Facebook Ads Are Falling Apart (The Andromeda Update)

SUMMARY

Dr. Matt Shiver explains Meta's Andromeda AI update from July 2024, disrupting Facebook and Instagram ads by prioritizing creative diversity over generic hooks, and shares strategies to adapt campaigns for better performance.

STATEMENTS

Meta's Andromeda algorithm update, fully rolled out in July 2024, enhances ad retrieval by narrowing millions of ads to thousands of personalized candidates faster and smarter.
Previously effective generic hooks targeting broad audiences like "busy moms losing 20 pounds" no longer scale well due to Andromeda's demand for creative diversity.
Creative diversity involves meaningful variations in ads, including unique concepts, angles, formats like videos, static images, and carousels, rather than minor tweaks or duplicates.
Targeting now primarily occurs at the ad level through specific copy and creatives, as broad Advantage+ audiences outperform tight audience restrictions.
Advertisers should use Advantage+ campaigns, including budget, targeting, and creative features, while optimizing for qualified events to avoid junk leads.
Campaign structures should simplify to one campaign per goal with a single broad ad set containing 10 to 50 diverse ads, eliminating multiple ad sets for audiences or funnels.
Ad limits per ad set have expanded beyond the old six-ad recommendation, with successful cases using up to 50 ads, as Meta no longer enforces strict caps.
To manage learning phases, launch new creative batches 1 to 2 times per month instead of weekly, adding 10 to 50 ads at once to minimize resets.
Within a single ad set, top-of-funnel, middle-of-funnel, and bottom-of-funnel ads now collaborate, driving to the same lead magnet for unified optimization.
Meta representatives may lack training on Andromeda, so advertisers must self-educate to avoid outdated strategies from coaches or reps.
Value rules in Advantage+ audiences allow bid adjustments, like reducing by 90% for unwanted demographics such as older age groups, to refine broad targeting.

IDEAS

Andromeda solves Meta's ad retrieval problem by processing vast ad volumes to deliver hyper-personalized placements, shifting from broad appeals to tailored diversity.
Generic hooks that once boosted reach now hinder performance, as the AI favors niche, varied creatives that match specific user profiles precisely.
Advertisers who resist the algorithm by manual testing single ads will fail against Meta's data-driven system, which outperforms human intuition.
Broad targeting with ad-level specificity turns the platform's scale into an advantage, letting AI handle personalization while creators focus on variety.
Funnel stages blend seamlessly in one ad set, where awareness-building stories and conversion-focused testimonials reinforce each other dynamically.
Launching 10-50 ads monthly prevents frequent learning phase resets, creating a self-pruning system where underperformers naturally fade.
Value rules offer a subtle hack for broad audiences, deprioritizing mismatches like older demographics without rigid exclusions.
Creative refreshment reuses winning elements in new formats, like converting videos to carousels, to sustain momentum without starting from scratch.
Outdated multi-ad-set structures, once organized, now fragment data sharing, reducing overall campaign efficiency under the new AI.
Self-education on updates trumps reliance on reps or coaches, as Meta's rapid changes outpace official training programs.
Pixel health is crucial for Advantage+ success, filtering for qualified leads to train the AI on high-value conversions rather than volume.

INSIGHTS

Algorithmic personalization demands creative abundance over perfection, empowering AI to curate ads while human ingenuity provides the raw variety for optimal matches.
Broad targeting amplifies ad-level precision, transforming platform scale from a retrieval bottleneck into a strength for nuanced user engagement.
Funnel integration within single ad sets fosters symbiotic performance, where diverse creatives collectively guide users through journeys more effectively than siloed approaches.
Monthly creative drops balance innovation with stability, mitigating learning disruptions to sustain long-term scaling without constant resets.
Value rules enable ethical refinement of broad audiences, bridging AI freedom with strategic exclusions to enhance relevance without over-constraining.
Prioritizing qualified events conditions pixels for quality, ensuring volume-driven tools deliver meaningful outcomes rather than superficial metrics.

QUOTES

"Facebook realized that their issue was that they had a hard time with ad retrieval. And that's essentially means they had so many ads. They had so many advertisers. They had a hard time putting the right ad in front of the right person."
"Creative diversity does not mean just pumping out near duplicates with minor tweaks. It's about creating a range of ads that differ in meaningful ways."
"Do not do that. I'm telling you right now, instead what Facebook wants you to do is instead of trying to chase that combo, it wants you to load it up."
"We have campaign. And then we do this one ad set. And then we have 10 to 50 ads in that one ads set. And this ad set is broad."
"The ads work together, right? So you might have a top of funnel ad, right? Then you also might have a middle of funnel ad and then you also might have a bottom of funnel ad."

HABITS

Launch 10-50 diverse ads into a single broad ad set 1-2 times per month to avoid frequent learning phase resets while maintaining creative freshness.
Daily monitor ad spend within campaigns, pruning non-performing creatives that receive zero impressions to focus budget on viable options.
Refresh winning ads by repurposing successful elements into new formats, such as turning videos into carousels or static images, before monthly drops.
Condition pixels by optimizing for qualified events like booked calls, adding friction in funnels to filter junk leads and train the AI effectively.
Use Advantage+ defaults with value rules for bid adjustments on demographics, reviewing and tweaking them based on engagement patterns.

FACTS

Meta's Andromeda update was announced December 2, 2024, but fully deployed to advertisers in July 2024, causing erratic cost per click and lead fluctuations.
The algorithm processes millions of ads down to a few thousand candidates per user, claiming faster, smarter, and more personal delivery than prior systems.
Meta partners with Nvidia for AI advancements, though specifics on ad impacts remain sparse in official engineering posts.
Recommended ads per ad set rose from one or three in earlier years to six, and now lacks any enforced limit, with 50-ads setups succeeding.
Advantage+ campaigns now include value rules for audience refinements, added recently to allow bid penalties like 90% reductions for specific ages.

REFERENCES

Engineering at Meta post on December 2, 2024, detailing AI algorithm updates and Nvidia partnership.
Jon Loomer's article on Meta Andromeda, providing user-friendly breakdown of ad retrieval improvements.
Free consultation call link for scaling coaching businesses.
Instagram Ads + AI guide for online coaching clients.
Meta Ads Manager's opportunity score pushing Advantage+ features.
VSL funnel examples for lead generation in coaching.

HOW TO APPLY

Set up a single campaign optimized for a specific goal, such as booked calls, using Advantage+ budget optimization to distribute spend dynamically across elements.
Create one broad ad set with Advantage+ audience targeting, setting minimum age like 25 and adding value rules to decrease bids by 90% for unwanted groups like those over 55.
Develop 10-50 diverse ads including varied formats (videos, carousels, statics), concepts (pain points, stories, testimonials), and angles, ensuring all drive to the same lead magnet.
Launch the full batch of new creatives 1-2 times monthly, publishing them simultaneously to minimize learning phase disruptions on the ad set.
Monitor daily for non-spending ads, analyze surviving performers for themes, then refresh winners into new formats while adding 10-20 fresh angles for the next drop.

ONE-SENTENCE TAKEAWAY

Embrace creative diversity in broad Advantage+ ad sets to harness Andromeda's personalization for scaling Meta ads effectively.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Abandon generic broad hooks in favor of niche, varied creatives to align with Andromeda's preference for meaningful ad differences.
Simplify to one broad ad set per campaign with 10-50 ads, letting AI handle targeting through ad copy rather than manual audience restrictions.
Optimize for qualified events like calls, not just leads, and condition your pixel with friction to attract high-intent traffic.
Schedule creative launches monthly to preserve learning phase stability, focusing on collaboration across funnel stages in unified sets.
Self-educate on updates via reliable sources, as Meta reps and traditional coaches may lag behind rapid algorithmic shifts.

MEMO

In the high-stakes world of digital advertising, Meta's Andromeda update has upended strategies for businesses relying on Facebook and Instagram to reach customers. Rolled out fully in July 2024 after a December announcement, the AI-driven algorithm addresses long-standing retrieval challenges by sifting through millions of ads to deliver hyper-personalized placements. Dr. Matt Shiver, a business coach specializing in online scaling, warns that outdated tactics—like broad generic hooks appealing to "busy moms trying to lose 20 pounds"—are now faltering, with costs soaring and scalability crumbling for unaware advertisers.

Shiver demystifies Andromeda's core demand: creative diversity. No longer content with minor variations, such as tweaking hooks on a single video, the system thrives on ads that vary meaningfully in concepts, formats, and angles. Short vertical videos might pair with carousels or static images, each tackling different pain points or personas. "Creative diversity does not mean just pumping out near duplicates," Shiver emphasizes, urging creators to load campaigns with unique assets. This shift empowers the AI to match ads precisely to users, but it requires advertisers to relinquish control over "perfect" combos and trust the algorithm's vast data trove.

Targeting has evolved too, moving from rigid ad-set audiences to broad Advantage+ setups where the ad copy itself does the heavy lifting. Shiver advises single broad ad sets housing 10 to 50 diverse creatives, eliminating fragmented structures that once isolated top-, middle-, and bottom-funnel efforts. These elements now collaborate within one set, from personal stories building awareness to testimonials driving conversions, all funneling to a unified lead magnet like a value video sales letter. To refine without over-constraining, value rules allow bid reductions—say, 90% for older demographics—keeping things expansive yet strategic.

Practical adaptation hinges on rhythm and refinement. Shiver recommends monthly drops of fresh creatives, rather than weekly tweaks, to sidestep disruptive learning phases that reset performance data. Daily checks prune non-spenders, informing refreshes where winners morph into new formats, like a viral video becoming a carousel. Pixel health is non-negotiable: optimize for qualified events, such as booked calls, to train the AI on value over volume and filter junk leads through added funnel friction.

For coaches and entrepreneurs, this update signals a pivot toward abundance and agility. While Meta reps admit to playing catch-up, self-reliant advertisers who diversify and simplify stand to gain. As platforms evolve faster than ever, ignoring Andromeda risks obsolescence; embracing it could unlock unprecedented personalization in an ad-saturated digital landscape.