Your Meta ad account has hit a wall. Your ROAS is steady, but your revenue isn’t climbing via Facebook or Instagram, and let’s be honest, you’re tired of spinning your wheels.
That’s where horizontal scaling steps in. It’s not about just throwing more cash at your campaigns—it’s about playing smart, building for the long game, and making every dollar work harder.
Here’s how you can use Gorilla 360’s proven horizontal scaling strategy to take your ecommerce growth from “meh” to mind-blowing.
What’s horizontal scaling—and why should you care?
You’ve likely been caught in the vertical scaling trap—increasing ad spend on cold audiences and remarketing campaigns, hoping for bigger returns. But here’s what happens:
- Your ad frequency goes up.
- Your audience gets spammed.
- Your campaign ROI flatlines.
Horizontal scaling, on the other hand, spreads the load. Instead of flogging one audience, you:
- Introduce multiple campaigns to bring in new users.
- Build a sustainable, long-term ad ecosystem.
- Give your ROAS the rocket fuel it needs to keep climbing.
Bottom Line: Vertical scaling is like running on a treadmill—you move but go nowhere fast. Horizontal scaling is like upgrading to a marathon—you’re building stamina for sustainable, long-term gains.
Frequent promotions? Here’s why you should think twice
Promotions can feel like a quick win—but if you’re relying too heavily on frequent discounts, you’ll condition your audience to always wait for sales. Here’s the downside:
- Shrinking margins: Regular discounts eat into your profit, and they’re hard to recover from once customers get used to them.
- Burnt-out audience: Promotions attract the same pool of users repeatedly, which means fewer new eyes on your brand.
- Plateaued growth: Your campaigns won’t bring in fresh leads, making it harder to grow revenue consistently outside of promo spikes.
Horizontal scaling, on the other hand, builds a healthy balance—consistently bringing in new customers so that promotional periods become a bonus, not a crutch.
Step 1: Prep like a pro
Before hitting the ground running, ensure you’ve got your ducks in a row. Scaling without a plan is like hiking without a map—you’ll end up lost (and probably annoyed).
Budget: What’s your magic number?
- Start with a minimum of $5,000 AUD (ex GST): This gives you enough flexibility to test multiple audiences and test campaigns without stretching yourself too thin.
- Understand your breakeven ROAS: Knowing your numbers helps you make smarter, faster decisions during the inevitable testing phase.
- Think long-term: Scaling isn’t a sprint. Be prepared to reinvest and build momentum over six months.
Content: The more, the better
Ad fatigue is real, and stale content won’t cut it. To keep your campaigns fresh and engaging, you’ll need:
- A variety of formats: Static images, scroll-stopping videos, and engaging GIFs.
- A steady flow of assets: Don’t launch without a robust creative pipeline. Regularly introduce new visuals to keep audiences engaged.
Timing: Pick your moment
- Avoid running major scaling efforts during chaotic retail periods like November to January when promo clutter and fluctuating performance can muddy your results.
- Commit to a 6-month timeline to see measurable, lasting growth. This isn’t about quick wins but sustainable, scalable success.
Step 2: The horizontal scaling playbook
Once you’ve laid the groundwork, it’s time to bring your campaigns to life. Horizontal scaling is all about covering all bases. So, instead of pumping more dollars into what you’ve already got, you’re crafting new campaigns to draw fresh audiences at every level of the funnel.
Let’s break it down step-by-step:
Top-of-funnel (TOF): Catch their attention
The TOF campaigns are designed to reach new people, build brand awareness, and get them curious enough to click.
- Traffic campaigns: Drive people to your website, especially those who have never heard of you. Show them what makes you awesome and worth their time.
- Page engagement: Think of this as a buzz-building machine. Generate likes, comments, and follows to strengthen your brand’s organic presence. This will consistently build your Middle-of-Funnel audience, where you will later make the sale.
- Lead forms: Offer something irresistible, like a newsletter sign-up or a quick deal, right inside the Meta platform. There are no landing pages, just smooth, one-tap conversions. Again, feeding into Middle-of-Funnel, as well as growing a larger email marketing list.
- Sales Campaign: Take the opportunity to drive the sale early on. While you may return a low ROAS, you will still capture those who are willing to buy straight off the bat.
Why it works: These campaigns cast a wide net, ensuring your audience pool is always growing. The more eyeballs on your brand, the bigger the opportunity to convert down the line.
Middle-of-funnel (MOF): Nurture the relationship
TOF got them interested—now it’s time to keep them engaged and move them closer to buying. MOF is where relationships are built and trust is earned.
- Gated content: Offer valuable resources like eBooks, checklists, or exclusive videos. This helps nurture those who already know your brand while providing genuine value.
- Conversions: Retarget those engaged with your brand (e.g. newsletter sign-ups or page followers) and encourage them to purchase.
Why it works: MOF campaigns help take people from curiosity to commitment. You’re educating them, giving value, and gently nudging them towards making a buying decision.
Bottom-of-Funnel (BOF): Seal the deal
Now, we’re getting down to business. BOF campaigns are for those who have engaged with your brand enough that they’re one click away from purchasing.
- Dynamic Catalog Ads: Show cart abandoners exactly what they left behind. Remind them why they wanted it in the first place.
- Conversions: Use strong buy-now messaging, promotional offers, or customer testimonials to push those on the edge to purchase.
Why It Works: BOF is where the magic happens—where all that awareness and engagement finally turns into a sale. Targeting is precise, the messaging is hard-hitting, and it’s all about driving those conversions.
Step 3: Nail your targeting strategy
Horizontal scaling is not just about creating more campaigns—it’s about reaching the right people at the right time without burning out your audiences. The secret sauce lies in how you target. Here’s how to get laser-focused on your audience strategy for maximum impact:
- TOF: Run a mix of hyper-targeted and broad campaigns. Let the algorithm do its thing without breaking the bank.
- MOF & BOF: Get laser-focused. Exclude irrelevant audiences to avoid overlap and messaging chaos.
The result? A well-targeted strategy ensures you reach new customers without annoying existing ones, leading to sustainable audience growth and higher ROAS without campaign fatigue.
Proof That It Works: A Real-World Case Study
One of our ecommerce clients hit a plateau—they had a solid brand but weren’t growing. We stepped in with our horizontal scaling strategy, and over 6 months, here’s what happened:
First 3 Months: Build & Test
- 50% Lower Ad Spend but 92% Increase in ROAS: We halved their budget during testing to keep ROAS stable, focusing on building the right audiences. Revenue dipped slightly, which was expected during this setup phase.
Next 3 Months: Scale Up
- 112% Revenue Growth with a 25% Increase in Ad Spend: After building audiences, we switched focus to revenue campaigns, leading to big growth with a minimal increase in spend.
- 70% Growth in ROAS: New BOF campaigns converted our nurtured leads, boosting returns.
Ongoing: Optimise & Grow
After 6 months, we scaled ad spend confidently without spamming audiences, resulting in:
- Proportional Revenue Growth with increased ad spend.
- Flexible Scaling without audience fatigue.
Promotional Success
- Black Friday & Cyber Monday: We boosted ad spend by 60%, which resulted in a 157% increase in revenue.
- August Birthday Sale: Revenue increased by 28% compared to the previous year without increasing ad spend.
The result? By switching from vertical to horizontal scaling, the client broke through stagnation, boosted revenue, tapped into younger audiences, and set the foundation for continuous growth—without exhausting their audience.
What’s the catch?
Horizontal scaling isn’t a quick fix. You won’t see overnight results like you would with a promo blitz. But you will see consistent, sustainable growth that compounds over time.
If you’re tired of running in place and want to sprint towards real growth, now’s the time to lace up. Let’s go the distance and make something epic happen together.
👉 Want to know how this strategy could work for you? Book a free Meta Ads strategy session with Gorilla 360 today!
