Meta Ads — across Facebook and Instagram — remains one of the most powerful and versatile advertising platforms to reach your target audience and grow your business.
But while launching campaigns may seem easy, this simplicity often leads to costly mistakes — mistakes that can silently drain your budget without delivering results.
If you feel like you’re spending more than you’re getting back from your campaigns in Spain, you’re probably falling into some of these common traps. Identifying and correcting them will not only help you optimize your ad spend but also significantly boost your performance.
Here are 10 of the most frequent Meta Ads mistakes — and how to fix them.
1. Not setting clear goals (or choosing the wrong one)
The mistake: Launching campaigns without a specific goal (brand awareness, traffic, leads, sales) or selecting an objective that doesn’t align with your actual business goal. For example, choosing “Engagement” when your real objective is “Sales.”
The fix: Define what you want to achieve before creating your campaign. Then choose the matching campaign objective in Meta Ads:
- Brand Awareness/Reach – to make your brand known in Spain
- Traffic – to drive visitors to your website or app
- Engagement – to get more likes, comments, shares, or event responses
- Leads – to collect contact details
App Promotion – to drive downloads or engagement
Sales – to drive purchases online or in-store (requires proper Pixel and catalog setup)
2. Targeting too broad or too narrow
The mistake:
- Too broad: Targeting a massive audience with little to no filters, diluting your message and wasting budget on people who aren’t interested.
- Too narrow: Adding so many layers of filters and interests that your audience is tiny, limiting reach and increasing costs.
The fix: Find a balance.
- Start from well-defined buyer personas
- Combine demographics, detailed interests, and behaviors
- Use Custom Audiences (site visitors, client lists) for remarketing
- Use Lookalike Audiences based on your best Spanish customers for prospecting
- Check the estimated audience size in Ads Manager and adjust — don’t fear going broader if Meta has enough data to optimize (especially with Advantage+)
3. Ignoring the Meta Pixel and conversions
The mistake: Not installing the Pixel on your website or failing to set up key conversion events (Add to Cart, Purchase, Lead). Without it, Meta can’t optimize for valuable actions or measure real effectiveness.
The fix:
- Install the Pixel on all pages of your website
- Configure standard and custom events
- Test them with the Event Manager
- Use the Conversions API to improve data accuracy
4. Low-quality or unattractive creatives
The mistake: Using poor-resolution images/videos, generic designs, or unclear copy that gets ignored in Spain’s crowded feeds.
The fix:
- Use clear, high-resolution visuals adapted to the format (vertical for Stories/Reels)
- Craft concise copy with strong CTAs
- Test various formats (single image, carousel, short videos, UGC)
- Refresh creatives regularly to avoid ad fatigue
5. Not running A/B tests (or testing too much at once)
The mistake: Guessing which creatives or audiences will work best, or testing too many variables at once so you can’t tell what drove performance.
The fix:
- Test ONE variable at a time (e.g. creative vs creative, keeping audience and copy fixed)
- Try different headlines, texts, visuals, CTAs, audiences, and placements
- Let tests run long enough to gather statistically valid data
- Use Meta’s built-in A/B test tool
6. Overlooking placements
The mistake: Leaving Advantage+ placements on autopilot without checking, or overly restricting placements without data to justify it.
The fix:
- Start with Advantage+ placements
- Monitor performance by placement in reports
- Exclude or adjust low-performing placements
- Make sure creatives fit each placement (feed, stories, reels, etc.)
7. Not using remarketing
The mistake: Focusing only on new customers and forgetting warm audiences who’ve already interacted with you (site visitors, social engagers, cart abandoners).
The fix:
- Build Custom Audiences from website visitors, Instagram/Facebook interactions, or customer lists
- Serve tailored ads to these audiences (e.g. abandoned cart reminders with discounts, complementary products for past buyers)
8. Setting the wrong budget or bids
The mistake:
- Too low: Not giving Meta enough data to learn and optimize
- Manual bid errors: Bidding too low and getting no impressions, or too high and overspending
The fix:
- Set a daily or total budget that allows campaigns to exit the learning phase
- Use Meta’s automated bid strategies (“Highest Volume”, “Cost per Result Goal”, “ROAS Goal”)
- Adjust budget and strategy based on CPA or ROAS performance
9. Not reviewing or optimizing campaigns regularly
The mistake: Setting campaigns and forgetting them. Performance can decline over time due to competition, audience shifts, or ad fatigue.
The fix:
- Monitor campaigns daily or weekly (depending on spend)
- Review key metrics: CTR, CPC, CPA, ROAS, frequency
- Pause low performers and scale up winners gradually
- Refresh creatives often
10. Ignoring Meta’s advertising policies
The mistake: Running ads that violate Meta’s rules — leading to disapproved ads, account restrictions, or even permanent bans.
The fix:
- Study and follow Meta’s advertising policies closely
- Be extra careful with sensitive topics (misleading claims, discrimination, prohibited products)
- Check and fix any flagged issues promptly
Conclusion: Optimize to win
Meta Ads is an incredibly powerful tool, but it requires attention to detail and a well-thought-out strategy — especially if you want to succeed in a competitive market like Spain.
By avoiding these 10 common mistakes and applying the recommended fixes, you’ll be in a much stronger position to create profitable campaigns, reach your ideal Spanish audience, and achieve consistent business growth.
The key is planning, testing, and continuous optimization.
Don’t let your budget drain away — make it work for you.
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