to look at the business as a whole: does the website have a functioning UX/UI design? Is there a proper submission form and lead funnel in place? Do they have a closed-loop CRM system so we can track what’s working and what isn’t? All of these elements are critical for running successful digital ads, and without a solid foundation, ads often won’t perform as well.
10. If you could give one piece of advice to small businesses looking to compete with bigger brands online, what would it be?
Competing as a small business doesn’t require a huge budget, as long as you understand your market and niche and present it in a way that’s easy for people to connect with. A well-organized, user-friendly website with strong SEO is essential. It’s the foundation for everything. While paid ads can deliver impressive results, they always work best when supported by a solid website.
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