New Social Media Ads Optimize Automatically
By: Colleen Duffy
July 28, 2025
For years, the gold standard of paid social strategy was audience precision: layering in demographics, interests, behaviors, zip codes, and more to handcraft the perfect target. At Odney, we’ve long used advanced data tools to reach the right people with the right message at the right time.
But a major shift is underway — and it’s coming from the platforms themselves.
Meta, YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, and others are increasingly favoring broad targeting and outcome-based optimization. For some advertisers, this shift can feel counterintuitive: if we know our ideal customer, why not tell the platform exactly who to go after?
Here’s the truth: broad targeting isn’t lazy — it’s strategic. And it’s producing better results.
The Algorithm Now Knows More Than We Do
Social platforms have gotten smarter. With advances in machine learning and real-time performance tracking, platforms can now:
- Predict which users are most likely to engage, click, or convert
- Adjust delivery dynamically as campaigns run
- Learn from creative performance signals (watch time, reactions, etc.)
When we give the algorithm more flexibility through broad audiences, it has the freedom to learn, test, and optimize toward the best results — often at a lower cost.
Privacy Changes Have Reshaped Targeting
In recent years, privacy updates like Apple’s iOS14+ and data regulations (GDPR, CCPA) have dramatically reduced the precision of traditional audience targeting:
- Interest-based and behavioral targeting pools are smaller and less reliable
- Retargeting audiences are smaller
- 3rd-party data is fading
As a result, platforms are leaning on first-party signals (what people do in real time) and performance outcomes (purchases, sign-ups, video views).
So… Should We Still Target Specific Audiences?
Yes! But differently. Instead of handpicking every interest or narrowing by age and location, we now recommend:
- Using broad or Advantage+ targeting to let the platform find your converters
- Layering in strong creative, messaging, and offers that resonate
- Leveraging first-party data lists (email, CRM, web visitors) to target warm users
- Setting up clear conversion goals (traffic, video views, purchases, etc.)
- Testing and learning: broad vs. segmented setups side-by-side to compare results
What This Means for Your Brand
At Odney, our job is to stay ahead of these shifts and guide your strategy through the ever-changing world of social media. While the platforms evolve, our approach remains rooted in data, performance, and results.
You’ll see our team:
- Leaning into broad targeting where performance warrants it
- Optimizing toward clear goals like awareness, engagement, or action
- Adjusting ad creative based on real-time insights
- Testing multiple setups and letting data lead the way
- Leveraging first- and second-party data lists when more specific targeting is necessary
Ultimately, this change is a good thing. It’s helping brands scale more efficiently, reduce costs, and unlock new high-performing audiences they may not have considered.
Colleen Duffy plays a key role in creating a strong brand identity for our clients across all social media platforms. She provides measurable and meaningful results by developing and executing of both paid and organic social media strategies. She continuously researches and stays up to date with current trends to ensure we never miss an opportunity to share our clients’ stories. Whether she is managing day-to-day postings or undertaking a comprehensive social media campaign, she always goes above and beyond.