🧠 Complete Guide To Mastering Meta Ads: From Zero to 9 Figures

Welcome back to the 40th edition of Nord Media

Before we get started, is there anything specific you want to learn about? Let me know, as always I appreciate all of you who reply each week and share feedback with me.

Now, speaking of feedback and differing opinions...

There’s always a debate about Meta Ads. 

Some swear it’s the ultimate cheat code for growth, while others call it a money pit.

So, who’s right?

Growth will inevitably feel impossible when a business launches, but no one knows it exists. 

So when you strategically place your brand everywhere, reaching all the right people at the right time.

Suddenly, sales start rolling in, and growth takes off.

Meta Ads can be the tool that bridges that gap, but like any strategy, it’s about using it the right way. 

Here’s how to improve your approach and make Meta Ads work for you.

The Basics

Before getting into the strategies, it’s key to understand your target audience, which typically falls into three categories:

1. Cold Market: These are people who don’t know your business exists. They’re not interested yet because they’ve never even heard of you.

2. Warm Market: These folks have been introduced to your business. They’re curious but not ready to buy.

3. Hot Market: These are your buyers. They know and love your brand and might be ready for more.

Meta Ads works to move people through these stages with three campaign types:

1. Awareness Campaigns – Perfect for the cold market. These ads introduce your business to people who’ve never heard of it, building brand recognition.

2. Consideration Campaigns – Target the warm market. Share more about your products, highlight benefits, and use testimonials to spark their interest.

3. Conversion Campaigns – Focus on the hot market. These people are on the verge of buying, so close the deal with irresistible offers, like limited-time promos.

Not every cold lead becomes warm, and not every warm lead turns into a hot buyer. 

That’s okay! The goal is to narrow your audience to those most likely to convert, giving you better results over time.

Aligning with Meta’s Objectives for Smarter Campaigns

If you want your Meta Ads to perform, the first step is understanding the platform’s goals. 

Meta has been pushing toward simpler, more automated campaign setups for a while now, putting machine learning in the driver’s seat.

What does that mean for you? 

Keep your campaign structures clean and straightforward so the algorithm can do its thing. 

The simpler you keep it, the better Meta’s machine learning works to optimize your ads.

But to truly understand how your ads are doing, you need to organize your data. 

A solid column setup helps you see what’s working—and what isn’t—at a glance. 

Here’s what you’ll want to track:

Soft Metrics

• Reach: How many people are seeing your ad.

• Impressions: Total views, including repeats.

• Frequency: How often the same people see your ad.

• Amount Spent: What you’ve spent so far.

• Outbound Clicks: How many clicked to your site.

• Cost per Outbound Click: How much each click is costing you.

• Outbound CTR: How well your ad drives clicks.

Conversion & Funnel Metrics

• Add to Carts: How many people added something to their cart.

• Cost per Add to Cart: What it’s costing you to get those adds.

• Checkouts Initiated: People starting the checkout process.

• Cost per Checkout Initiated: Average cost for this action.

• Website Purchases: How many sales you’re actually making.

• NC-CPA: New customer acquisition cost (track it in tools like TripleWhale).

• NC-ROAS: Return on ad spend for new customers (also tracked in TripleWhale).

Creative Performance Metrics

• Thumb-Stop Ratio: How many viewers stick around for at least 3 seconds.

• Hold Rate: Percentage of people who watch 75% of your video.

• Drop-Off Rates: Where viewers bail out:

• 0–25%

• 25–50%

• 50–75%

• 75–100%

Organizing your columns like this gives you a complete picture of what’s happening—from who’s clicking to how well your creative keeps people engaged. 

With these, you can fine-tune your campaigns and focus on what areas drive results.

Creative Iteration

Creative iteration might demand time and resources, but it’s one of the most powerful tools for growth in Meta advertising. 

With limited targeting customization available in Meta’s broad and ASC models, your creative is your standout weapon. 

It helps you stand out and make sure your ads reach the right people.

The challenge comes with staying on top of what works. 

To maximize your impact: 

• You need to constantly test and analyze your creative to see what clicks with your audience.

• Instead of manually combing through endless data exports and spreadsheets, using tools that simplify creative insights can save time and deliver clearer results. 

• Platforms that visualize performance trends make it easier for media buyers and creatives to adjust their approach, helping you uncover the formats and styles that drive actual engagement.

Diversifying your creative is absolutely non-negotiable.

Different segments of your audience will respond to different formats, styles, and influencers. 

Testing a mix of everything allows you to identify what sticks—and scale your wins.

How to Set Your Starting Budget

To get results, you need a budget big enough to hit the conversion threshold required to exit the learning phase. 

The learning phase for Meta Ads is the period when Meta’s algorithm gathers data to optimize your campaign performance. It requires around 50 conversions to exit and stabilize delivery.

Here’s how to calculate it:

• Say your AOV (Average Order Value) is $150.

• You’re aiming for a 2x ROAS, which means your target CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost) is $50.

• To exit the learning phase, Meta requires 50 conversions within a 7-day attribution window.

Budget formula:
50 conversions × $50 CAC = $2,500 (total weekly budget)

Now, break that down to a daily budget:
$2,500 ÷ 7 days = $357/day

That’s your starting daily budget per campaign or test.

 Creativeos OS has launched their Black Friday offer.

Our first ever discount - just in time for all of your creative needs this Black Friday.

For a very limited time you can save 50% off your first 3 months with code "BFCM" at checkout. We're only offering this discount once a year (if we ever do it again). Don't miss out...

That means you get access to over 2000+ templates for only $25 🤯

Sign up today 👉 https://creativeos.com/blackfriday

The Testing Period

The outdated theory about launching new tests daily or every other day is not worth the chaos it causes in your ad account.

Here’s why:

1. Constantly launching tests introduces too much volatility.

2. Ad accounts are more fragile now than ever. Even minor tweaks can throw your account back into the learning phase.

3. If more than 20% of your budget is in the learning phase, expect your performance to tank.

A Better Way to Test

To keep things stable and actionable:

1. Set a schedule: Launch all your tests on the same day every week.

2. Let them run: Give them at least 7 days before making changes.

3. Exceptions are rare: Only pause or adjust early if something extreme happens, like sky-high CPCs or burning through hundreds/thousands with zero conversions.

4. Evaluate after 7 days: Use that data to plan your next moves.

This process makes sure you’re working with clean data and reduces unnecessary volatility, giving your campaigns the best shot at success.

Closing Thoughts

Don’t let the doubters steer you away from paid ads.

While Meta Ads, like any platform, may feel like a high-risk venture for some, it holds immense potential when approached strategically. 

It’s an evolving experiment. Constant adjustments and learning from every result will bring you closer to success.

Test.
Tweak.
Study the funnel.
Identify the leaks and patch them up. 

Take it one step at a time—small wins will lead to big gains.

Want to learn from me or connect on other platforms? 👇
 LinkedIn • Instagram • Twitter 

Thank you for reading! I appreciate you.

Sincerely,
Kody