In the evolving world of digital advertising, understanding how to effectively use Meta Ads (formerly Facebook Ads) is crucial for any marketing agency. However, many agencies still fall into common pitfalls that hinder ad performance and waste budget.
Here are 5 red flags indicating your agency might not be fully grasping the nuances of Meta Ads.
1. Using Interest Targeting
If your agency is leveraging interest targeting in any capacity, you are likely leaving cheaper conversions on the table.
Broad targeting has been found to outperform interest-based targeting, delivering +16% better CPAs.
During my tenure at Facebook, one of my initial actions with each ad account I managed was to steer them away from interest targeting. The reason for this shift? Interest targeting narrowed the pool of potential viewers for your ad, whereas broad targeting proved more effective due to the pixel’s conversion optimization capabilities.
Broad targeting was so successful that Meta transitioned advertisers who used interest targeting to new programs that didn’t restrict them to such narrow parameters. Now when interest targeting is employed, the system automatically widens its reach to include more users.
Therefore, if you were to target multiple different interest groups, you would essentially be fragmenting your budget significantly, thereby diminishing your campaign’s performance. This is because you wouldn’t be fully utilizing Meta’s powerful machine learning and optimization capabilities inherent in its advertising signal.
2. Not Exiting the Learning Phase
An agency incorporating too many ad sets is a surefire way to drive worse performance.
Instead of optimizing for people who will convert on your ads, your account is relegated to the Learning Phase, a period of worse performance and higher volatility.
Advertisers with ~20% of spend in Learning Phase see +17% conversions and -15% CPA vs. advertisers with ~80% of spend in Learning Phase.
To efficiently move beyond the Learning Phase, an ad set requires about 50 optimization events within a 7-day period. Therefore, it’s essential to allocate a budget that supports these 50 optimization events in a week. Setting a budget that is either too low or excessively high can mislead the delivery system regarding the optimal audience for your ads.
Another significant factor preventing ad sets from exiting the Learning Phase is the volume of ad sets. Running too many ad sets simultaneously leads to less frequent delivery for each set. As a result, fewer ad sets complete the Learning Phase, and more of the budget is consumed before the delivery system can optimize performance effectively. A practical approach to mitigate this issue is to simplify your account by consolidating ad sets. This consolidation not only streamlines the number of ad sets but also merges their delivery learnings, enhancing ad performance.
Should your ad set fail to accumulate sufficient optimization events to exit the Learning Phase, the status in the Delivery column will display “Learning limited.”
3. Taking Credit for Sales That Would Have Happened Anyway
Agencies must critically assess ad reporting.
A high percentage of view-based conversions could suggest that Meta is incorrectly attributing conversions to ads when these conversions might have occurred regardless. It’s crucial to critically assess your ad reporting to ensure it reflects logical and effective marketing outcomes. For instance, you may notice your ads are apparently successful in driving conversions, yet there is a lack of direct interaction, such as clicks, with your ads. While view-based conversions can be significant, an excessively high rate of such conversions could indicate that your ads aren’t actually driving incremental sales.
When a user sees an ad but doesn’t click on it, yet still makes a purchase, it might suggest that the user would have converted without seeing the ad. In these instances, Meta’s system might imply that the ad caused the conversion, but it is more likely to be a correlation rather than a causation. This scenario is particularly common with audiences lower in the sales funnel, such as site visitors or existing customers, who are often targets of retargeting campaigns.
4. Running More Than 6 Ads in a Non-ASC Campaign
When advertisers run too many ads simultaneously, each individual ad is delivered less frequently. This reduced frequency means that fewer ads complete the learning phase effectively, leading to more of the budget being spent before the ad delivery system can fully optimize performance. Essentially, an excess of ads can lead to subpar performance.
For more predictable, stable, and optimized results, it’s crucial for advertisers to keep a close eye on the volume of active ads. While experimenting with new creative ideas and marketing strategies remains important, it’s vital to balance these initiatives with allowing the ad delivery system sufficient time to learn and adapt to each ad.
The ad delivery system prefers ads that have more frequent delivery, as this allows for more accurate conversion predictions. However, once an advertiser adds more than six ads, the incremental benefit of adding additional ads diminishes significantly. Therefore, maintaining a moderate number of well-monitored ads is key to effective advertising performance.
5. Sending People to the Wrong Landing Page
It is crucial to ensure that your products, messages, promotional offers, and pricing are consistent between your ad and the destination page. This aspect is often overlooked in Meta ad campaigns. Directing every user to the homepage, while it might seem convenient, can actually lead to negative outcomes.
For example, consider a scenario where a user clicks on an ad for a milk chocolate candy bar but is then redirected to the homepage or a collection page with multiple candy options. The user is then forced to search for the specific chocolate bar, and if they can’t find it, they are likely to leave the site. To prevent this, advertisers should direct users straight to the product page of the milk chocolate bar. This approach reduces the likelihood of users bouncing off the site and increases the chances of conversion.
Conclusion
In summary, navigating the complexities of Meta Ads requires a nuanced approach. By avoiding these common pitfalls, your agency can optimize ad spend, reach the right audience, and drive meaningful conversions. If you recognize these red flags in your agency’s approach, it might be time for a strategy overhaul.
Thankfully, we can help.
Reach out to us for a free audit of your Meta ad account. Our team of experts will provide a comprehensive review and insights to ensure your advertising strategy is on the right track. Don’t let these common mistakes hinder your success. Contact us today for your free audit and take the first step towards optimizing your Meta advertising strategy!
The post 5 Red Flags Your Agency Doesn’t Understand Meta Ads appeared first on Disruptive Digital.