Many in the pro-democracy camp still scratch their heads, wondering why the worst ideas keep winning. But this isn’t just about losing a debate—it’s like failing a math problem you didn’t even know you were being graded on. This session lays out the solution.

At its core, the problem is simple. Social platforms are designed to deliver advertisers the cheapest possible engagement from people most likely to buy their products. That works for selling goods, but for social and political ideas, the cheapest engagement is exactly what fuels polarization and echo chambers. The result? NGOs and political groups are pushed to extremes to win funding and support, while staying in the middle risks stagnation.

This session reframes impact as an engagement cost curve. Cheap engagement is your base. Expensive engagement is the audience that will never come with you. Real change happens in the medium-cost range: people who are close enough to be persuaded but not already sold. By focusing on mid-range cost-per-result optimization, your organization can maximize meaningful impact.

Through experimentation, data analysis, and strategy iteration, this session shows how to identify what makes your messages resonate with the audiences that matter most—and turn engagement into real-world influence.