Hi there,
Happy to give you some initial thoughts and guidance on your situation. Managing ads for 30 different events a month across small markets is a proper challenge, and it's easy to see why a standard agency approach might not be the right fit.
It sounds like you need a specialist who can get into the weeds with you, not just apply a generic playbook. What you're experiencing with the current agency, where they struggle to stick to your parameters, is something I've seen before. Often, larger agencies have set processes and they can be a bit rigid. When you need agility and a deep understanding of unique market dynamics, a more hands-on approach is usually better. Finding that right partner who genuinely gets what you're doing is half the battle.
First off, let's talk about campaign structure...
The biggest headache with your setup is managing all those locations without it becoming a complete mess or taking up all your time. A clunky structure is inefficient and it'll drain your budget with poor perfomance. The goal here should be to create a system that’s both effective and easy to manage.
Instead of creating a seperate campaign for every single event, which would be a nightmare to manage, I'd probably look at a more streamlined approach. You could have one main conversion campaign. Within that campaign, you'd then use ad sets to group your events, maybe by region or by state. For instance, an ad set for "East Coast Events" and another for "Midwest Events". This keeps things organised.
But the real trick here is to use dynamic creative. I remember working with a client who did walking tours in lots of different cities, a similar kinda deal to yours. We used dynamic creative to automatically pull in the city name, event date, and a relevant image into the ad copy. So, someone in Boise would see an ad specifically for the Boise event, and someone in Austin would see one for their city. This made the ads feel much more local and relevent, and our click-through rates went up significantly. It's a bit more work to set up initially, but it saves a ton of time in the long run and gets better results than generic ads. It stops you from having to build 30 different ads every month.
I'd say you need to nail your audience targeting...
You mentioned audience targeting is crucial, and you're spot on. With a $10k-$15k monthly budget, you should have a good amount of data built up in your Meta Pixel. This is your biggest asset right now, especially since you're not trying to scale aggressively just yet. It's the perfect time to refine what you've got.
I usually structure audiences based on a funnel. For a business like yours, it would look something like this:
Top of Funnel (ToFu) - Finding New People:
This is where you find new customers. The single most powerful tool you have here is your existing customer data. You should be uploading your list of past ticket buyers to Meta and creating Lookalike audiences from it. A Lookalike of your "highest value" customers (maybe people who bought multiple tickets or VIP packages) will almost always perform best. If you're not doing this, it's a massive missed oppurtunity. You can also test broader interests related to your type of event, but Lookalikes based on actual purchasers are the gold standard.
Middle & Bottom of Funnel (MoFu/BoFu) - Retargeting:
This is where you bring people back who've shown interest but haven't bought a ticket yet. You need to be hitting these people with specific reminders. You can set up custom audiences for:
- -> People who visited specific event landing pages but didn't buy.
- -> People who added tickets to their cart but didn't complete the purchase.
- -> All website visitors from the last 30-60 days.
- -> People who engaged with your Facebook or Instagram page.
For events, a longer retargeting window can work well. Someone might see an ad, think "that looks interesting," but not be ready to buy. Seeing a reminder ad a week or two later can be what gets them over the line. These audiences are your warmest leads and should give you the best return on ad spend.
Here’s a rough idea of how I would prioritise testing audiences for you:
| Funnel Stage | Audience Type | Specific Audience to Test (In Order of Priority) |
|---|---|---|
| BoFu (Bottom) | Retargeting |
1. Added to Cart (Last 14 days) - Exclude Purchasers 2. Initiated Checkout (Last 14 days) - Exclude Purchasers 3. Specific Event Page Visitors (Last 30 days) - Exclude Purchasers |
| MoFu (Middle) | Retargeting |
1. All Website Visitors (Last 60 days) - Exclude Purchasers 2. Video Viewers (50%+) (Last 90 days) 3. Instagram/Facebook Engagers (Last 90 days) |
| ToFu (Top) | Lookalikes |
1. 1% Lookalike of Past Purchasers 2. 1% Lookalike of Added to Cart 3. 1-3% Lookalike of Website Visitors |
You probably should be testing more creative...
Since your main goal is optimisation, not scaling, this is the perfect time to really focus on your ad creative. This is often the biggest lever you can pull to improve performance without changing your budget or audiences. You should be constantly testing new images, videos, and ad copy to see what resonates.
Don't just stick to one format. I'd test a mix:
- -> Image Ads: Simple, effective. Use high-quality photos from past events that show people having a great time. The energy needs to come across.
- -> Video Ads: Hugely powerful for events. Short, punchy clips showing highlights from past events can create serious FOMO (fear of missing out). Even just a simple slideshow of photos set to music can work better than a static image. Testimonials from past attendees would be even better.
- -> Carousel Ads: These are great if you have multiple events in a single area. You could showcase 3-4 upcoming events in nearby towns in a single ad. Or, use a carousel to tell a story about one event: card one shows the venue, card two shows the main attraction, card three shows happy attendees.
The key is to have a structured testing plan. Run different creatives against each other in the same ad set and see which one gets the best results. Turn off the losers, and try to beat the winners. It's a continuous process of improvement.
This is the main advice I have for you:
To pull it all together, here’s a table summarising the core things I’d focus on to maintain and optimise your current performance. This is the kind of actionable strategy a dedicated specialist should be able to build and execute for you.
| Area of Focus | Recommendation | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Campaign Structure | Consolidate into fewer campaigns. Use ad sets for regional targeting and leverage Dynamic Creative for location-specific ads. | Massively improves efficiency, makes management easier, and increases ad relevance, which should lower your cost per ticket sale. |
| Audience Targeting | Prioritise Lookalikes of past purchasers for finding new customers. Implement a full-funnel retargeting strategy for warm leads (cart abandoners, site visitors). | You're focusing your budget on the people most likely to convert, both new and returning, giving you the best possible return on ad spend. |
| Creative & Ad Copy | Systematically test different ad formats (video, carousel, image) and copy angles. Focus on showcasing the event's energy and creating urgency. | Better creative fights ad fatigue and directly improves CTR and conversion rates. It's how you optimise performance within the same budget. |
| Measurement | Focus on Cost Per Purchase and Return On Ad Spend (ROAS) as your main metrics. Track performance per region/event type to see what's working best. | Ensures you're making data-driven decisions and investing more in the events and markets that are actually profitable. |
You'll need a clear strategy going forward...
Putting all this into practice requires a bit of work and, most importantly, consistent attention. The value of hiring a real specialist isn’t just in the initial setup; it’s in the day-to-day management, the constant testing, and the ability to spot trends and make adjustments on the fly. With 30 events a month, there are a lot of moving parts, and having someone whose sole focus is optimising that machine for you can make a huge difference.
I remember working with a client in a similar niche to yours. We implemented a rigorous, data-led approach and saw great results. For example, for a software client, we achieved 45,000+ signups at under £2 cost per signup using Meta ads, among other platforms. It's about building a solid foundation and then methodically improving on it, week after week.
I hope these initial thoughts have been helpful and give you a clearer idea of the kind of things you should be discussing with potential freelancers. It’s definitely possible to get the performance you want while sticking to the parameters you've set.
If you’d like to chat further, we offer a free, no-obligation consultation where we could take a look at your ad account together and discuss a more detailed strategy. It’s a great way to get some direct, actionable advice and see if we might be the right fit to help you out.
Regards,
Team @ Lukas Holschuh
