Taboola agency
Newbie
- Oct 24, 2025
- 12
- 6
To achieve effective advertising results, focus on the ad itself—your customers, your creative, your product, and your landing page—rather than advertising techniques.
When facing poor ad performance, nearly every complaint follows the same pattern: they've tried every trick but still can't achieve desired results. They then list a long string of tips about targeting, testing, and structure building, yet never share anything about the product or the ad itself. Then they start blaming Meta's ad system, pushing all the blame onto Meta.
So what should you do when you encounter ad performance issues?
1. Simplify before optimizing
Let's first discuss how overcomplicating things can worsen your results.
An overly complex campaign structure won't solve performance issues. You're likely layering strategy upon strategy, piling on techniques and advice until you lose track of what truly works and what doesn't.
⓵ Number of Campaigns
If you're not achieving your desired overall results, pare down your campaigns to only those you need. Almost all should be campaigns targeting some form of conversion.
If you're already running “Sales” campaigns, keep them. If you're also running “Lead Generation” campaigns, consider keeping those too. But ensure you have sufficient budget and volume to make both work effectively.
If necessary, prioritize and select only one objective.
If you're running multiple campaigns for the same objective, consider merging them. We want to ensure you're not creating unnecessary complexity for yourself. Consolidate those campaigns whenever possible. An added benefit is that you'll consolidate your budget.
⓶ Number of Ad Groups
If a campaign contains multiple ad groups, ensure this is absolutely necessary. Determine which are essential, then disable the unnecessary ones.
Typically, too many ad groups only dilute your budget, preventing sufficient volume in any single group and potentially causing bid overlap and audience fragmentation.
⓷ Targeting
The reason for creating multiple ad groups is often related to targeting. But how targeting works today is vastly different, making this practice a waste of time, resources, and money.
If you have multiple ad groups targeting different niche audiences, you're likely reaching the same people across all of them.
Remarketing is now largely unnecessary, especially broad remarketing. When you target broadly, it happens naturally—you can prove this with “Audience Segmentation.” There's almost no reason to run dedicated remarketing ad groups anymore.
You shouldn't need separate ad groups based on gender, age range, or placements. If you need to control budget allocation across these dimensions, switch to Value Rules instead.
⓸ Placements
If you're optimizing for conversions, you shouldn't remove any placements.
If you encounter a placement delivering low-value customers or leads at low cost, consider using Value Rules to address this before completely removing the placement.
2. Ad Copy and Creative
Poor performance isn't because you failed to implement a new technique. It's not because you didn't create enough campaigns and ad groups. Nor is it because your targeting wasn't thorough enough.
The solution should always start with your ad copy and creative.
Does your ad resonate with your target audience?
Do you address specific pain points faced by your ideal customers?
Do you demonstrate how your product solves these problems?
Do your images make users pause and look?
Do your videos capture attention within the first few seconds?
You'll never create a perfect ad—there's always room for improvement.
Even if you've created great ads before, they have a lifespan. They become less effective over time. You need to develop new ads to inspire the desired user actions.
3. Creative Diversity and Customization
Meta's AI optimization system requires a vast array of copy and creative variations to find the right ad for the right person. This isn't about minor tweaks—it's about entirely different angles and approaches. Your goal is to reach diverse customer types through varied methods.
⓵ Leverage Text Options
You can provide up to five main text options and headlines per ad (up to 10 if using AI-generated suggestions). Make full use of these.
Your goal is no longer to find the single best combination of text and creative. So abandon the urge to limit options in search of that magic formula. To make your ads effective, you need multiple combinations that work for different people.
Using these text options also helps prevent creative fatigue.
② Leverage All Formats
Use single images, videos, and carousels. Don't rely solely on one format, as not everyone responds the same way to each.
This gives you multiple opportunities to tell your story and sell your product. One person might see multiple versions of your ad. Take the time to make each format great.
③ Optimize by Placement
If you only use static image ads, you won't be able to leverage all placements. The same applies if you only create videos, as certain placements require static images.
Optimize creatives by tailoring them to different placements. Provide the best possible aspect ratio whenever possible to maximize screen space. Offer videos for video-centric placements and ensure they are appropriately sized. Preview your ads to ensure they look great on every placement and make adjustments as needed.
⓸ Enable AI-Generated Enhancements
I'm not suggesting you blindly accept every Advantage+ Creative enhancement or all AI-generated images and backgrounds. But turning them all off indiscriminately could be worse.
Many of these enhancements generate variations that at least help prevent creative fatigue. They might even make your ads better, helping you achieve more conversions.
4. Your Offer (Product/Promotion)
Your ad copy and creative might be stellar. You've done everything Meta wants, ensuring diverse creative options for the system. Everything looks perfect in every way. Yet your results still fall short.
Instead of blaming Meta and assuming some new trick will fix your issues, ask yourself: “Why aren't people taking action on my ads?”
The product/offer is arguably the most critical element. Pain points, solutions, customer testimonials, and product demos can all work. But sometimes people just need that extra push. Maybe it's a discount or another exclusive incentive.
5. Your Product
I understand some believe they can sell anything. But if you're not getting results, the problem might lie with your product itself.
Maybe your product has flaws that make it undesirable. Maybe it lacks uniqueness to motivate people to choose it over competitors. Maybe your product lacks brand credibility.
Pricing and models matter here, especially for ad profitability. Consider higher or lower prices based on your target audience or required profit margins, or experiment with bundles or subscription models.
6. Product Landing Page
You may have checked all previous items yet still aren't getting the results you want. The problem might lie where you least expect it: your website.
What is the user experience like after they land on your site? Is the page loading speed fast or slow? Is it simple and clear or confusing? Do the creative and information match what was advertised?
How many steps does it take to complete a conversion? Is the process more complicated than necessary? Where are people dropping off?
Poor performance might have little to do with your ads.
7. Pixels, Events, and Reporting
Finally, your performance issues could stem from data problems.
Is the Meta Pixel installed correctly? Are events set up comprehensively and accurately, and have they been tested? Are you transmitting first-party data via API, including website and offline events? Are these events deduplicated?
Even if you've done all this, the problem might lie in how you interpret the data. Are you only looking at 1-day click data? Have you expanded to view 28-day click data for additional context? Have you compared different attribution settings to see results for first conversion vs. all conversions, standard attribution vs. incremental attribution?
When facing poor ad performance, nearly every complaint follows the same pattern: they've tried every trick but still can't achieve desired results. They then list a long string of tips about targeting, testing, and structure building, yet never share anything about the product or the ad itself. Then they start blaming Meta's ad system, pushing all the blame onto Meta.
So what should you do when you encounter ad performance issues?
1. Simplify before optimizing
Let's first discuss how overcomplicating things can worsen your results.
An overly complex campaign structure won't solve performance issues. You're likely layering strategy upon strategy, piling on techniques and advice until you lose track of what truly works and what doesn't.
⓵ Number of Campaigns
If you're not achieving your desired overall results, pare down your campaigns to only those you need. Almost all should be campaigns targeting some form of conversion.
If you're already running “Sales” campaigns, keep them. If you're also running “Lead Generation” campaigns, consider keeping those too. But ensure you have sufficient budget and volume to make both work effectively.
If necessary, prioritize and select only one objective.
If you're running multiple campaigns for the same objective, consider merging them. We want to ensure you're not creating unnecessary complexity for yourself. Consolidate those campaigns whenever possible. An added benefit is that you'll consolidate your budget.
⓶ Number of Ad Groups
If a campaign contains multiple ad groups, ensure this is absolutely necessary. Determine which are essential, then disable the unnecessary ones.
Typically, too many ad groups only dilute your budget, preventing sufficient volume in any single group and potentially causing bid overlap and audience fragmentation.
⓷ Targeting
The reason for creating multiple ad groups is often related to targeting. But how targeting works today is vastly different, making this practice a waste of time, resources, and money.
If you have multiple ad groups targeting different niche audiences, you're likely reaching the same people across all of them.
Remarketing is now largely unnecessary, especially broad remarketing. When you target broadly, it happens naturally—you can prove this with “Audience Segmentation.” There's almost no reason to run dedicated remarketing ad groups anymore.
You shouldn't need separate ad groups based on gender, age range, or placements. If you need to control budget allocation across these dimensions, switch to Value Rules instead.
⓸ Placements
If you're optimizing for conversions, you shouldn't remove any placements.
If you encounter a placement delivering low-value customers or leads at low cost, consider using Value Rules to address this before completely removing the placement.
2. Ad Copy and Creative
Poor performance isn't because you failed to implement a new technique. It's not because you didn't create enough campaigns and ad groups. Nor is it because your targeting wasn't thorough enough.
The solution should always start with your ad copy and creative.
Does your ad resonate with your target audience?
Do you address specific pain points faced by your ideal customers?
Do you demonstrate how your product solves these problems?
Do your images make users pause and look?
Do your videos capture attention within the first few seconds?
You'll never create a perfect ad—there's always room for improvement.
Even if you've created great ads before, they have a lifespan. They become less effective over time. You need to develop new ads to inspire the desired user actions.
3. Creative Diversity and Customization
Meta's AI optimization system requires a vast array of copy and creative variations to find the right ad for the right person. This isn't about minor tweaks—it's about entirely different angles and approaches. Your goal is to reach diverse customer types through varied methods.
⓵ Leverage Text Options
You can provide up to five main text options and headlines per ad (up to 10 if using AI-generated suggestions). Make full use of these.
Your goal is no longer to find the single best combination of text and creative. So abandon the urge to limit options in search of that magic formula. To make your ads effective, you need multiple combinations that work for different people.
Using these text options also helps prevent creative fatigue.
② Leverage All Formats
Use single images, videos, and carousels. Don't rely solely on one format, as not everyone responds the same way to each.
This gives you multiple opportunities to tell your story and sell your product. One person might see multiple versions of your ad. Take the time to make each format great.
③ Optimize by Placement
If you only use static image ads, you won't be able to leverage all placements. The same applies if you only create videos, as certain placements require static images.
Optimize creatives by tailoring them to different placements. Provide the best possible aspect ratio whenever possible to maximize screen space. Offer videos for video-centric placements and ensure they are appropriately sized. Preview your ads to ensure they look great on every placement and make adjustments as needed.
⓸ Enable AI-Generated Enhancements
I'm not suggesting you blindly accept every Advantage+ Creative enhancement or all AI-generated images and backgrounds. But turning them all off indiscriminately could be worse.
Many of these enhancements generate variations that at least help prevent creative fatigue. They might even make your ads better, helping you achieve more conversions.
4. Your Offer (Product/Promotion)
Your ad copy and creative might be stellar. You've done everything Meta wants, ensuring diverse creative options for the system. Everything looks perfect in every way. Yet your results still fall short.
Instead of blaming Meta and assuming some new trick will fix your issues, ask yourself: “Why aren't people taking action on my ads?”
The product/offer is arguably the most critical element. Pain points, solutions, customer testimonials, and product demos can all work. But sometimes people just need that extra push. Maybe it's a discount or another exclusive incentive.
5. Your Product
I understand some believe they can sell anything. But if you're not getting results, the problem might lie with your product itself.
Maybe your product has flaws that make it undesirable. Maybe it lacks uniqueness to motivate people to choose it over competitors. Maybe your product lacks brand credibility.
Pricing and models matter here, especially for ad profitability. Consider higher or lower prices based on your target audience or required profit margins, or experiment with bundles or subscription models.
6. Product Landing Page
You may have checked all previous items yet still aren't getting the results you want. The problem might lie where you least expect it: your website.
What is the user experience like after they land on your site? Is the page loading speed fast or slow? Is it simple and clear or confusing? Do the creative and information match what was advertised?
How many steps does it take to complete a conversion? Is the process more complicated than necessary? Where are people dropping off?
Poor performance might have little to do with your ads.
7. Pixels, Events, and Reporting
Finally, your performance issues could stem from data problems.
Is the Meta Pixel installed correctly? Are events set up comprehensively and accurately, and have they been tested? Are you transmitting first-party data via API, including website and offline events? Are these events deduplicated?
Even if you've done all this, the problem might lie in how you interpret the data. Are you only looking at 1-day click data? Have you expanded to view 28-day click data for additional context? Have you compared different attribution settings to see results for first conversion vs. all conversions, standard attribution vs. incremental attribution?
