Ad fatigue is a real concern and common challenge in today’s fast-paced digital marketing world.
However, by understanding its causes and symptoms, and adopting smart strategies and meaningful metrics, digital marketers can effectively manage and prevent ad fatigue, thus driving better results in their performance marketing efforts.
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What is ad fatigue?
Ad fatigue is a situation where your target audience becomes overly familiar with your ads, leading to a decrease in engagement and overall campaign effectiveness.
What causes ad fatigue?
There are a couple of factors that can trigger ad fatigue:
- Too similar creatives: When creatives are not diverse enough, audiences quickly tire, decreasing ad effectiveness
- Long campaign periods without creative refreshes: Overexposing an audience to the same campaign over an extended period without refreshing the ad creatives results in diminished interest and response.
- Missing a multi-marketing channel set: Relying solely on one platform like Meta or TikTok can lead to market saturation and eventually ad fatigue.
How to identify ad fatigue?
As long as you’re carefully monitoring your ad campaigns, you should be able to pick up on ad fatigue pretty fast. You just need to know the signs:
1. Low CTR (clickthrough rate)
While low clickthrough rates can be a sign of different problems with your ads, a dip in this metric is a strong indicator you’re dealing with ad fatigue—especially if your numbers started out well and took a significant dive after a few weeks.
2. High CPA and low conversion rate
Low CTRs alone may not be enough for you to ring the ad fatigue alarm. But combine that with a high CPA, and chances are you need to take another look at your campaign. Again, if your CPA started out strong, and then dipped after a few weeks, ad fatigue could be the problem.
3. Lesser engagement
Getting lower levels of engagement on your ads is enough to tell you they’re not really working. A decrease in engagement over time can signal their effectiveness is declining as well.
How to fix ad fatigue?
1. Customise frequency
Google Ads platform allows marketers to customize the frequency of a campaign, which is basically setting a limit on how often a user sees your ad within a specific timeframe. This can prevent overexposure and reduce the chances of ad fatigue.
While the right cap depends on your campaign, audience, and goals, a good starting point is typically around 3-5 impressions per user per day and 1-2 views per week. You can adjust based on how your audience responds.
2. Rotate creative assets
Keep your ad content fresh by regularly updating videos, copy, and images. This doesn’t mean changing the entire campaign but subtle changes to keep the audience engaged.
3. Segment your audience
Instead of blasting the same ad to your entire audience, segment them based on behaviors, demographics, or interests. Tailored ads to specific segments can result in more meaningful engagement.
4. Retarget intelligently
While retargeting is an effective strategy, bombarding users with the same ad after they’ve visited your site can be counterproductive. Customize retargeting ads and ensure they’re not repetitive.
5. Gather feedback
Use surveys or feedback tools to understand if your audience feels overwhelmed by your ads. This direct feedback can be invaluable in adjusting your strategies.
Want to brainstorm with our team on new ways to scale your business with YouTube Ads (and other performance video platforms)?
Join us for a free YouTube ad brainstorming session👇
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Jovan Simic, Account Manager
Jovan Simic is an experienced media buyer responsible for over $30M in profitable ad spend. At Inceptly, Jovan has collaborated with prominent brands, including Advanced Bionutritionals, Amplify Solar, Fittrack, John Crestani, and The Social Man, demonstrating his versatility and expertise. His deep understanding of media buying and consistent track record of success make him an invaluable asset to the industry.
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