Instagram Ads vs Facebook Ads: Which Performs Better?

Facebook is generally stronger for B2B on Meta — LinkedIn Groups-like communities exist on Facebook, event promotion works well, and B2B decision makers (35–55+) are more active on Facebook than Instagram. LinkedIn remains the primary B2B paid social platform; Facebook is secondary, Instagram is tertiary for B2B.

Instagram ad format performance in 2025: Reels ads deliver the lowest CPMs and highest reach due to Meta favouring video content in the algorithm. Stories ads convert well for time-sensitive offers (swipe-up CTA is native to Stories behaviour). Feed carousel ads work best for product showcases (multiple images, one ad unit). Single image Feed ads are reliable for retargeting known audiences. Lead Gen forms in Instagram Stories have high completion rates for simple offers.

Custom audience targeting options in Meta Ads Manager: (1) Website visitors — via Meta Pixel (retarget people who visited your site), (2) Customer list — upload email/phone CSV and match to Meta profiles, (3) App activity — for mobile apps, (4) Video engagement — people who watched your videos, (5) Instagram/Facebook page engagement — people who interacted with your content, (6) Lead form openers/submitters. Lookalike audiences expand these custom audiences to find similar profiles at scale.

Meta Advantage+ (formerly known as ASC — Advantage+ Shopping Campaigns) is an AI-automated campaign type similar to Google's Performance Max — Meta controls targeting, placement, and creative optimisation using your asset library. Best for e-commerce brands with Meta Pixel data and product catalogs. Advantage+ consistently outperforms manual campaign setups for mid-to-large e-commerce accounts. Use alongside standard campaigns for non-e-commerce lead generation, as Advantage+ is most powerful for catalogue-based shopping.

Minimum: 3–5 creative variants per ad set to allow Meta's algorithm to find the best performer. Optimal: 8–12 creatives testing different hooks, formats, and messaging angles. Meta recommends at least 6 creatives for Advantage+ campaigns. Creative fatigue typically sets in after 7–14 days of heavy delivery — track frequency (>3 means fatigue likely) and refresh creatives regularly. Static images, short videos (15s), and Reels-format video all perform differently and should be tested.