Creative Optimisation in 2025: Meta’s Top Tips for Smarter Ads

Overview

• Meta shares ad tips based on 1M+ ad creatives statistics.
• New insights reveal how emotional storytelling, AI tools, and creative variety drive ad performance in 2025.
• House of Marketers Insights on what this report means for creators and marketers.

 

Meta has just released a sweeping new report called “ The State of Creative Optimisation – 2025 Edition”. This cross-functional study is created in collaboration with AppsFlyer and Dentsu Creative. This dives into what actually drives ad success in today’s attention economy by analysing over 1.1 million ad creatives across platforms, industries, and formats.

With AI now at the center of creative production, marketers have more tools and more creative variations than ever before. But volume alone is no longer the winning strategy. 

The real question is: how do you optimise for impact?

This report answers that with data-backed guidance on audience complexity, creative formats, emotional triggers, and AI-powered efficiency. 

Let’s look at the five key insights Meta and its partners surfaced, and what they mean for marketers navigating the evolving digital ad space.

 The 5 Key Creative Optimisation Insights from Meta

1. Match your creative output to the complexity of your audience
2. Master creative fundamentals to boost performance
3. Speak the emotional language of Reels
4. Diversify creatives to increase reach
5. Use generative AI to scale with speed

1. Match Your Creative Output to the Complexity of Your Audience

Not all audiences are created equal—and your creative strategy should reflect that.

According to the report, in the gaming industry, just 2% of ad creatives drive 53% of total ad spend. These are the top-performing assets that advertisers quickly scale to maximise results. In contrast, non-gaming industries are seeing a shift: while the top 2% of creatives still drive a large share of spend (48%), advertisers in these sectors are also increasing their overall creative output by 18% year-over-year.

Why the difference?

It comes down to audience complexity. In non-gaming categories—such as finance, retail, or lifestyle—audiences are often more diverse, requiring a broader range of creative variations to stay relevant, prevent ad fatigue, and appeal to different segments.

This means brands must do more than just produce one or two standout ads. They need a pipeline of fresh creatives that can be tested, rotated, and tailored to specific demographics or behavioral profiles. More creatives = more signals for optimisation models, and more opportunities to connect meaningfully with users.

Takeaway: If your target audience includes multiple personas, behaviors, or regions, your creative strategy should include a high volume of ad variations to match. Scaling successful ads is important—but so is maintaining a steady stream of new ones to reach more people and improve learning performance over time.

2. Master the Creative Building Blocks of Storytelling

Once your creative volume strategy is in place, the next step is to make sure the core building blocks of your ads are strong. Meta’s internal data shows that ads built with key creative fundamentals—9:16 video, emotional storytelling, human presence, and text overlays—perform significantly better.

• 16% lower cost per acquisition (CPA)
• 29% higher conversion rate
• 11% greater reach across placements (Reels, Feed, Stories)

This confirms what many marketers already suspect: great creative begins with a strong foundation—before layering in innovation or experimental formats.

3. Speak the Language of Reels

From there, Meta highlights the importance of platform-native creative thinking—especially for Reels. This format continues to dominate attention, but it plays by its own rules. Ads that lead with emotional hooks in the first two seconds, use multiple audio layers, and feature real people on screen are the ones that resonate most.

According to Meta, Reels that included both expressive sound and a visible human presence saw 8% more conversions per dollar than those that didn’t.

So whether you’re promoting a product, app, or idea, the guidance is clear: get to the point fast, feel human, and let emotion lead.

4. Diversify Creatives To Increase Reach

While strong fundamentals and platform fluency help you build effective ads, diversity in execution keeps your campaigns relevant over time. Meta’s data shows that brands using a varied mix of creatives—across formats, tones, and messages—paired with regular refresh cycles saw:

• Up to 32% improvement in CPA
• 9% increase in incremental reach

This is not about random variation. It is about intentional creative breadth—using different angles, styles, and tones to speak to different motivations.

5. Lean into Generative AI To Scale Faster

Finally, the report emphasises how generative AI is transforming creative production. Meta reports that over 4 million advertisers now use at least one AI-powered creative tool each month—and it is paying off. Campaigns using AI-generated imagery saw:

• 11% higher click-through rate (CTR)
• 7.6% higher conversion rate

AI is not just a shortcut. It is a multiplier. With the right prompts and creative inputs, brands can rapidly scale concepts and test more variations—without burning out creative teams.

House of Marketers Insights: What This Means for Advertisers

This new data confirms what forward-thinking advertisers have already started to adapt: creative strategy in 2025 is data-led, emotionally intelligent, and AI-assisted.

To win in today’s scroll-heavy environment, brands must:

• Prioritise emotional resonance over product specs
• Use AI as a co-creator to test more ideas faster
• Refresh and diversify creatives before performance drops

Our tip: Don’t wait for a drop in CTR to refresh your creative. Use campaign data and audience signals to proactively rotate in new variations—especially on Reels.

Want help building your next high-performance campaign? Contact House of Marketers today to explore how our expertise can help you craft effective ad campaigns that resonate with your audience and achieve your goals and position your brand for success in 2025.