Podcast Summary: "Are You STILL Using Outdated Meta Andromeda Ad Strategies?"

Perpetual Traffic • Hosted by Ralph Burns & Lauren Petrullo • February 10, 2026

Episode Overview

This eye-opening episode confronts the persistent use of outdated strategies in Meta (Facebook and Instagram) advertising—especially in the era of the Andromeda update and AI-driven optimization. Ralph Burns and Lauren Petrullo, two agency veterans, break down why old campaign "hacks" are failing, the importance of creative diversification, and exactly how you need to rethink your approach to paid traffic on Meta in 2026 and beyond.

The conversation is lively, candid, and full of practical insights aimed at marketing leaders, agency professionals, and business owners who want genuinely scalable, cost-effective growth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Old Meta “Hacks” No Longer Work

• Meta’s Algorithm Has Changed: The show starts by debunking old tactics like the Michigan Method (breaking campaigns into a multitude of micro-ad sets and forcing rankings), which worked to "hack" the Facebook algorithm in the past but are now detrimental.
• Resisting Change is Hurting Results: Many advertisers are clinging to these methods out of fear or habit, damaging their campaigns and performance.
  • "People still don't get it… they're screwing themselves… and two weeks later, like, 'oh, I guess you guys actually know what you're doing. Our CPA is down 40%.'" – Ralph (02:33)
• Adapting to Meta's Actual Recommendations: Both hosts stress that following Meta's best practices and letting the algorithm do its work is now the winning strategy.
  • "Even John … one of the biggest hackers of all time … [is] just doing what they're telling me to do now, which is crazy." – Ralph (09:00)

2. Mindset Shift: From Campaign Manipulation to Creative Focus

• Stop Overemphasizing Account Structure: Time spent on minute campaign tweaks or justifying your account complexity is wasted. Instead, the real work now is on creative strategy, messaging, and post-click experience.
  • "Spend less time on pushing the budgets, and more time investing on the angles, the messaging, the ads themselves … Experience before the click." – Lauren (10:44)
  • "Comments on ads are the equivalent of reviews on Amazon… If you have comments and you're not leveraging them… you're missing out." – Lauren (10:44)
• Before & After the Click: Key performance now comes from understanding both what happens before the click (admistration, messaging, targeting) and after (landing page/conversion optimization).

3. The Core of Success: Creative Diversification

• True Diversification vs. Cosmetic Tweaks: Adding a badge or changing colors doesn't count—Meta recognizes these as "the same ad". Meaningful variety in angles, ad formats (image, video, founder story, creator/UGC), and messaging is essential.
  • "Meta looks at that as the same ad… they're looking for face-to-camera ads, founder story ads… even AI ads, though there’s a backlash right now." – Ralph (12:22)
• Not Turning Off “Losing” Ads: Sometimes, so-called non-converting ads play a role in the conversion journey; not every step needs to directly convert.
  • "I argue all the time that comments on ads are the equivalent of reviews on Amazon. People don't buy without creeping the reviews." – Lauren (10:44)
  • "Don't shut off anything… Even losing ads can be part of the creative journey." – Lauren (15:24)

Creative Analogy: The Ice Cream Parlor

• Lauren uses the metaphor of “31 flavors” to emphasize that audiences aren’t monolithic, and creative variation is necessary to reach the full spectrum of buyers.
  • "When you're creating creative diversification, you have your 'Baskin Robbins'—people that have different favorite flavors … you want options so even if it’s not the perfect flavor, you appeal to more people." – Lauren (15:30–19:11)

Creative Analogy: Dating and Trust-Building

• Moving relationships with customers is like dating: you need multiple types of interaction before you can “move to the next level.” Exposure to different angles builds trust and increases conversion rates over time.
  • "The different creatives build up your reputation and you're earning their trust, you're buying their trust through your ads… maybe on the seventh ad that I saw, I decided to move my relationship with your brand to the next level." – Lauren (23:00)

4. Outdated Strategies: The Dangers of Running “One-Angle” Campaigns

• One-Note Messaging is Dead: If every ad uses the same angle (e.g., “easy to set up”), it will fail to address the full spectrum of customer desires, concerns, or pain points.
  • "If you look in and you see one angle, and you're bored by your own advertising, it's time to diversify…" – Ralph (34:06)

5. Modern Best Practices for Meta Success

• Follow the Algorithm, Not the Hacks: Meta’s AI is designed to deliver the right messaging to the right audience—let it do its job.
• Rethink “Ideal Customer Profiles”: The concept is still useful, but needs to be more flexible, with multiple avatars, needs, and creative approaches.
  • "We don’t have an ICP anymore... Otherwise, if you're doing the ICP, you're creating vanilla.” – Lauren (19:57)
• Measure What Really Works: Don’t just tally last-click conversions; look at the holistic journey and ensure your funnel (landing page, post-ad experience) supports the ad creative.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Adapting to Change:
  "The past does not necessarily equal the future. What the past does equal is change." – Ralph (09:37)

• On Creative Depth:
  "We're not doing any UGC for them. They're whitelisting everything through people who just love their product … and Meta looks at that as very different versus their biggest competitor." – Ralph (12:22)

• On Importance of Creative:
  "You win by personalization and relevancy, and you lose if you focus on the hack and not the actual product." – Lauren (31:51)

• On Evolving Your Mindset:
  "If you're spending more time figuring out who to target and which buttons to click and how to organize your ad account, you're putting your time in the wrong focus." – Lauren (35:47)

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:33 – Ralph shares stories about client resistance and the perils of outdated ad strategies
• 04:25–06:21 – Lauren discusses resistance to change and the importance of foundational strategy over "hacks"
• 09:00–10:44 – Debunking account-structure tinkering and urging focus on creative and post-click experience
• 12:22–15:30 – The real meaning of creative diversification; why cosmetic changes don’t count
• 15:30–19:11 – Ice cream analogy: why you need many creative “flavors” to appeal to your varying audience
• 23:00–25:11 – Dating analogy: multiple interactions/building trust via diverse creatives
• 34:06 – Identifying “one angle” campaigns; diversifying when ads become repetitive
• 35:47–38:16 – Full-funnel ownership, shifting investment/focus for 2026, and saying goodbye to early-2020s tactics

Actionable Takeaways

• Audit Your Ads: If every ad looks, feels, and reads the same—expand your creative dramatically.
• Diversify Creatives: Test a variety of ad types (image, video, founder story, UGC, face-to-camera) and messages (pain points, benefits, use cases).
• Trust Meta’s Algorithm: Set up campaigns to give the AI room, avoid micro-managing ad sets, and follow current Meta recommendations.
• Holistic Metrics: Judge campaign performance not just by last-touch attribution, but by overall lift, engagement, and customer journey.
• Creative Collaboration: Brainstorm new angles with your team and leverage tools (including AI) for ideation and analysis.
• Don’t Panic When Ads Don’t “Win” Immediately: Some creatives nurture, some convert—understand the role of each piece.

Closing Thoughts

This episode is a fundamental guidepost for marketers ready to ditch their 2020 playbook and embrace creative-led, AI-empowered Meta advertising for 2026. The tone is equal parts challenging and supportive—pushing listeners to let go of comfort-zone tactics and focus their energy where it matters: the message, the experience, and the customer.

Both hosts encourage listeners to explore more tactical shows in the archives, submit feedback and questions, and—of course—experiment with more creative “flavors” in their ad accounts now.

[Listeners are urged to check out the show notes for tactical resources and past episode links at perpetualtraffic.com, and to connect with the hosts on YouTube.]