Dynamic Creative Optimization - Tips & Solutions for Meta

Facebook has remained one of the dominant social platforms globally since its launch in 2004. Mark Zuckerberg has proven himself a visionary leader and tech trailblazer, introducing multiple features that users have taken for granted since then, with the iconic "like" button being the best example.

As of the fourth quarter of 2023 Meta platforms have attracted nearly four billion users per month. Threads, launched in July 2023 as a response to the turmoil around X (formerly Twitter), accumulated 100 million signups within five days of its release (source: Meta Platforms - statistics & facts from statista.com).

By the end of 2023, Meta generated $134.9 billion, primarily from ads and ad-related activities. This is not surprising—companies are willing to pay to be visible where their users spend time and see their ads. Using dynamic creative ads is one of the easiest ways to reach the target audience.

But First: What Are Dynamic Creative Ads?

Dynamic Creative Ads is a product that was rolled out in 2017 and has since become one of the most popular products for advertisers. Its popularity stems from both the ease of use and the immense reach it provides.

The key feature of dynamic creative ads is the availability of AI systems that support ad creation and optimization. However, this doesn't mean that human supervision is unnecessary.

All You Need To Know About Dynamic Ads on Meta (Facebook and Instagram)

The guide below shows the best and most efficient approach toward the dynamic ads optimization and making them deliver the highest value for least money possible. The guide will also include a detailed step-by-step process of setting up this type of ads, best practices to follow and practical examples that may be inspiration or a benchmark.

What Is Dynamic Creative Optimization?

The process of maximizing the outcomes of Meta dynamic creative ads is called dynamic creative optimization. This approach is more straightforward and easier compared to the optimization of less automated systems, as most operations are based on AI.

However, it requires sophistication—while the dominant part of the heavy lifting is done by the automated system, what’s left requires human qualities, like creativity, humor, or a non-standard approach.

Dynamic Creative on Meta: Facebook and Instagram

With the scale and reach provided by Meta platforms, it seems obvious that one should give every ad product a try. However, these two qualities are only the most obvious ones—hardly the only ones.

• AI Does the Heavy Lifting: As mentioned above, the ads are managed and supported by AI-powered systems, bringing a lot of automation to the process. This reduces both the learning curve and the time required to maintain the ad campaign. In its simplest form, it requires only funds and creative assets to run.
• Efficiency: With this level of automation, the ad product basically works “out of the box.” It is not necessary to tinker a lot with settings to get results—the system just works.
• Low Maintenance Costs: Last but not least, with the high degree of automation, maintenance requires far less effort and resources. Whether measured by hours of work assigned to this particular project or by the amount of money necessary to test multiple variants, the effects are seen quicker and with lower investment.

How to Make Dynamic Creatives?

Delivering a dynamic product ad is pretty straightforward, as seen with other Meta ad products. Before setting everything up, one needs to check the Pixel configuration and connection, to ensure the uninterrupted flow of the data between the online store and the Meta ecosystem. Assuming that everything works, further steps include:

Go to Ads Manager:

• Click on “Create” to start a new campaign.
• Choose the objective “Catalog Sales.”

Select Your Catalog:

• Choose the catalog you created.
• Set Up Your Ad Set:
• Define your audience (e.g., people who viewed products but didn’t purchase).
• Set your budget and schedule.
• Choose placements (e.g., Facebook, Instagram).

Create Your Ad:

• Ad Format: Choose Carousel or Single Image.
• Ad Creative: Customize your ad with text, images, and links. Use dynamic placeholders like {{product.name}} to automatically populate product details.
• Tracking: Ensure your Facebook Pixel is selected to track conversions.

Review and Launch

• Purpose: Finalize and deploy your dynamic ad.
• Review Your Settings:
• Double-check all settings, audiences, and creative elements.

Publish:

• Click “Publish” to start your dynamic ad campaign.

The technology provided by the Meta ecosystem makes the process easy to go through. Yet simple clicking through is hardly launching a successful campaign. It is only a beginning of the journey toward the better efficiency and improved ad ROI.

Remember, you can make dynamic creatives by using creative management platforms, such as Cropink.

Dynamic Creative Optimization: Tips and Solutions

As mentioned above, the optimization process requires fewer resources and is highly automated using AI-powered solutions. Thus, the only real way to gain a competitive advantage is to infuse as much human touch and unique quality as possible. To do so, follow the tricks and best practices listed below:

Unleash Your Creativity

First and foremost, the key element that machines lack and humans possess is creativity. No matter if one is thinking about Large Language Models (LLMs) or other AI-powered systems, machines are only “stochastic parrots”unable to come up with something truly fresh, humorous, or witty. Inserting all these qualities into the ad creation process is the best way to build the AI system.

Test Multiple CTA Buttons

The CTA is the core of the ad, and it needs to be tested thoroughly. The more variants there are, the better conversion can be achieved, and overall the campaign will have a better ROI.

Keep Content Short

Modern social media are image-based. Therefore, the company needs to keep the copy straight to the point and as short as possible.

Invest in Visuals

As the reverse side of the same coin, the company that keeps the copy short needs to make the visuals as appealing as possible. The quality and creativity of the images are key factors impacting the campaign’s effect.

Use Loops and Animations

With the explosion of popularity of TikTok and Reels on Instagram and Facebook, the audience is increasingly interested in short video forms. Considering that, it is advised to use loops, animations, and short videos if possible.

Minimize the Number of Texts in Ads

With minimized copy and stunning visuals, it is easy to understand, that inserting additional texts to the images will not bring any advantages - it will rather backfire by blurring the message and confusing both the user and the system.

Remember About Branding

In the flurry of artistic creation, it is easy to forget about proper branding and emphasizing the importance of the company brand. All the materials, including copy, images, and videos, need to be properly branded to ensure that the user gets the desired message.

Assume a Lack of Audio

Last but not least, when preparing a video or animation, assume that the user will not hear the audio. The default setting of a movie or animation is without sound. Also, with users scrolling publicly, it is popular to just turn off the sound to not bother people around.

Dynamic Creative Optimization Examples

All the suggestions enlisted above can be easy to implement alone, yet extremely tricky when one wishes to combine them. Yet delivering a striking and efficient ad that follows the suggestions above is totally possible - and there are examples!

ARKK Copenhagen

ARKK Copenhagen has delivered a super-short and straight-to-the-point copy,showing the reason to make a purchase (Black Friday) and a direct naming the product (300 Nordic Sneaker styles). The image shows a product in an intriguing, dynamic way. The image itself has information about the discount and a catchphrase (50% off, Black Friday). A truly minimalistic approach.

Via Vai

Another example from the fashion industry - the ad shows the product (shoes) in a glamour depiction, delivering a better usage context. The image provides the user only with information about a type of product (espadriles) and the price - nothing above the necessary minimum. The copy following the image is kept short and straightforward to not confuse the user.

Wild Protein

Wild Protein is a brand of protein bars and sweets aimed for active people, who look for healthy snacks to eat during or after the training. This ad shows not only a super-short copy, but also uses the background color to put more emphasis on flavor variety of bars. The message is delivered mostly by the powerful visuals composed of fitting colors.

Tools For Dynamic Creative Optimization

Optimizing dynamic creative ads is tricky and requires more human touch than one would assume. Yet it is nothing to be surprised about - the growing importance of Artificial Intelligence will encourage, and sometimes even force, brands and companies to make the best use of the creativity of their human employees.

Yet all creative individuals and talented employees need a support of proper and fitting tools. For example - delivering a thousand images depicting products, with catchy (yet short!) copy and stunning visuals may be an overwhelming task, as long as one has no access to tools like Cropink product feed management tool, that support creation with an automation. You can also use it like a campaign management software for Facebook and Instagram.

Check out product ad templates and dynamic ads templates.