The News Isn’t All Bad

Each Meta earnings report spawns a new wave of articles heralding the demise of Meta. TikTok is taking market share. Gen Z is looking for new platforms. Meta has lost focus and will die on the Metaverse sword. Reading these headlines, it would seem users are fleeing, and advertisers should not be far behind.

Misleading Headlines: Unveiling the Truth About Meta’s Viability

It takes a little digging and reading past the headlines to realize that this is a great time to be an advertiser on Meta. 4% global growth in monthly active users and 2% growth in the US and Canada means, despite an already deep penetration in Internet users, Meta continues to find new users. At 2 billion daily active users, Facebook continues to have the largest user base of social platforms, more than double that of TikTok.

Growth and User Base: Meta Continues to Attract Users Globally

Additionally, advertising dollars are going further, and opportunities to grab impressions continue to increase. As Meta continues to grow its Reels product, it is creating additional advertising opportunities. New ad units are emerging across Meta’s family of apps along with new ad formats, all designed to promote engagement and drive value for users and advertisers alike.

Cost Efficiency: Decreasing Average Price per Ad on Meta

The better news is that the average price per ad is down 16% year over year. For our clients with SMBs running small-budget, hyper-local campaigns, we saw a 9% decrease in Q4 CPMs year over year.

Ad dollars being spent on Meta are going further – and targeting audiences that are looking to engage with businesses and products. Recent research shows that 55% of Facebook users and 61% of Instagram users follow or research brands and products on the platforms, as opposed to 38% on TikTok and Pinterest. Brands and products looking to be discovered or to connect to purchasers through social advertising have a better chance of connecting and resonating with Facebook and Instagram users.

Increased Investment in AI 

While all this gives reassurance to advertisers that their funds are being spent efficiently, the best news for advertisers is that Meta is refocusing resources and leveraging AI to improve their ad technology. Meta is leveraging AI to help target relevant consumers, optimize budgets, and now, dynamically assemble ads for performance.

This focus on AI and machine learning to improve the advertiser experience and advertising results will continue to make Facebook and Instagram the best place for advertisers looking to connect with their audiences and drive greater engagement – and results.

It is not all doom and gloom at Meta. It is actually an exciting time to be advertising on their platform. We look forward to the products that will be released this year and how we can leverage them to drive results for our clients. It will be a fun ride.

Convinced? Check out our playbook, How to Scale Your Local Social Advertising with Meta’s Performance 5. See how Tiger Pistol harnesses Meta’s Performance 5 Framework for unbeatable ad results! You can download the entire series in one playbook by filling out the form in the sidebar.