The first step in managing successful ad campaigns is making sure you're tracking the right metrics. This begins with customizing your columns to get a clear picture of your ad's performance.

1. Start with "Performance and Clicks" Column

• Why it’s important: This column gives you an overview of key metrics like impressions, reach, and clicks. Starting here helps ensure that you’re seeing the foundational data necessary to evaluate the basic success of your campaigns.
• Next steps: From this baseline, you can dive deeper into more specific metrics as you add additional columns.

2. Customize Columns for More Detailed Insights

• Unique Clicks & CPC (Cost per Click): These are essential to know how many people are engaging with your ad and at what cost.
  • How to add: Go into the customize section and search for "unique clicks" and "CPC" to get this data on the dashboard.
  • Why it matters: If your cost per click is high, it can signal that your audience targeting or ad creative may need tweaking.
• Add-to-Cart and Checkout Initiates: These metrics are critical for e-commerce stores to track the customer journey.
  • How to add: Search for "add-to-cart" and "checkout initiated," and make sure to include both total numbers and cost for each action.
  • Why it matters: Understanding how many people move from clicking on the ad to adding items to their cart, and then to initiating checkout, is key to determining your sales funnel's effectiveness.

3. Purchases & ROAS (Return on Ad Spend)

• Purchases: Always track both the number of purchases and the cost per purchase.
  • How to add: Simply search for "purchases" and "cost per purchase" to get these details.
• ROAS (Return on Ad Spend): This metric shows how much revenue you’re generating for every dollar spent on ads.
  • Why it matters: This is one of the ultimate indicators of your ad’s success—if your ROAS is positive, you’re making more money than you’re spending.

4. Track Video Engagement

• Video Views: If you’re running video ads, tracking video views is essential.
  • Why it matters: The percentage of video watched (e.g., 20%, 50%, 75%) gives valuable insight into how engaging your content is. Videos with high view percentages typically indicate strong interest and better performance.

5. Naming and Saving Your Column Setup

• Create a Custom Column Setup: Once you’ve selected all your desired metrics, save this as a custom view.
  • Example Name: Call it something like "Winning Columns" or "Performance View," so it’s easy to come back to.
  • Why it matters: By saving your columns, you ensure you don’t need to recreate this setup every time you review your ads.

Pro Tips for Monitoring Ad Performance:

• Keep an eye on ads spending over $4 without any clicks. This can be a sign that adjustments are needed.
• Pay attention to how individual ad sets perform. For example, is one targeting strategy (like Montessori or broad targeting) delivering more clicks?
• Regularly refresh your dashboard to ensure data is up to date, especially as Facebook reviews and processes new ads.

Inspiration for Your Students:

As you master setting up your columns, remember that each metric tells a part of your ad’s story. Whether you're tracking how many people are adding items to their cart or how many are watching your videos to the end, you’re gathering insights to improve your strategy.

• With the right data, you can make informed decisions, cut underperforming ads quickly, and scale the winning ones to maximize profitability. Facebook ads are an incredible tool for growth, but only if you understand and utilize the metrics that matter.