agency ad accounts are not the cheat code you think
Agency accounts are not a guaranteed solution for lowering CPMs despite their reputation. While they offer durability and a place in a media buying strategy, most successful advertisers prefer traditional accounts, and agency accounts require warming up and may initially result in higher CPMs.
Summary
The speaker addresses a common misconception that Meta Preferred Partner (agency) accounts automatically lower CPMs. They reveal that most successful media buyers they know, excluding those using black hat tactics, prefer traditional accounts over agency accounts. However, the speaker takes a balanced stance, acknowledging that agency accounts do have legitimate value in a media buying strategy. The primary advantage of agency accounts is their durability—they maintain stability and typically don't get shut down, and if they do, they're quickly restored. This durability can be valuable even if CPMs remain the same or are higher, because it reduces account risk. A critical point made is that agency accounts are not a magic solution. They require proper warm-up periods just like regular accounts and don't immediately deliver lower CPMs upon activation. New agency accounts without spend history often start with higher CPMs than established accounts. The speaker emphasizes that agency accounts should be viewed as one piece of a larger media buying puzzle rather than a standalone solution. The overarching insight is that Facebook (Meta) fundamentally operates on a principle of charging more for better treatment, meaning paid spend history and account credibility drive performance improvements more than account type alone.
Key Insights
- Most successful media buyers the speaker knows prefer traditional accounts over agency accounts, unless they're using black hat tactics
- Agency accounts have value primarily for durability—they remain stable and are quickly restored if shut down, even if CPMs are the same or higher than regular accounts
- New agency accounts without spend history may initially have higher CPMs compared to established regular accounts
- Agency accounts require warm-up periods and don't automatically deliver lower CPMs upon activation, contrary to common belief
- Facebook operates on the principle that increased payment results in better treatment, making spend history and account credibility more important than account type
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] Is it true you can use Meta Preferred Partner accounts to lower CPMs? I know a lot of people that I respect specifically in regards to their media buying and their ability to make money off of paid ads. And everybody that I know, unless they're super duper black hat, almost every single one is still going to prefer traditional accounts over agency accounts. I find very few people that totally rave about agency accounts. I think there is a place for agency accounts actually though, because they're durable. Maybe you have like higher CPMs on that account or the CPMs are the same, but just your CPAs are higher. If that's the case, it's still good to have…
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