ClickZ Meta Insider Newsletter | The Rise of CTV Advertising📺

Plus: Why Meta’s AI ads are crushing CTR benchmarks🚀

Author

Rafe Houston
April 23, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

Heads up! To ensure you continue receiving our newsletters, please add [email protected] to your contact list!

Welcome to Meta Insider, your essential newsletter for insights into the latest trends and innovations shaping Meta’s advertising and social media strategies.

Sector Spotlight 🎥

RETAIL MEDIA INNOVATION

Meta is aggressively pursuing retail media budgets by expanding marketplace API access, providing granular data sharing—including product-level reports and impression logs—and introducing ad formats that drive both online and in-store sales. These moves directly target marketers seeking more actionable insights and performance measurement as retail media spending grows. For marketing professionals, Meta’s approach not only offers enhanced attribution but also opens broader partnership opportunities in a competitive landscape.

INNOVATIVE AD TECHNOLOGIES

Meta’s AI-powered ad tools, including Advantage Creative and Andromeda targeting, now enable marketers to rapidly test and optimize creative variations, resulting in an 11% higher click-through rate and 22% more revenue per dollar spent compared to conventional campaigns. These tools streamline campaign setup, drive a 9% lower cost per action, and allow businesses to discover new audiences through creative diversification, offering measurable ROI improvements. Marketers poised to refine their audience targeting and boost returns should consider incorporating Meta’s AI solutions into their media strategies.

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Instagram's 2025 algorithm prioritizes engagement metrics like watch time and shares to enhance content visibility, urging marketers to optimize profiles, create engaging Reels, and use AI tools for audience insights. Understanding these factors helps target both existing and potential followers effectively, driving growth and adapting to future algorithm shifts. Key takeaways include:

  • Enhanced Collab Tools: Tag multiple collaborators on a post to cross-promote to wider audiences.

  • Add Yours Templates: This sticker trend boosts Stories engagement and encourages user interaction.

  • Comment Pinning: Use it strategically to highlight positive or relevant feedback and guide conversation tone.

  • Customisable Story Highlights: Treat Highlights like a mini-website—organised, branded, and clear.

  • Instagram Notes: Resurfacing in 2025 as a great way to drop quick updates or promos directly in DMs.

  • AI-Powered Captions & Filters: New AI integrations help streamline content creation and personalization.

STRATEGIC AI INTEGRATION

Meta has blocked Apple Intelligence writing tools on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads for iOS, signaling ongoing competitive tensions amidst the rapid growth of AI in digital media. For marketers, this limits cross-platform AI-driven content creation within Meta apps and highlights the importance of platform-specific content strategies. Awareness of shifting integrations is essential for maintaining agility in campaign planning.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT - AD PLATFORM STRATEGY

Choosing between Google Ads and Meta Ads should align with your advertising goals, audience behavior, and budget strategies. Google Ads excels in capturing high-intent searches, making it ideal for industries like legal services, home services, and significant eCommerce due to its conversion potential. In contrast, Meta Ads thrive in fostering demand and driving immediate conversions for products that appeal visually or impulsively, benefiting fashion, beauty, and home décor.

As advertising costs climb and automation becomes prevalent, advertisers must craft a flexible strategy leveraging both platforms. The optimal approach combines high-intent conversions via Google Ads with demand generation and branding through Meta Ads, ensuring a diversified and responsive ad spend. Emphasize creative work that resonates across channels, harnessing automation while maintaining human oversight. By embracing a hybrid strategy, marketers can navigate changing trends effectively, adapting to seasonal shifts and emerging consumer behaviors with agility.

Influencer Corner 📢

🚨BRANDS…PLEASE stop doing this.

Too many marketers stop describing their solution 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 once they understand it. 🤣 (Which, I totally get. Once you’ve mastered the solution you no longer act, speak, or teach like a newbie anymore...)

But that’s exactly where the trouble starts.

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗴𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗔𝗞 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

B2B marketers are eating your lunch. And they’re doing it with an ad…

DTC brands, B2B marketers are crushing it with an ad format you’re missing. The trick? Founder-first LinkedIn posts.

Forget the fluffy brand talk—share real product-building insights: prototypes, feedback, debates, and decisions. It sparks genuine engagement, builds community, and drives top-of-funnel traffic.

When founders speak directly to the audience, they convert. Why isn’t your brand doing this yet?

Optimization Hub ⚙️

PERFORMANCE MARKETING

Setting up a Google Ads campaign that delivers measurable ROI requires marketers to focus on precise keyword research, tightly themed ad groups, conversion tracking, and disciplined budget management. Effective campaigns prioritize search intent and avoid wasted spend by excluding broad match and vague keywords. This approach grants actionable clarity, making it essential for professionals aiming to maximize efficiency in eCommerce and service-based lead generation.

CTV MARKETING STRATEGY

CTV advertising is gaining traction as marketers react to tariff-driven economic uncertainty by reallocating budgets from linear TV to measurable, performance-focused channels. With 81% of U.S. advertisers prioritizing accountability, CTV’s advanced targeting and real-time optimization ensure both reach and ROI without sacrificing visibility. This shift offers marketers actionable ways to make every media dollar more effective in uncertain conditions.

DELIVERY INNOVATION

Walmart’s adoption of geospatial data science technology expands delivery coverage to 12 million more U.S. households, offering improved accuracy and real-time logistics that facilitate same-day service and consolidated order fulfillment. Marketers should note this as a critical shift in last-mile delivery capabilities, redefining consumer access and expectations in eCommerce fulfillment.

📲 Like what you’re seeing?

Get real-time insights from top industry events, expert takes, and behind-the-scenes content. Follow ClickZ on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube for your daily dose of marketing intel.

ClickZ is a Contentive publication in the DTC eCommerce division