Meta Ads Auditor & Paid Social Strategist — High-Ticket / Long Sales Cycle

We are a commercial and residential strength equipment company in the middle of a brand transition toward our new line, BUILT Strength — premium, made-to-order strength equipment sold to commercial gym owners, CrossFit affiliates, and serious home gym athletes. Our average order value ranges from $2,000 to $50,000+, and our sales cycle for commercial accounts can run 60–120 days from first touch to closed deal.

We are looking for an experienced Meta Ads specialist to come in, audit our existing account, identify what is and isn't working, and revise our strategy from the ground up with a focus on what is actually trackable and attributable given our product type and conversion window.

THE PROBLEM WE'RE TRYING TO SOLVE

Our performance has fallen off a cliff over the last two months compared to Q1, and we need someone who can diagnose why and fix it. Here is what the data looks like:

Daily average spend: ~$1,866/day (Q1) → ~$1,910/day (Apr–May) — roughly flat

Purchases: 187 (Q1) → 91 (Apr–May) — DOWN 51.3%

Cost per purchase: $898 (Q1) → $1,071 (Apr–May) — UP 19.2%

Adds to cart: 6,979 (Q1) → 4,082 (Apr–May) — DOWN 41.5%

Checkouts initiated: 2,023 (Q1) → 1,058 (Apr–May) — DOWN 47.7%

Leads generated: 299 (Q1) → 0 (Apr–May) — DOWN 100% (lead campaign paused)

Cost per lead: $561 (Q1) → N/A (Apr–May)

We are spending at essentially the same daily rate but generating half the purchases at a 19% higher cost per purchase. Our bottom-of-funnel retargeting campaign, which was delivering a 4.31x return on ad spend in Q1, has collapsed to 1.14x — we are nearly breaking even on retargeting our own warm audiences. The checkout-to-purchase conversion rate has deteriorated, and our lead pipeline for commercial accounts has gone completely dark after the lead campaign was paused.

To make things more confusing, our top-of-funnel metrics have actually improved — CPM dropped nearly 18% and click-through rates are up 34%. The algorithm is finding cheaper, more click-prone audiences, but those audiences are not buying. We believe the account is optimizing toward the wrong signals for our product type and sales cycle, and we need someone who has solved this exact problem before.

WHAT YOU'LL BE DOING

Phase 1 — Account Audit (Week 1)

- Full audit of the existing Meta Ads account structure, campaign objectives, ad sets, and creative performance

- Identify campaigns, ad sets, and ads that are in or out of the learning phase and why

- Assess pixel health, conversion event setup, and attribution window configuration

- Evaluate whether the current conversion events (purchases) are appropriate for our product type and sales cycle, or whether we should be optimizing for earlier funnel events (leads, landing page views, initiate checkout)

- Identify audience overlap, budget fragmentation, and creative fatigue across the account

- Review the Meta Commerce Manager catalog for accuracy and optimization opportunities

- Deliver a written audit report with prioritized findings

Phase 2 — Strategy Revision (Week 2)

- Recommend the optimal campaign objective structure for a high-ticket, long-cycle product (e.g., Lead Generation vs. Sales vs. Traffic)

- Define the correct conversion events to optimize toward at each funnel stage

- Recommend attribution window settings that reflect our actual sales cycle (e.g., 7-day click, 1-day view vs. longer windows)

- Propose a full-funnel campaign architecture: TOF awareness, MOF consideration, BOF conversion, and B2B lead generation

- Recommend a budget allocation across campaign types

- Define the creative strategy and ad format recommendations for each funnel stage

- Provide guidance on offline conversion tracking / CRM integration with Meta's Conversions API for deals that close off-platform

- Deliver a written strategy document with implementation-ready campaign structure

IDEAL CANDIDATE PROFILE

You are a strong fit for this role if you have:

- Proven experience managing Meta Ads for high-ticket products ($1,000+ AOV) or B2B lead generation campaigns

- Deep understanding of Meta's learning phase, Advantage+ campaigns, and CBO vs. ABO budget structures

- Experience setting up and optimizing for lead generation objectives (Instant Forms, website leads) alongside purchase campaigns

- Familiarity with Meta's Conversions API and offline conversion tracking for long sales cycles

- Ability to interpret funnel data and diagnose whether a performance issue is a traffic quality problem, a creative problem, or a landing page/offer problem

- Experience with Advantage+ Shopping Campaigns and dynamic catalog ads

- Strong written communication — you will be delivering audit reports and strategy documents, not just making changes in the account

Nice to have:

- Experience in the fitness equipment, home improvement, or commercial B2B space

- Familiarity with Shopify and Meta Commerce Manager catalog management

- Experience with Meta's Offline Conversions API or CRM-to-Meta integrations

WHAT WE'LL PROVIDE

- Full read/write access to the Meta Ads account

- Access to historical performance data and our internal analysis

- Context on the BUILT Strength brand, product line, and target customer profiles (commercial gym owners and serious home gym athletes)

- Clear communication and fast feedback turnaround

A note on creative: We have in-house creative capability and handle all of our own filming and production. We are not looking for someone to produce content for us. What we do want from the right candidate is creative direction — specifically, video scripts, shot lists, video type briefs, and clear guidelines on what to film and why, so our team can execute. If you can tell us "film a 30-second testimonial structured like this, with this hook, targeting this audience at this funnel stage," we can make it happen. The ability to translate strategy into actionable creative briefs our team can film is a significant plus.

DELIVERABLES

1. Written audit report identifying all key issues and prioritized recommendations

2. Revised campaign architecture document (campaign objectives, ad set structure, audience targeting, budget allocation)

3. Attribution window and conversion event recommendations specific to our sales cycle

4. Guidance on Conversions API / offline conversion tracking setup

5. Creative briefs, video scripts, and shot list guidelines for each funnel stage — structured so our in-house team can film them without ambiguity

6. Optional: Implementation of the revised strategy (additional scope, negotiable)

Timeline: 2-week engagement to start, with potential for ongoing retainer

Budget: Open to proposals from qualified candidates

TO APPLY, PLEASE INCLUDE

- Examples of Meta Ads work you've done for high-ticket or B2B products (results-focused, not just screenshots)

- Your approach to advertising products with a long consideration/sales cycle on Meta

- Your recommendation on whether we should be optimizing for purchases or an earlier conversion event given our product type — and why

GEMINI AUDIT:

This is a textbook case of an **algorithmic death spiral** caused by signal starvation.

Your intuition is 100% correct: Meta’s algorithm is incredibly efficient at getting you exactly what you optimize for. Right now, because your conversion data has thinned out, the algorithm has shifted its focus to winning the easiest, cheapest bids available—users who love to click but have zero intent to buy.

Given your ~$1,000 Cost Per Purchase, you are playing in a high-ticket or commercial B2B space. A total of 91 purchases over a two-month period across your entire account means you are averaging fewer than two purchases a day. Split across multiple campaigns or ad sets, **Meta is operating in a data desert.** It doesn't have the 50 conversions per week per ad set required to stabilize, so it defaulted to optimizing for cheap impressions (low CPM) and accidental/curious clickers (high CTR).

Worse, by pausing your lead generation campaign, you cut off the primary data pipeline that was feeding your ecosystem. Your retargeting collapsed because you are now retargeting a warm audience pool made up of these low-intent "clickers" rather than high-intent commercial prospects.

Here is how we audit, dismantle, and rebuild this strategy from the ground up.

---

## 1. The Immediate Diagnosis: What Broke?

* **The Paused Lead Campaign Catastrophe:** High-ticket and commercial products rarely convert on a standard 7-day click window from a cold ad. Pausing the lead campaign didn't just stop leads; it starved your Pixel/Conversions API (CAPI) of the mid-funnel intent signals it needs to understand what your actual customer profile looks like.

* **The Retargeting Pollution:** Your BOF campaign ROAS dropped from 4.31x to 1.14x because the top-of-funnel (TOF) traffic quality tanked. You aren't retargeting hand-raisers anymore; you are retargeting cheap clicks.

* **The Optimization Trap:** When Purchase events are scarce, Meta's algorithm loses its north star. It looks for alternative patterns to prove "value," leading it to chase low CPMs and high CTRs in placements like Audience Network or low-quality mobile inventory.

---

## 2. Revised Strategy: The Ground-Up Rebuild

To fix this, we must pivot from a standard e-commerce playbook to a high-ticket/commercial framework that respects your conversion window.

### Phase 1: Clean Up the Signal & Attribution

Before turning anything new on, we must ensure Meta is looking at the right data.

* **Deploy Server-Side Tracking (CAPI):** If you haven't already, ensure Conversions API is firing with high Event Match Quality.

* **Pass Offline CRM Data Back to Meta:** Because your sales cycle likely extends past Meta’s default 7-day click attribution window, you need to use **Meta Offline Conversions** or a tool like Zapier to feed actual closed-won commercial deals or "Qualified Lead" status back into the ad manager. This allows Meta to optimize for down-funnel value, even if it happens 30 days later.

### Phase 2: Restructure the Funnel (Stop Chasing Pure Purchases TOF)

We need to give the algorithm a high-volume, high-intent signal it can actually optimize against.

```

[ Top of Funnel ]    --> Hybrid Strategy: 

                         1. Consolidated Purchase Campaign (Broad/Advantage+)

                         2. High-Intent Commercial Lead Gen Campaign

[ Mid/Bottom ]       --> Retargeting limited to High-Intent Pools Only 

                         (e.g., Lead Form Completers, 50%+ Video Viewers, 3+ Pages Visited)

```

* **Unpause & Re-engineer Lead Gen:** Turn the commercial lead pipeline back on, but do not use low-friction Instant Forms. Use **Rich Context Forms** or drive traffic to a landing page with strict qualifying questions (e.g., Company Size, Budget, Timing). This lowers volume but sky-rockets intent, giving Meta a highly qualified "Lead" signal to optimize for.

* **Consolidate Ad Account Architecture:** Stop fragmenting your budget. Run one consolidated Conversion campaign for direct sales and one Lead Gen campaign for commercial accounts. Let Campaign Budget Optimization (CBO) distribute the weight.

### Phase 3: Use Creative as Your Direct Targeting Filter

When TOF metrics look "good" (high CTR, low CPM) but sales are down, it means your creative is writing checks your landing page can't cash. Your creative needs to do the heavy lifting of disqualifying non-buyers.

* **Call Out the Audience Explicitly:** Use copy and visuals that clearly state who this is for (e.g., *"Built for Commercial Fleet Managers"* or *"The Enterprise Solution for..."*).

* **Be Upfront with Pricing/Scale:** If your product costs thousands of dollars, hint at that investment level or scale in the ad. This will naturally drop your CTR (which is a good thing here) because it repels casual clickers, while increasing your conversion rate among qualified buyers.

---

To help tailormade this transition blueprint: **What CRM or backend tracking system are you currently using to manage your commercial leads, and what does your true sales cycle length look like from first ad click to closed deal?**