The seed has been planted.
Last year, Mark Zuckerberg said agencies wouldn’t be needed by 2026.
That’s clearly not true. But it is directionally interesting.
Because if you zoom out, the trend is obvious:
Ad account structures are simpler.
Audiences as we knew them are gone.
There are fewer and fewer real levers to pull.
And now Meta acquires Manus, an autonomous AI agent designed to act like a digital employee.
Not just answering questions.
Executing.
Building.
Delivering.
What does this actually mean for advertisers?
I decided to test it.
Topics we'll cover today:
💠 AI Just Entered Ads Manager
💠 From Startup to CES Innovation Award Winner
💠 Latest news in the DTC space
AI Just Entered Ads Manager
In December 2025, Meta acquired Manus: an advanced, autonomous AI agent designed to act like a digital employee, not just a chatbot.
It doesn’t just answer questions. It independently executes complex, multi-step tasks from start to finish.
Why should this matter to you?
If you’re on Shopify, you’ve probably used Sidekick: its AI assistant. We use it all the time. It’s great for pulling insights that used to be buried or difficult to extract.
This is similar. But bigger.
Meta did something along those lines with Manus.
To access it, go to the “All tools” menu in the left sidebar and click on “Manus AI”.
If you don’t have a Manus account yet, you’ll need to sign up (you don’t need to pay for simple tasks).
Once inside, you’ll see a chat interface similar to ChatGPT or Gemini.
Now the real question: What can you actually do with it?
A lot!
Let me show you a simple, yet powerful example.
I’m going to audit a brand’s competitors’ ads.
Not only will it generate the insights. It will also build a professional-looking mini-site to present them. 🤯
Ready?
Let’s go.
Step 1:
Copy and paste the prompt below, replacing the brands mentioned in it:
You are a world-class direct-response ad creative analyst specializing in DTC consumer health/supplements. My client is Grüns (Gruns) Superfood Gummies.
Objective
Analyze ACTIVE ads running in the United States using the Meta Ads Library for Grüns’ closest category competitors. Identify their core promises, creative patterns, offer mechanics, and angle strategy, then synthesize this into a competitive content strategy report that Grüns can use to produce better-performing ads.
Competitor advertisers to analyze (Meta Ads Library, US, Active)
Search for and analyze ads from these brands (verify the correct advertiser pages in Meta Ads Library; if multiple pages exist, use the most active/main US-facing one):
AG1 (Athletic Greens)
Live it Up Super Greens
Bloom Greens & Superfoods
Goli Supergreens / Supergreen Gummies
Ancient Nutrition (Organic SuperGreens)
Thorne (Daily Greens Plus)
Huel (Daily Greens)
Amazing Grass (Greens Blend / Super Greens)
Garden of Life (Perfect Food / greens line)
Vibrant Health (Green Vibrance)
If any brand has no active US ads, note “No active US ads found” and replace it with the closest adjacent competitor you can find in Meta Ads Library (same “daily greens / all-in-one nutrition” job), and explain the replacement choice.
Data collection requirements
For each competitor:
Review at least 15 active ads (or all active ads if fewer than 15).
Capture key metadata per ad:
Format (UGC video, founder-led, animation, carousel, static, testimonial, before/after, etc.)
Length (if video), aspect ratio, placement cues (Reels/Stories/feed style)
Primary text + headline (if visible)
Landing page angle guess (what the click likely promises)
Offer mechanics (trial, discount %, bundle, subscription push, guarantees, “free shipping,” etc.)
Extract verbatim hooks (first 1–2 lines / first 3 seconds) for the top patterns. Keep quotes short (no long copying).
Analysis framework (what to look for)
Message hierarchy
Primary promise (e.g., “energy,” “gut health,” “immunity,” “daily foundational nutrition,” “convenience”)
Proof points (ingredients, clinical, “doctor recommended,” third-party testing, social proof)
Objection handling (taste, price, skepticism, habit formation, “greens are gross,” etc.)
Creative strategy & patterns
Dominant angles (problem/solution, identity shift, routine stacking, transformation, comparison, myth-busting)
Creative containers (UGC testimonial, creator demo, founder story, explainer, unboxing, “day in the life,” challenge)
Visual motifs (greens pouring, ingredient callouts, motion graphics, packaging hero, “morning routine” scenes)
“Scroll stoppers” and repeated edits (jump cuts, captions, pattern interrupts)
Offer & funnel mechanics
What offer is being sold (trial vs full price vs subscription)
How they push continuity (subscribe & save, bundles)
Risk reversal (guarantees, refunds, “cancel anytime”)
CTA language patterns
Competitive positioning map
Plot competitors across 2–3 axes relevant to Grüns:
Convenience (gummy vs powder vs tablets)
Taste enjoyment vs “serious health”
Clinical credibility vs “lifestyle/viral”
Premium pricing vs “value”
Identify the white space Grüns can own.
Deliverables (structured report)
Produce a competitive content strategy report with:
Executive summary (10 bullets max)
What’s working in the category right now (creative + claims + offers)
The biggest “table stakes” messages
2–3 high-leverage gaps for Grüns
Competitor-by-competitor breakdown
For each competitor:
Top 3–5 key messages (with examples)
Top creative formats used (ranked)
Repeated hooks/lines (short quotes)
Offer mechanics and risk reversal
Notable differentiators vs Grüns
Category creative pattern library
A list of the most common winning angles (with examples)
A list of the most common visual frameworks
A list of common objections and how competitors address them
Actionable strategy for Grüns
10 new ad angles Grüns should test (clear “claim + proof + why now”)
10 hook templates tailored to Grüns (gummy convenience + outcomes)
5 UGC scripts (30–45s) with shot list + on-screen text beats
5 static/carousel concepts (headline + visual concept + body copy)
Offer testing plan (3–5 offer variants; when to use each)
Creative testing roadmap (30 days): volume, prioritization, and how to judge winners
Output format rules
Use clear headings and bullet points.
Be specific and concrete: write like a creative strategist handing work to a media buyer + editor.
Avoid generic advice. Tie every insight to observed competitor patterns in Meta Ads Library.
If uncertain about an interpretation, label it as a hypothesis.
Step 2 (optional):
It may ask you to log into Meta to continue. You can skip this if you prefer. I did.
Step 3:
Manus will begin the research and return its findings.
From there, you can ask it to export everything into a PPT, or even better...turn it into a website!
And just like that, in a few minutes and with very little effort, you have a comprehensive competitor analysis.
In this case, it generated a detailed 20-page report. And honestly? It was pretty solid.
My take:
Right now, this feels similar to connecting any third-party AI tool and running an analysis.
But we’ve seen this movie before.
Shopify’s Sidekick started as a simple assistant. Today, it surfaces insights in seconds and executes real operational tasks: creating discount codes, building workflows, pulling segmented data.
Meta didn’t acquire Manus randomly. They’re compressing the distance between thinking and executing inside the ad ecosystem.
Does this mean agencies disappear? No.
It means leverage increases.
Your turn:
What would you have Manus build for you inside Meta?
--
Follow me on LinkedIn for more growth marketing content in the e-commerce space.
Want to Make 2026 Your Brand’s Best Year Yet?
In 2025, we audited over 90 brands, and we found that many of them have been stuck in a revenue plateau for 2, and even 3 years.
So, the question is: will you stay in the same place for yet another year, or will you draw a line in the sand and start a new chapter for your brand?
At BSR, my agency, we’re offering just 1 spot for brands that want to unlock the next level of growth.
Will you be one of them?
From Startup to CES Innovation Award Winner
Most brands say they listen to their customers.
Very few actually build with them.
In this week’s episode of The DTC Insider, Brian Roisentul sat down with Sabrina Wescott, the Head of Marketing at MAXPRO to unpack how a simple idea sketched on a napkin turned into a CES Innovation Award-winning fitness brand.
One of my favorite takeaways: some of their biggest product evolutions didn’t come from internal brainstorms. They came from paying attention to how customers were actually using the product.
That level of listening compounds.
If you’re building a physical product brand or scaling DTC in 2026, this one is worth your time.
🎧 Tune in
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About The Writer
Brian Roisentul is the founder & CEO of BSR, a growth marketing agency he started in 2013 to help e-commerce brands unlock hidden revenue by identifying misalignments between their marketing and customer behavior. He is also the host of The DTC Insider podcast, where he interviews thought leaders, founders, and directors in the e-commerce space.
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