Mumbai Executive Says He Ran Ads On Adult Websites To Cut Costs: "Meta Ads Were Too Expensive"

A Mumbai-based marketing executive has gone viral after revealing that his company once shifted its advertising budget from Meta and Google platforms to adult websites in an attempt to cut soaring digital marketing costs. Lakshaya S, who previously served as interim CEO of a nutraceutical brand and now works as an assistant vice president at a marketing firm, shared the story in a LinkedIn post that quickly grabbed attention across the startup and marketing community.

According to Lakshaya, rising advertising costs on mainstream platforms had become unsustainable for many direct-to-consumer brands. He claimed that ad rates on Meta and Google had climbed to between Rs 300 and Rs 500 per thousand impressions, forcing the company to explore cheaper alternatives.

During that search, the team reportedly discovered that advertising on adult websites cost only around 9 paise per thousand impressions-  a tiny fraction of mainstream digital ad rates. Curious about the potential reach, they decided to test campaigns on the platform. "In an attempt to look for unconventional alternatives, we found that running ads on adult websites cost merely 9 paisas per thousand impressions," he wrote.

The Marketing Experiment

Initially, the company promoted performance-enhancing supplements, assuming the audience demographic would align with those products. While the campaign generated heavy traffic and clicks, it failed to convert visitors into buyers.

That failure, Lakshaya explained, led to a more important realisation that successful marketing is not just about targeting demographics but understanding the user's mindset at a particular moment. He said the team realised that visitors on these websites were not necessarily looking to buy performance products at that time.

"Our logic was: Majority male audience. Related content. High intent. Clear fit. It failed completely. We got great customer impressions, good traffic, and good clicks, but almost no conversions for Shilajit," he explained. 

The breakthrough came after the company switched its focus to sleep-related supplements instead. Since most traffic on the platform came late at night, the team believed users would be more receptive to products associated with relaxation and sleep.

The strategy reportedly worked. Lakshaya said the new campaign generated actual orders while maintaining the same low advertising costs and similar click-through rates. Beyond direct sales, the campaign also helped the brand build a large remarketing audience and increase organic traffic over time.

He added that even users who did not click on the advertisements appeared to remember the brand later, contributing to stronger recall and future searches. According to him, the low-cost exposure created long-term value beyond immediate conversions.

Check out the post here:

"Over time, we noticed that even when users did not click the ad, our organic traffic started increasing. The impressions we had gotten seemed to have created a subconscious brand recall. We spent 9 paisa per thousand impressions. What we gained in return was a significant increase in traffic, an audience for retargeting, additional sales, and an insight that said:
You will never know what works until you go ahead and test it out," he added.

The post sparked a broader discussion online about changing trends in digital marketing. Many users said the story highlighted how advertising is increasingly shifting from broad demographic targeting to understanding user intent, mood, and context.

Others questioned whether advertising wellness products on adult platforms is legally permissible in India. Lakshaya clarified that such campaigns can be legal if the product category and promotional claims comply with Indian advertising regulations, though he advised brands to seek independent legal advice before attempting similar strategies.