<!-- SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT -->
<!-- SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2025-2026 Marcus Quinn -->

# Meta Ads Mastery

Comprehensive Meta (Facebook/Instagram) advertising knowledge base. Covers algorithm fundamentals through advanced scaling strategies.

## Two-Campaign Framework (Source of Truth)

**Credit:** Tony Yu (The Fortune Cookie Show)

1. **Testing (ABO)** — ad-set-level budget, one creative angle per ad set, kill losers fast → `meta-ads-campaigns-testing-abo.md`
2. **Scaling (CBO)** — campaign-level budget, duplicate proven winners from ABO, let Meta optimize → `meta-ads-campaigns-scaling-cbo.md`

**Key rules:** ABO for testing (you control budget per creative). CBO for scaling (Meta optimizes among winners). Never add untested creative directly to CBO.

## 2026 Reality

- **Creative is the new targeting** — 70-80% of performance from creative quality
- **Broad targeting beats micro-targeting** — Meta's AI outperforms audience hypotheses
- **Advantage+ is the default** — manual campaigns for niche situations only
- **Video dominates** — Reels/short-form outperforms static by 50%+
- **CAPI is mandatory** — pixel-only tracking misses 30-50% of conversions

What still works: PAS copywriting, customer testimonials, retargeting warm audiences, first-party data, the two-campaign structure.

## File Index

### Foundations

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-foundations-algorithm.md` | How Meta's auction + ML works |
| `meta-ads-foundations-attribution.md` | Measuring true impact |
| `meta-ads-foundations-account-structure.md` | Campaigns, ad sets, ads |
| `meta-ads-foundations-glossary.md` | Every term defined |

### Campaigns

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-campaigns-testing-abo.md` | Creative testing framework (budget rules, kill/graduate criteria) |
| `meta-ads-campaigns-scaling-cbo.md` | Scaling proven winners (budget increases, duplication) |
| `meta-ads-campaigns-retargeting.md` | Converting warm audiences |
| `meta-ads-campaigns-advantage-plus.md` | ASC and automation |
| `meta-ads-campaigns-decision-trees.md` | When to use what |

### Creative

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-creative-psychology.md` | Attention science and persuasion |
| `meta-ads-creative-formats.md` | Video, static, carousel, UGC |
| `meta-ads-creative-hooks.md` | 100+ proven hooks |
| `meta-ads-creative-scripts.md` | Video and UGC scripts |
| `meta-ads-creative-frameworks.md` | PAS, AIDA, BAB, FAB, storytelling, proof frameworks, copy formulas |
| `meta-ads-creative-production.md` | Workflow and systems |
| `meta-ads-creative-briefs-ugc-brief.md` | UGC creator brief template |
| `meta-ads-creative-briefs-testimonial-brief.md` | Testimonial brief template |
| `meta-ads-creative-briefs-founder-video-brief.md` | Founder video brief template |

### Audiences

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-audiences-targeting-strategies.md` | All targeting approaches |
| `meta-ads-audiences-retargeting-setup.md` | Audience configuration |
| `meta-ads-audiences-first-party-data.md` | CRM and customer lists |

### Optimization

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-optimization-metrics.md` | All metrics explained with benchmarks (ROAS, CPA, CTR, CPL, hook/hold rates) |
| `meta-ads-optimization-scaling.md` | Scaling playbook |
| `meta-ads-optimization-troubleshooting.md` | Common issues and fixes (not spending, CPA spikes, account disabled) |
| `meta-ads-optimization-automation-rules.md` | Automated rules |

### Tooling

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-tooling-cli.md` | Official `meta ads` CLI — execution layer for the strategy docs above (campaigns, ad sets, ads, creatives, catalogs, datasets, insights). PAUSED-by-default; AI-agent friendly output formats; env-var auth. |

### Checklists

| File | Topic |
|------|-------|
| `meta-ads-checklists-campaign-launch.md` | Pre-launch checklist |
| `meta-ads-checklists-weekly-review.md` | Weekly optimization |
| `meta-ads-checklists-creative-review.md` | Creative QA |
| `meta-ads-checklists-scaling-checklist.md` | Before scaling |
