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Platforms like Meta analyze the people featured in your ad creative and show those ads to demographically similar users, assuming higher conversion likelihood. To diversify your customer base, you must first diversify the people shown in your ads, even without changing audience targeting settings.

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Social media has evolved into 'interest media.' The algorithm is so effective that the content itself—the words you use, your background, your appearance—is the primary targeting mechanism. Instead of chasing broad appeal, create content specifically for your ideal avatar, and the platform will find them for you.

The post-Andromeda update algorithm favors ad sets with high creative volume and variety. Aim for around 20 creatives (images, carousels, videos) to enable personalized delivery and combat ad fatigue.

Meta's algorithm learns from who engages with your ad. By designing creative that speaks directly and specifically to your ideal customer, you are effectively telling the algorithm who to target.

Generic demographic targeting like '18-35 year olds' is ineffective. Instead, develop 30-40 hyper-specific consumer segments based on unique motivations, such as 'a 25-year-old male using wine for dating.' This niche approach makes creative more resonant, helping algorithms find the ideal audience.

Modern ad platforms like Meta rely less on manual audience targeting (demographics, interests) and more on the algorithm analyzing the content of the ad itself. Using explicit keywords in your copy and video script (e.g., "freelancing") is now the primary way to tell the algorithm who should see your ad, making the creative the core targeting tool.

Previously, marketers told Meta who to target. With the new AI algorithm, marketers provide diverse creative, and the AI uses that creative to find the right audience. Targeting control has shifted from human to machine, fundamentally changing how ads are built and optimized.

With Meta's Andromeda algorithm automating audience targeting, the primary reason for poor ad performance is no longer incorrect targeting settings. Wasted money is now almost exclusively a result of insufficient or non-diverse creative, making creative strategy the most critical component of a successful campaign.

Broad personas like 'small business owners' are ineffective. To create resonant ads, define avatars by industry, location, tool usage, and ad spend to speak directly to their specific pain points.

Explicitly calling out your ideal customer in ad copy (e.g., "demand gen marketers") does more than grab their attention. It provides a clear signal to the ad platform's algorithm, helping it more effectively identify and serve your ad to the right people. If the consumer is confused, so is the algorithm.

An 11-year Meta veteran explains that Facebook's ad value shifted from demographics to interest targeting, and now to a sophisticated AI. Today, the best strategy is often to remove granular targeting and let the system's machine learning find the right audience automatically.