Jon draws on the ups and downs of his business to explain what has motivated him the most -- and what has led to a lack of motivation.

If someone is served three ads on the day they ultimately convert, which ad gets credit? Do multiple ads get credit? Do they all get credit? Here's how it works...

The idea of publishing a video every day is overwhelming to most people. But the truth is that it's actually not that hard, as long as you're committed to it and have a no-excuses approach. It's not about batch-recording your videos either...

When I started testing an AI chatbot, I knew it had the potential to add value. But what I didn't anticipate was the indirect impact it's had on my content creation.

How much of your budget should you dedicate to remarketing? Start with the 80-20 rule. But there are four primary factors that could impact this approach.

Meta wants you to turn on Advantage+ Placements every time you create an ad set. If not, when should you? And when should you be more careful?

They may not be dead yet, but all signs are that we're heading in this direction. Here's why...

AI chatbots are new and exciting, but they're coming out so quickly that we may miss some obvious issues with how they work.

If you have a video that does way worse than your typical videos, don't be afraid of republishing it. You may be surprised by the results that you get.

It makes sense why some ad reviews can take a while. But there are others where there's no excuse. The inefficiency likely costs Meta.

Is it possible that Meta gave two different products nearly exactly the same name? It sure appears so. And what's the deal with naming everything Advantage and Advantage+? And what does that + even mean?

Over time, we tend to get stuck in our ways. We learn from what works and what doesn't work for us, and this results in strong opinions and rigid processes. This can be dangerous.

Stop blaming the system when your ads aren't working. Don't tell me that Facebook ads don't work. They don't work for you. The way that you're using them. But, they could work for you!

If you're a Facebook advertiser, I encourage you to be curious. Don't worry so much about what others are doing. Instead of asking whether you should do something, try it. Experiment!

Meta gives you a whole bunch of metrics to distract you with. Be careful. Ultimately, there are only a couple of metrics you should truly care about. Everything else is merely secondary or tertiary.

We often overthink things with Facebook ads. Whether it's the optimization, targeting, placements, number of ads, or number of ads. While there are exceptions, less is almost always more.

This isn't about exploiting the ads algorithm or understanding how to create ads it prefers. It's knowing that it's powerful, literal, and not perfect. Know how it works and why. And know how that can help and hurt you.

Being ethical should be a habit. The risk otherwise to your business is too great. Know the rules inside and out and do all you can to follow them. Ignorance is not an excuse.

In a recent report, Meta reported that the percentage of views that included links is down to 7.7%, which is nearly cut in half since the third quarter of 2021. What might explain this? And does it really mean anything?

Meta recently announced huge changes to Aggregated Event Measurement, which is their protocol for handling opt-outs. It seems to be great for advertisers, at least in terms of making it easier. But I have lots of questions!

It would be foolish to ignore Barcelona, Meta's Twitter competitor which is due to drop in June. While Meta doesn't have the best track record with copying competitors, this could be different...

If you're a Facebook advertiser, understand the nuance. There are so many factors that determine whether or not your ads are successful, and many of these factors are outside of your control. It's okay to say "It Depends."

Meta announced that the average ad price dropped for the fifth straight quarter, year-over-year. How is that possible? Here are five potential explanations...

It doesn't matter what your budget, industry, or product. This approach will work... Right??

I started my short-form video journey on October 1, 2022. Prior to that point, I mostly used Instagram as an ad placement. From that point forward, I've published more than 250 videos to Instagram Reels. Here's what happened...

I've had a YouTube channel since 2012, but I've been very inconsistent with it. While I recently surpassed 15,00 subscribers, much of that came during the first few years. Very little happened on my channel up until November. And then I started publishing my short-form videos there, too.

For the longest time, I would have agreed that it's a bad idea to try to be everywhere, and that you should focus on one or two platforms. That feeling changed with short-form video. Here's why...

You're bound to find yourself in a situation where you want to increase your budget. Unfortunately, it's entirely unclear how much you can increase it without ruining your results -- and Facebook's guidance on this is awful. Here's how you can approach it...

You start testing at a low budget. You get great results. Then you want to increase your budget, but you're afraid to make any changes that would restart the learning phase and impact those results. Maybe we're looking at this backward...

A really interesting thing happened recently. Someone who had never heard of me before, typed in a prompt to get a recommendation from ChatGPT for courses and resources to learn more about Facebook ads. The result was that it referred business to me. This marks a shift in how marketers look at ChatGPT and other answer engines powered by AI.

Jon just hit 100 days in a row publishing a video to start 2023, and he can feel this in his bones. This is the best way to make progress -- even if it isn't blatantly obvious from day-to-day or week-to-week.

If you struggle to maintain a productive daily routine, this is for you. I've struggled with this myself, but I've found a solution: Streaks.

If you're having issues with Meta spending your ads budget, it's often due to a restriction of the algorithm related to one of four things.

It doesn't matter what type of content creator you are, this is the key to success.

These are the things that I did to grow to 10,000 followers on TikTok in under six months. The number isn't everything, but it does matter.

What's the ideal length of a short-form video? Jon talks about what he does and why.

In the latest Pubcast, Luke and I recapped the latest in AI...

1:40 OpenAI, Google, and Bing AI Announcements
3:30 GPT4 Demo
8:31 Website Prototyping, Apps integrating with GPT (example: Be My Eyes)
15:54 OpenAI going closed source, visual element of GPT
22:20 Competition to be first, how everything is moving so fast
25:27 Hands-on with AI Search
37:56 Wrapping up, what should you do to keep up?

Enjoy!

Is there an ideal frequency for publishing short-form videos? Some have said 3-5 times. What does Jon do?

One of the biggest mistakes Facebook advertisers make is related to conversion rate. Here's an example of how not all clicks are created equal and how your overall conversion rate can make you do crazy things.

While the Audience Network placement has earned its bad reputation among Meta advertisers, there may be times when you should keep it on...

Jon used Resemble.ai to clone his voice for this episode. What do you think?

It's been popular lately to claim that Facebook remarketing is now dead. While certain types of remarketing (particularly general remarketing of all of your website visitors) may not be as effective or necessary as it once was, there are certain types of remarketing that are absolutely still useful. And if you aren't using them, you're missing an important opportunity.

You may have heard creators recommend reposting the same video multiple times on TikTok. I decided to try this out, and here's what happened...

Jon put off this episode for as long as he could. He discusses the three phases of procrastination that he has dealt with, and maybe it can help you.

1. Shame
2. Acceptance
3. Dealing with It Productively

I have the goal of publishing at least one video per day in 2023, and it has very little to do with strategy.

What is the best, easiest, and cheapest way to set up the Conversions API? The answer isn't that simple. How are you managing the pixel right now? Does that tool have a built-in solution? Do you want to continue using that tool?

Jon invites Joel Hughes to the Pub to discuss WordPress, GA4, and AI. Joel is the founder of Glass Mountains, which is a web support agency with clients in the UK and US (including Jon).

Topics covered...

0:23 Music, CDs, minidisc players, and what they're drinking (Corona and Manic Confidence Hazy Enough IPA).

5:00 The work Joel's team does for Jon as well as feelings on Cloudflare, Zaraz/GTM for pixel and API management, and the biggest mistakes people make with their websites.

19:15 Other tools and plugins that Joel recommends.

23:27 Preparing for GA4.

29:45 Preparing for AI and how it might integrate with websites; the impact to search referrals, jobs, and roles; and AI-generated content.

You can find Joel at glassmountains.co.uk and on TikTok at @glass_mountains and @thejoelhughes (for guitar stuff!).

There is a huge potential problem with Meta Verified that no one is talking about, and it's about what happens when a previously verified person cancels their subscription.

Now that the Meta Verified subscription package test is rolling out, what do I think about it? Yeah, I have some thoughts...

The test for the Meta Verified subscription package has begun in Australia and New Zealand. Here's what we know...

If you're a brand and business owner who relies heavily on organic search referrals, the future of search may be scary to you. What can you do to prepare?

Luke and I meet at the Pub to discuss the latest news related to search and AI. In this episode of The Pubcast, we talk about the following...

2:30 Bard and Bing Search announcements and what they mean
13:00 The future of Search referrals
21:23 Searching businesses: “What Does Jon Think?”
28:00 The future of content indexing
35:18 How SEO might be impacted
40:35 The ChatGPT timeline
49:17 AI going mainstream

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review!

How would AI-driven search engines (Answer engines) impact website content strategy? This is a question I've been asking myself as I consider the potential impact these search engines may have on organic referral traffic.

If you rely heavily on organic search referrals, you need to start asking this question. Your world may change very soon.

On one hand, we're in the midst of an AI renaissance. Facebook has the reputation of being on the cutting edge of automation, machine learning, and optimization. And yet, they still can't detect and deal with the most basic scams. Why?

Jon and Luke were joined at the Pub by Rachel Woods, founder of The AI Exchange (https://theaiexchange.com/). In addition to being an AI founder, Rachel is a must-follow on TikTok (The.Rachel.Woods), where she creates short videos that make the complex easier to understand.

In this episode, Rachel talks about...

2:06 Her background working for Meta
6:54 How she built her TikTok account quickly starting in November of 2022
11:22 How Rachel decided to work in AI while working in the wine industry
18:22 How AI can be used for automation
24:17 What she tells people who are afraid of their jobs getting replaced
30:17 What hasn't she automated yet that she wants to automate?
34:25 The importance of prompt engineering
42:54 Should we worry about privacy and sharing too much with AI?
48:10 What is the GPT Playground?

The future of AI is both exciting and scary. Some of the scary stuff is based on predictions, and we really don't know what's going to happen.

Seriously, I don't know. It's not my expertise.

But what absolutely is scary is the required change that is coming. We will need to change how we do business. How we consume content. Even how we live.

Everything is going to change super fast. And we don't know exactly what's going to change or how.

That's freaky.

We can prepare the best we can and put ourselves in the best possible situation. But the truth is that we are going to need to be flexible in the coming weeks, months, and years.

That's easier for some of us than others. I don't like change. Hell, I just hopped into video about eight years too late because of my resistance to change.

But the nice thing I can take from this is that it's change that we are all facing together. It won't be easy, but it will be easier as a group.

We can do this, y'all. I know we can.

It's okay to admit that you need a little bit of luck.

I don't mean that we don't deserve our success. But there's an element of being in the exact right place at the exact right time.

As I look back at the 11+ years in my business, I can't help but notice this. But I failed to appreciate it at the time.

I was laid off at the end of 2011. I wrote about Facebook ads -- not because I thought it was a smart topic (although it was), but because that's what I knew. I wrote a LOT because that's what I was good at and I didn't want to create videos. I had a soft-sell approach because I wasn't a marketer at heart.

All of this worked. It was the perfect time for all of this to work. It almost felt like it was set up for me to work. Not because it was some grand strategy of mine (it truly wasn't).

I'm not saying that I didn't work hard or that I SHOULDN'T have had success. I just realize now how the stars aligned for me.

The important lesson is that I took it for granted and maybe assumed that I did have some sort of magic touch, thinking that this approach worked then and would always work. It doesn't.

I had to evolve. I didn't (until recently). I'm now trying to catch back up.

Just remember that there are so many factors that contribute to your success, or lack thereof. Don't assume that what you've accomplished is some sort of blueprint that anyone could follow -- or even that you could follow again.

Along those lines, you might be doing everything right, but you just haven't had that break yet. It's easy to doubt yourself when that break hasn't come, that you're doing something wrong.

I'm getting more philosophical as my perspective grows longer in this journey. And this is something that has truly hit home lately.

What do you think?

In this episode, Jon and JR explore the contradictions related to the way many business partnerships start and why Jon struggles to form them.

I worked with ChatGPT to create a 60-second movie and then I recorded it.

Creating this script was a process. I asked ChatGPT some specific questions. I didn't like the initial results. I gave it more instruction.

It was a series of many prompts. It's important that you understand that this isn't as simple as telling it to write you a movie and it comes out the way you want it. You have an important role.

If you have anxiety about ChatGPT and AI making your job obsolete, allow me to talk you off of this ledge.

Is it scary? Yes. Absolutely. This technology is likely to be more impactful and disruptive than anything we've seen since the birth of the internet.

That's scary.

But think back to the advent of the internet. Think back to how business was done prior to that point. It was different. Was the internet scary? Yes!

Your clients suddenly had access to all of the information in the world. All they needed to do was use the internet or run a Google search. But they still hired you to do it for them because you were good at the internet.

AI is like this. It's going to make certain things much easier to do. Let's imagine, for example, that anyone could assemble an ads strategy or develop a website in a matter of minutes with the help of AI. Imagine how that changes things.

Well, your client may be able to do that. But so could all of their competitors. How are they going to separate themselves? How are they going to compete?

You will still be needed, assuming you don't stick your head in the sand and hope this technology goes away. It isn't going away.

How you are needed will change. But if you leverage the technology to make you better and more valuable at what you do, you will still be needed.

I fully admit that this is scary. The unknown makes me anxious, too. There's plenty of bad that could come from this technology. And the same can be said about the internet.

Try not to focus on doom and gloom hypotheticals. Get to know the technology. And understand how you can best leverage it.

That will put you so far ahead of most people, who will be reactive and struggle to catch up.

Jon and Luke discuss the potential impact and use cases of ChatGPT and AI during this incredible time of discovery, innovation, and change.

Much of the criticism and skepticism in reaction to ChatGPT and AI is misplaced due to a misunderstanding of its value and purpose. Let's shed some light on how you should look at it...

This is a question I get a lot. Should you update your creative every couple of weeks? Every month? How can you avoid ad creative fatigue? There are three factors to consider.

The most common question I get these days is how I edit my videos. In some cases, I think the question is misguided. But I explain what I do here...

If you're an entrepreneur, this is a critical time of the year. Start 2023 by doing these five things.

You should have revenue and KPI goals. But first, you need to establish content marketing production goals. If you accomplish them, you'll be more likely to reach those KPI goals.

While the claim that you can compete against yourself in the same auction is a myth, Auction Overlap can still lead to problems. In this Shot, Jon explains what Auction Overlap is and this issues that can result.

The Pubcast is back! After a long hiatus, Jon invites John Robinson, his business manager and Backup CEO, back to the Pub with drinks in hand.

Topics discussed:

• Taking the Pubcast for granted
• The importance of trying new things
• How velocity contributes to learning
• Why you should create bad videos
• The source of motivation
• Making the cash register go ka-ching
• The similarities between baseball and business
• Swimming and learning to float

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Here's how to create a powerful video funnel with Facebook ads.

1. Publish videos regularly to Facebook and Instagram. I'm publishing one or two Reels per day.

2. Create an audience of anyone who watched 95% of any of your videos during the past 7 days. You'll need to update this audience every time you publish a new video.

3. Target this group with another video. I use an Awareness campaign with Reach optimization because this is a small group, but use what you're comfortable with.

4. Create a custom audience of those who watched 95% of THAT video during the past 21 days or so. These people watched at least one video to completion during the past 7 days AND this video. They are clearly engaged.

5. Target this group to promote your product. Once again, I use Reach, but use what you want.

Feel free to try it out!

The content creation graveyard is littered with creators who started and gave up. The beginning is the hardest part. This is how you can approach short-form video with the right frame of mind...

Some of the conversions that Facebook reports in Ads Manager never required someone to click on your ad. Here are two examples.

If you host a podcast, it really is that simple...

If someone shares your ad and the person you did not pay to reach converts, Facebook will not report it. They could, but they don't. Likewise, if you have the pixel and conversion events on your website, Facebook knows if someone who engaged with your organic post converted. Facebook could highlight that, too. So, why don't they?

One of the most common sources of confusion among advertisers is a misunderstanding of how Facebook credits an ad for a conversion. Here's a quick explanation of how that works.

A successful 2023 starts with a plan. A plan requires prioritization and grouping of similar tasks by day to be as focused as possible. Here's how you can approach it...

Do you feel disorganized and scattered? It's probably because you're winging it. Here's how you can get focused and specialized...

Some of the most popular content attempts to tell us how easy it is to accomplish some of the most difficult things. We want easy when we are unable or willing to do the hard stuff. Embrace the difficulty. That's how you'll grow!

There are a couple of updates Facebook advertisers desperately need that could drastically improve the quality and effectiveness of video views audiences.

Should you go completely broad with your Facebook ads targeting? No interests, no lookalike audiences, nothing? The strategy actually has some merit, but only for certain circumstances.

The frustrating part about short-form video is that it's not always evident that you're making an impact. If you create videos the way I do, you will rarely see direct ROI. But I was given two powerful examples recently of the impact that these videos are making.

There are countless factors that contribute to the performance of your ads -- some that you can control and some you can't. Here are 20 in under 60 seconds...

The Audience Expansion products should work, in theory. But there's one underlying problem with how they work now. And that problem could easily be solved with the addition of a very basic feature.

If you're new to TikTok, you're not ready to create ads yet. Take a step back and go through this process first...

You cannot assume that all platforms are the same. Your goals can change because people on some platforms consume content differently. Here's what I learned...

As we head into Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday shopping season generally, know that this time isn't ideal for every brand. It's possible you should consider pulling back on ads by either lowering your budget or pausing for now.

Traffic and engagement campaigns for Facebook advertising are mostly unusable. But that could instantly change if Facebook made this one option available...

You can have Facebook optimize for a high Return on Ad Spend rather than focusing on the volume of purchases. Here's how that works...

Jon is suddenly hyper-focused on creating TikTok ads-related content. Why is that? Is he abandoning Facebook? Let's get straight to the point...

The algorithm is powerful. It can do things quickly and automatically that is simply not possible to do manually. But there are times when this powerful algorithm can work against you.

Not every marketing effort needs to have the goal of making money. In fact, there are times when you should create content with the explicit purpose of providing value while expecting nothing in return. Here's why...

How do you establish your campaign budget? Don't guess. Here's a simple formula to get you thinking about the ideal amount to accomplish your goals.

If you're a slow-talker who fumbles your words and struggles to get to the point (not mentioning any names here), short-form video can seem especially intimidating. You can actually do it without changing yourself or adding pressure to keep a recording concise and clean. Here's how...

In this Pubcast Shot, Jon quickly explains the best possible setup when managing ads for clients. Stay within these guidelines. It may be more work up front, but you'll be happy you did it.

In this Pubcast Shot, Jon discusses his recent pivot towards short-form video, walking through what he did during the month of October.

In some huge news for advertisers, Meta is bringing back 28-day click attribution. This is huge for connecting conversions to our advertising efforts. Here's what you need to know.

Meta announced a restriction period for Facebook ads related to politics, elections, and social issues. In this episode, Jon discusses what that means, when it happens, what you can do, and what you can't do.

Read the related blog post here:

https://jonloomer.com/facebook-ads-restrictions-for-politics-and-social-issues-in-the-us/

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Facebook is rolling out Advantage Custom Audiences, not to be confused with Advantage Detailed Targeting and Advantage Lookalikes. Is this good? Should you use it? Well... It depends!

Read more here: https://www.jonloomer.com/facebook-advantage-custom-audiences/

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Facebook is finally rolling out Gated Content for lead ads. This is a big update that allows users to immediately access a digital download after completing a lead form. What does it mean? Who will benefit most? Jon discusses in this episode of the Pubcast.

Read his tutorial here:

https://www.jonloomer.com/facebook-lead-ads-gated-content/

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Custom metrics can be hugely valuable when the basic metrics provided in Ads Manager are ineffective at telling a complete story. With custom metrics, you can combine multiple metrics into a formula to better summarize and express what you care about most. I walk through some specific examples of how I do that here.

You can also read a blog post I wrote on this:

https://www.jonloomer.com/custom-metrics-facebook-ads-manager/

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review!