Recently launched 3 new videos in 2 dynamic creative > same 3 videos across both DC > 2 different prospecting audiences in DC > same copy, headline, and budget After a few days noticed that one of the creatives is getting over 90% of the ad spend in each DC and it is crushing

As always in dynamic creative, FB was favoring one creative over the other but never to this extent But the interesting thing was that a different video was a winner in each DCO So by what criteria FB chose the winner? I thought: "ok, FB picked one video as a winner" BUT...

then I noticed that the winning video in one DC had a close-up of the product as a thumbnail, and the other had a logo of a collaboration we did These were our usual winning styles of a thumbnail, but I never thought it was THAT important

I told my reps about this test, and they said that the assets have traction, so when FB favors some, if that same asset is used in another ad, it would usually get again get recognized as a good performer But that wasn't a good enough explanation for me Why?

Cause the assets were launched at the same time and winners had different thumbnails, not the same So I created another test, with fresh ads, but this time not in the DC I created regular ads but mixed different thumbnails and videos not to resemble combinations from DC

Here again, the winner was a video with a close-up of a product as a thumbnail, no matter the videos I asked my reps again about it, and they said they think the algorithm doesn’t have the power to analyze the video, that it can only read text and images

Tbh, not sure if it's FB who's favoring the thumbnail, or the user, considering they see it only for a fraction of a second if the videos are on auto-play But in the breakdown, it's clearly visible that over 99% of videos were started on auto-play So it seems like it's Algo

So, it got me thinking about how many “potentially good” videos were wasted just because I chose a "bad" thumbnail So from now on, I'm testing each video with 2 thumbnails, to increase my chances of success

Stay tuned for more info about the thumbnails. Follow @IstvanicMarin for more tips and tricks about FB ads.

UPDATE on How I'm structuring my thumbnail tests: https://x.com/IstvanicMarin/st...

@IstvanicMarin This inspires me to take one of the videos I used that didn’t work well, and test it with 5 different thumbnail options. Maybe this could be a way to improve on those poor initial results it got..

@yakirhirsch hopefully it would help

@IstvanicMarin How comes that FB allowed an ad wit a copyrighted material? Is not only DC can sell a fan merch with their characters?

@wastermaster It's licenesed partnership, so it's allowed to advertise it

@IstvanicMarin Nice post! I wonder how effective the best static ad would serve as a thumbnail - ever tested this?

@joshbakofficial I did, it was hit or miss

@IstvanicMarin You are right Marin. Changing thumbnail of winning ads do make a difference. Tried and tested.

@IstvanicMarin Droppin’ some value 💣 we’ll be trying this on our next launch for sure

@MaikLeary keep me posted how that turns out for you guys

@IstvanicMarin @SaveToNotion #thread @threadreaderapp unroll @readwise save thread @memdotai mem it @rattibha

@IstvanicMarin Will you now test DCs with 1 thumbnail, move out the winner, and test the remaining versions with a new thumbnail for a second chance? Or number 2, test DCs with unique thumbnails, and set the winning thumbnail on remaining ads after moving out the winner?

@casper_schive I'll extract the winners and in all future creative tests I'll make sure to apply this thumbnail style

@IstvanicMarin What do you think about using no thumbnail here?

@TroyJAbraham Not sure what do you mean? Every video ad MUST have a thumbnail. Even if you don't select it manually, FB picks one automatically.

@IstvanicMarin Is there any way to find the video post ID that performs better with the DCT? With static images I can do this easily but not with videos

@paoloecom it's same click on timestamp of the variation, it would take you to a new link and take post ID from there

@IstvanicMarin When a single creative aligns perfectly with the audience and platform, it’s a recipe for scaling success.

@IstvanicMarin @threadreaderapp unroll