Let Your Ads Breathe

Facebook Ads can be a very volatile platform.

We've had a few days where we've had a 1X ROAS (Return on Ad Spend), and other days, a 5X - 10X ROAS.

Even from one day to the next, the changes can be that different.

Do these concern me?

At the time, sometimes, yes, a little.

But once I take a step back and look at the big picture, and stop looking at a single day's performance in isolation, no, this doesn't concern me.

You're going to experience high days, you're going to experience low days.

Why?

Because your Facebook Ads never really exit the "learning phase".

Yes, your Ads are learning the most when they first start running; this is the most intense part of a new Ad learning:

– Who to show your Ads to

– What time of day is best to show your Ads

– Who is engaging with the Ad, who isn't

– And many other data points besides

But even when you've spent a few hundred, even a few thousand dollars on a single Ad, it's still learning.

It's learning from every single impression it receives.

Who likes the Ad? Who doesn't like the Ad?

It finds more people who share similar characteristics, behavioural patterns and tendencies to show the Ad to.

And it stops showing the Ad to people who share similarities with those people who don't like the Ad.

This is why I never make decisions on my Ads from one single day of performance.

I always look at 3-7 days worth of data, at least.

And providing performance is strong over that extended period of time, I'm happy.

Your Ads will be shown to different people every single day.

Sure, some of the folks Meta shows your Ads to will have seen it once or twice before.

But if you build your Ads in a way that appeals to a broad audience, rather than a narrow audience, you'll be reaching new readers day in, day out.

Some days, the people who see your Ads will like what they see, you'll have a strong ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) and make a lot of sales.

Other days, the folks who see your Ads just aren't the right fit for your books, and you'll have a slower sales day.

But over time, Meta will learn (and continue to learn, in fact), and your Ads will improve the longer they run.

However, if they're not getting traction within the first 3-7 days, chances are they're just not going to work, even if you let them run for 6 weeks.

So my final words of advice... let your Ads run for at least 3-7 days before deciding what to do with them.

To Your Success
– Matt