Twelve interests, tiny audience, high costs
A Trivandrum wedding photographer targeted women 24–30 interested in weddings, bridal makeup, engagement and nine more interests, within 10 km. The audience was too small and CPMs were high.
We tested a broad ad set (Trivandrum + 25 km, 22–40, no interests) against it, using the same creatives that spoke to brides-to-be.
Broad brought enquiries 35% cheaper, because Meta found the right people from the creative and conversion signals.
Illustrative example based on a common pattern in Kerala e-commerce accounts. Numbers rounded.
What ad targeting is
Meta’s Advantage+ audience treats your inputs as suggestions and can go beyond them; age minimums and locations remain hard limits.
Custom audiences (website visitors, customers, video viewers) and lookalikes are still useful for retargeting and seeding. Exclusions keep existing customers out of acquisition campaigns.
Targeting = location + age + (interests / keywords / custom audiences) − exclusions
Targeting setup check
Check your targeting setup.
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Targeting options by platform
| Option | Best for |
|---|---|
| Meta broad / Advantage+ audience | Prospecting with good creative and tracking |
| Meta interests | New accounts with little data, niche tests |
| Custom and lookalike audiences | Retargeting and seeding with customer data |
| Google Search keywords | Catching active demand |
How experienced marketers use Targeting
1. Local services
Tight location radius, broad interests, strong local creative.
2. E-commerce
Broad prospecting plus catalog retargeting.
3. B2B
LinkedIn job titles, or Google keywords with clear B2B intent.
What good looks like
| Business type | Starting rule | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Meta prospecting audience | 500k+ people | Starting rule; smaller for local services. |
| Interests per ad set | 0–5 | Stacking many adds little. |
| Customer list for lookalikes | 1,000+ people | Meta’s minimum is 100. |
When the number lies
- Audience size estimates
- Meta’s estimated audience size is a rough range, not a count.
- Advantage+ expands
- Your interest suggestions may not limit delivery at all.
Mistakes to avoid
Over-narrow targeting
High CPM and fast creative fatigue.
No exclusions
Paying to reach existing customers.
Google Ads “Presence or interest” for local services
Ads shown to people far outside your area.
Related terms
Questions people ask about ad targeting
What is ad targeting?
Choosing who can see your ads by location, demographics, interests, keywords or your own audience lists.
Is broad targeting better on Facebook?
Often, if you have good creative and conversion tracking. Test it against your current setup.
What are custom audiences?
Audiences built from your own data, such as website visitors, customers or video viewers.
How do I target a city in Google Ads?
Add the city or a radius, and set location options to Presence (people in or regularly in the area).
Put it into practice
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