How the Meta Ad Auction Works

The Meta ad auction isn't just about who bids the most. It's a complex system weighing three critical elements that determine which ads get shown and at what cost. Jon breaks down how the auction really works and why obsessing over bids is missing the point entirely.

Meta now offers two types of attribution: standard and incremental. With machine learning models predicting which conversions were actually caused by your ads, this sounds great in theory. Jon explains what incremental attribution really means and whether you should actually use it for optimization.

Meta keeps talking about "creative diversification" as the new key to advertising success, replacing the old focus on targeting. Jon breaks down what this actually means with Andromeda's launch and why you need to abandon the 6-ad limit mindset for something much bigger.

When ads aren't working, most advertisers blame Meta or obsess over targeting and placements. But there's one fundamental question they never ask. Jon explains why this single question changes everything and where you should actually focus your energy.

Following someone's advice step-by-step without understanding why is dangerous for your advertising. Jon explains why copying strategies word-for-word leads to trouble and what you should do instead to build your own best practices based on knowledge, not gospel.

A $5 cost per lead means nothing without knowing what happens after the form submission. Jon breaks down why value per lead is what actually matters and explains the critical questions you should be asking when your leads aren't converting into sales.

When advertisers ask for clear rules about costs per lead or attribution settings, they hate hearing "it depends." But that's not a cop-out. Jon explains why this answer is actually the beginning of the right conversation and what you're missing when you demand one-size-fits-all solutions.

Nightmare clients who micromanage your strategy and expect miracles can cost you more than they pay you. Jon outlines the five priorities to consider when vetting potential ads clients, including why the wrong client is worse than no client at all.

If you're still segmenting audiences, split testing lookalikes, and restricting age and gender like it's 2017, you're making your results worse. Jon explains why most targeting inputs are now just suggestions and where real targeting actually happens in today's advertising.

Creative testing made sense when one ad meant one combination of copy and creative. But with 26 placements and potentially thousands of variations per ad, the old testing methods are impossible and unnecessary. Jon explains why finding the "winning" combination is the wrong goal.