Meta’s Andromeda Update

Sup legends! 👋 

Wanted to send you a quick update regarding Meta’s new algorithm change, since most DTC brands are reliant on Meta.

If you’re running Meta ads for your e-commerce brand, buckle up because everything you knew about Facebook and Instagram advertising just got flipped on its head (dramatic but true 😂).

What I’m covering in today’s edition:

• What is the Andromeda update, and why does it matter

• Old way vs. new way: Side-by-side breakdown of the shift

• Why your ads might be tanking right now (and what's really happening)

• Your 4-part action plan to win in the Andromeda era

• Deep dive into resources you can use to learn more

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What the Hell is Andromeda?

Meta just dropped the biggest ad platform overhaul since iOS 14.5, and it’s called Andromeda. This isn’t a minor tweak. It’s a complete reimagining of how ads get served, optimized, and scaled. This means your old playbook is officially dead, and people have started to feel the rollout effect post-July/September 2025.

Old Way vs New Reality

Let me break down what changed:

BEFORE (RIP 2024):

• Manual targeting with layered audiences

• Find one winning ad, ride it until it dies

• Micro-manage bids and budgets

• King-of-the-hill auction system

NOW (Andromeda Era):

• Broad targeting, let AI do the heavy lifting

• 5-7+ conceptually different creatives required

• Automation is your new best friend

• Pre-filtered auction based on creative uniqueness

Here’s the mind-blowing part: Andromeda analyzes 10,000x more data points than the old system. It’s not just smarter. It’s playing a completely different game.

Why Your Ads Might Be Tanking Right Now

Notice your CPAs creeping up? Your ROAS dropping?

This is what’s happening: Meta’s new Retrieval Engine is prescreening your ads BEFORE they hit the auction. Those quick-win tactics (swapping text colors, tweaking headlines, duplicating your best performer) are getting filtered out. The algorithm now rewards true creative diversity, not iteration.

Your Action Plan: How to Win in the Andromeda Era

1. Build a Creative Factory

• Develop 5-7 conceptually different ad variations per product; the Retrieval Engine filters out similar concepts, so minor variations won't even make it to auction anymore.

• Mix formats: videos, carousels, static images, different formats signal true diversity to the algorithm and match varied user preferences across placements.

• Blend emotional storytelling with practical benefits, and Andromeda matches ads to nuanced customer journeys, not just demographics, so you need messaging for every stage.

• Refresh your library constantly (think weekly, not monthly), the system learns fast and rewards freshness while stale creative gets filtered out as the algorithm exhausts its learning potential.

2. Trust the Machine

• Embrace broad audiences, seriously, Andromeda's AI identifies micro-segments better than manual targeting ever could, but only if you give it room to explore.

• Let Meta's AI find your customers, the system processes behavioral signals you can't manually target, finding converters based on real-time intent, not static demographics.

• Stop micro-managing targeting parameters, you're limiting the AI's ability to discover high-value audiences outside your assumptions.

• Use Advantage+ campaigns and automation tools, these are built specifically for Andromeda's infrastructure and get priority in the new auction system.

3. Think Content, Not Ads

• Focus on unique angles and brand stories; generic product shots all look the same to the Retrieval Engine, while distinctive narratives get preferential treatment.

• Stop iterating the same winner to death. What worked last month trained the algorithm, and now it needs new concepts to maintain performance and avoid ad fatigue.

• Create for nuanced customer journeys, Andromeda personalizes at scale, matching specific creatives to where each user is in their buying journey.

• Test different messaging approaches, not just different headlines, surface-level tweaks register as duplicates, while core concept changes give the AI real options to test.

4. Strategic Over Tactical

• Shift your team's focus from manual setup to creative strategy. Andromeda handles optimization better than humans, and your edge is now in the quality and diversity of inputs.

• Invest in content production capabilities, creative volume, and velocity are the new competitive advantages, and you need systems to produce and test at scale.

• Build systems for rapid creative testing. The faster you feed the algorithm diverse concepts, the faster it learns what converts for your specific audience.

• Let automation handle optimization, fighting the algorithm with manual rules costs you money because the system's smarter than your spreadsheet.

Deep Dive Resources

The Bottom Line

Brands that adapt to this creative-first, AI-driven approach will scale faster and cheaper than ever before. Those clinging to narrow targeting and minimal creative testing? They're going to watch their CACs explode.

This isn't just an update. It's a fundamental shift in how performance marketing works on the world's biggest ad platform.

P.S. The cost to NOT adapt? Watching competitors scale while your CACs climb. Don't be that brand. 💪

— Dev