Welcome to this issue of The DTC Insider newsletter. 👋

We strive to deliver the latest growth marketing news and trends in the DTC space straight to your inbox every Wednesday.

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Let's dive in!

Topics we'll cover today:
💠 How To Structure Your Meta Ad Account in Q2
💠 The One Thing You CAN Control
💠 The Art of Storytelling in Business

There's a new way to structure your Meta ad account.

In the last 2 years, Meta has heavily incorporated AI systems to enhance the overall performance of the ad campaigns:

⤷ GEM (The Super Brain): according to Meta, "Imagine having a super brain that can read an entire library of books in seconds, understand the relationships between all the characters, remember every single detail, and connect the details into an understanding of the sequence of events a person goes through across all types of activities."

⤷ Lattice (The Giant Library): in the past, Meta had many small libraries, each dedicated to a specific subject (ie. art). Now, they've combined all those small libraries into one, which connects information from all subjects, and helps people find better information faster.

⤷ Andromeda (The Personal Concierge): it's responsible for learning your preferences to show you relevant and interesting ads. Think of "a personal concierge who knows your tastes so well that they don't just understand that you covet shoes, but that you like to wear red flip-flops at the beach", according to Meta.

What does this mean?

Advertisers no longer need to try to be smarter than Meta.

We need to provide the algorithm with more options to produce results.

Btw, there's a great video on this by Taylor Holiday.

Here's what he recommends doing based on these updates:

Campaign type to use: Advantage+ Sales

⤷ 1 campaign per offer (ie. product category, like T-Shirts).
⤷ Broad audiences
⤷ Inflated budget

Bid strategy: Target ROAS

Lowest Cost is the default option.

However, he claims it results in lower AOV purchases.

Why?

Here's an example: if you're expecting a $40 CAC, it's unlikely for it to generate a $200 purchase.

Attribution:

7-day click + 1-day view.

Even though the "1-day view" part inflates the results, it gives the algorithm more signals to optimize.

Audiences segments:

At the ad account, you can define your existing customers and engaged audiences.

However, most advertisers define the first segment wrong.

Even though we could define existing customers as EVERYONE who has ever bought from you, practically speaking it makes no sense to exclude them from your campaigns.

Instead, you should consider including only your ACTIVE customers. I'm sure that definition varies across verticals, but I'm sure someone who bought 3 or 5 years ago is not someone you'd consider active.

On the other hand, in the Engaged audience, they suggest having your lapsed customers.

Ads:

Volume, volume, volume.

That's the key to giving the algorithm more signals. It will, technically speaking, prioritize you more if you feed it with more options.

It's the reason why AI enhancements exist: to create unique variations for each ad, depending on the user who sees it.

However, most clients (none, really) don't want it on by any means, and it's understandable.

So, that leaves you with one option: uploading more ads.

The other day, our Meta rep suggested we upload 100-150 ads for each new campaign we create .

Things are changing, and we need to adapt. It's the way it is.

I hope it was useful!

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If you need an experienced growth partner to help your brand grow, let’s chat.

Many brands enter the new year with big goals, only to fall short in Q1.

Without the right strategy, it’s easy to end up in the same cycle, missing targets and leaving revenue on the table.

We’ve helped hundreds of brands break this cycle since 2013, including one that turned their 2nd worst month of 2023 into their BEST post-BFCM in 2024.

Don’t let another quarter slip by.

Let’s chat.

Q1 just ended, and I know it's been tough for many brands.

While everyone blames external factors (tariffs, Meta ads getting more expensive), there's one thing you CAN control:

Your planning.

Most brands set their annual goals in December or January.

But here’s the problem: annual goals are too far in the future to ensure you're consistently on track.

What works instead?

90-day roadmaps.

At BSR Digital, we've seen this approach drive real results.

Here’s what a 90-day roadmap includes:

✅ Clear goals for the next 90 days
✅ Monthly milestones to track partial progress
✅ High-level tasks to make those goals happen

Sounds simple? It is, but only if done right.

Common mistakes brands & agencies make:

🚫 𝗩𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀 → If your goals aren’t clear, they'll be impossible to achieve. This leads to frustration, wasted time, and lost revenue.

🚫 𝗜𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 → Focus on the highest-leverage actions that actually move the needle.

🚫 𝗧𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀 → Less is more. We've found the sweet spot is 1-3 goals and 3-5 tasks per goal.

What’s next?

Now that you have a roadmap, here's the most important part:

📌 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 → Break high-level tasks into actionable steps.

📌 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 → Review weekly, and adjust as needed in monthly check-ins.

Q2 starts now. Let's make the most out of it!

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Follow me on LinkedIn for more growth marketing content in the e-commerce space.

Many brands believe paid ads are essential to hit 7 figures.

This founder will prove you wrong.

She harnessed the power of storytelling and community to grow organically.

Want to learn how?

👇 Tune in to this episode of The DTC Insider podcast, featuring Mallory Ottariano, founder of Youer.

We discussed:

👉 The importance of community engagement in building a brand
👉 How storytelling helps create deeper connections with customers
👉 Using events to drive word-of-mouth marketing and brand loyalty
👉 The strategic transition from organic growth to paid advertising
👉 Effective inventory management as a key factor in scaling
👉 The impact of a resale market on customer loyalty and sustainability
👉 Challenges and opportunities of manufacturing in the US
👉 The role of detailed tech packs in ensuring smooth production
👉 Educating customers on pricing to address cost concerns
👉 The power of authenticity in strengthening brand relationships

Tune in:

📺 YouTube
🎧 Apple
🎙️ Spotify
🌐 Website

More episodes our listeners love:

💎 How BRĒZ is Disrupting the Beverage Industry with Aaron Nosbisch
💎 Bootstrapping a $100M E-Commerce Empire with Bear Handlon
💎 The Secret Sauce Behind BattlBox's Success with John Roman
💎 IQBAR’s Journey to 10,000 Locations And $50 Million with Will Nitze
💎 Supplement Brand Bootstrapped $10,000 and Built It Into Sales of $30 Million in Three Years with Ronak Shah

📰 TikTok's new commerce features
📰 Google and Roblox partner on ad deal
📰 Trump Says TikTok US Sell Off Deal Will be Finalized This Week

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